The Great Mortality Lib/E: An Intimate History of the Black Death, the Most Devastating Plague of All Time

La moria grandissima began its terrible journey across the European and Asian continents in 1347, leaving unimaginable devastation in its wake. Five years later, twenty-five million people were dead, felled by the scourge that would come to be called the Black Death. The Great Mortality is the extraordinary epic account of the worst natural disaster in European history--a drama of courage, cowardice, misery, madness, and sacrifice that brilliantly illuminates humankind's darkest days when an old world ended and a new world was born.

About the Author :
John Kelly is an independent scholar specializing in the intersection of European history with health, human behavior, and science. He is the author or coauthor of several books, including The Great Mortality: An Intimate History of the Black Death, the Most Devastating Plague of All Time, For Better or for Worse: Divorce Reconsidered, and Three on the Edge: The Stories of Ordinary American Families in Search of a Medical Miracle. Matthew Lloyd Davies is a veteran actor, director, and Audie Award-winning audiobook narrator. Highlights of his acting career include regular appearances with the Royal Shakespeare Company, Royal National Theatre in the West End, on international tours, and in award-winning television shows and films. He has experience in radio, a master's degree in directing, and extensive experience in presenting at corporate events.

Review :
Narrator Matthew Lloyd Davies captures the grim ironies and mordant humor that underlie Kelly's account.-- "AudioFile" "Kelly.. endows The Great Mortality with the sheer immediacy ancient history yields to only a few." -- "Houston Chronicle" "A compelling and bone-chilling account." -- "Tampa Tribune" "An emotionally accessible narrative, animated by wrenchingly vivid tableaus and alarming first-hand witness accounts...that give the reader an intimate sense of day-to-day life in medieval Europe." -- "New York Times" "An excellent overview, accessible and engrossing." -- "Publishers Weekly" "It's a frightening reminder of what could happen today." -- "Nelson DeMille, New York Times bestselling author" "Skillfully draws on eyewitness accounts to construct a journal of the plague years." -- "New York Times Book Review" "Splendidly written. Kelly has written a popular history based on the best scholarship available, and written it very well indeed." -- "Detroit Free Press (4 out of 4 stars)" "With polished elegance, narrator Matthew Lloyd Davies captures the grim ironies and mordant humor that underlie Kelly's account...A timely window into the distant past, and into our own troubled present. Winner of the AudioFile Earphones Award." -- "AudioFile"