

So how did an illiterate nomad rise to such colossal power, eclipsing Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar and Napoleon? Credited by some with paving the way for the Renaissance, condemned by others for being the most heinous murderer in history, who was Genghis Khan? The charismatic Temujin grows stronger and soon takes control of his father’s tribe to become Genghis Khan.Genghis Khan was by far the greatest conqueror the world has ever known, whose empire stretched from the Pacific Ocean to central Europe, including all of China, the Middle East and Russia. Temujin and his family get exiled, hunted and forced to abandon their childhood and innocence. Temujin is a son of Mongol tribe leader who has been killed. The Secret History of the Mongol Queens by Jack Weatherford Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World by Jack Weatherford

The characters in the novel are wonderful, the historical detail fascinating and the author’s affinity to Mongolia is felt on every page. Genghis is an exciting, fast paced story. This is a “man’s book”, not that I don’t recommend it for women, but the author is clearly writing for males, understands males and shapes his story to that affect. While the book is certainly not an encompassing biography of the famous leader, the author does wonders with his story-telling.Īside from the historical aspects, this is mainly an adventure story of a young boy who grows up to be an incredible leader. Unlike other Mongol leaders, Genghis Kahn understood the importance of the tribes uniting, both for security and strength (even though I’m sure many saw them as one and the same). As brutal as life was in the plains of Mongolia, Genghis manages to mix brilliance with violence, respect with strength and understands the necessities of survival in a community. Iggulden weaves a good story with fascinating historical detail while keeping up the drama in the story. Once I got started though, the book was difficult to put down.

I had waited a long time to read Genghis: Birth of an Empire by Conn Iggulden ( website | Facebook), I bought it for my nook while it was on sale one day and it simply resided there until I had a chance to read it (there are many other books suffering the same fate). This is the first book of a series which at the time of the writing of this post numbers five novels known collectively is the Conqueror series.īuy this book in paper or electronic format* Genghis: Birth of an Empire by Conn Iggulden is a historical fiction story following the young man who will eventually become Genghis Kahn.
