Rating: 
Summary: Content Excellent, Style Flat
Review: This book is excellent in terms of content--Weatherford appears, on the basis of exhaustive research, living in Mongolia, etc.--to know as much or more than anyone on earth
about Genghis Khan--but tedious with reference to the style and quality of the narrative. I have no quibbles with content in terms of clarity of information, but the book reads as a kind of "book report" informational stream--"data" is presented, but in a very one dimensional way. There is no figurative language, irony, or implied perspective of any kind from the author. After a while one get's a kind of reader's version of "listener fatigue" from traveling across the consistently stony ground of Weatherford's narrative. However, a great deal of information is presented--clearly--and the picture that emerges of Genghis Khan is really quite extraordinary.
Rating: 
Summary: Ghengis Khan and the Making of the Moden World
Review: A fantastic story, very well told. It is a very impressive story of a man who really knew how to make history written by a man who really knows how to write about history makers. The book reads like the most exciting movie I have ever seen.
Rating:
Summary: An Absolute Must Read for Everyone Interested in History
Review: Dr. Weatherford's book is an incredible account of the Mongol world of Genghis Khan and his descendents. Once you finish reading Weatherford's book, you will understand how Temujin's reign and his ideas influenced our present day world. Your education and knowledge level of the ancient and modern world is incomplete until you have read this book. Genghis Khan was ahead of his time and has received a "bad rep" by western historians.... until now! At age 66, I feel that I have finally learned the truth.
Rating:
Summary: Enlightening to the Amateur Historian
Review: Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World was exciting and enlightening read. Jack Weatherford's style of writing is easy and flowing making what could be a dry historical work into a tale that explain or debunks many of the myths surrounding the Mongol empire.Whet your appitite:
-The Mongols had an aversion to physical contact with their dying enemies.
-Both the Russians and Nazis used Mongol military tactics on the Russian front in WWII.
-The Mongols connected the known world inadvertently spreading the bubonic plague. A few things to note:
-Genghis Khan dies half way through the book. The remainder of the book discusses the man as defined by his legacy which is the influences he had on the future of government, religious tolerance, military tactics, commerce, science and exploration.
-Khubilai Khan rightly takes up a fair number of pages. It is interesting how Khubilai Khan succeeded in conquering the Sung using politics where Genghis Khan had failed with military force.
-I would have like to have seen a family tree starting with Temujin's (Genghis Khan as a boy) parents. The lineage is well covered in the book and I was easily able to draw out the tree myself. This was a very enjoyable and easy to read book that took many of the myths about the Mongols and either laid them to rest or explained them from the Mongol perspective. It turns out the 'Mongol horde' was actually a well organized society driven with the purpose of increasing trade in manufactured goods.
Rating:
Summary: REVISIONIST HISTORY AT IT'S BEST
Review: I liked this work. Like most, I must admit to have had a very narrow view of the Khans and the contribution the Mongol people.
This book has certainly given me food for thought and has sparked an interest in a new subject (for me) which I will follow up on....always a nice thing, I think! The author's style is easy, his line of thought is logical. I would very much recommend this read for any history buff, and indeed recommend adding it to their library. Prof. Weatherford..if you read this, a suggestion - I think a nice book addressing and telling the tale of your research and the writing this book would be wonderul! So often the story of the making of a work is as interesting as the work itself. Just a thought. Anyway, a good work, read it, you won't be sorry.
Rating:
Summary: Wow What a Great Book!
Review: I recently made a discovery while browsing through the new releases at the bookstore. With no intentions of buying the book I read the first few pages. Once I had read the introduction taken from a 1989 story in the Washington Post I was hooked. The author Jack Weatherford is a professor of anthropology in Minnesota and has done a terrific job of creating an interesting read. Once you start the read it is hard to stop. As part of his research he spent time in Khan's former homeland of Mongolia doing in depth studies, interviews, research, and even camping on the steppes. He has included many references, notes, and comments at the end of this 300 page book including a glossary of Mongol terms. When one thinks of great historical figures, the Mongols and Genghis Khan are not the first names that pop into your mind. But here is a boy, raised in dire poverty and living right on the edge of survival in central Asia approximately 800 years ago, that somehow survives, and then who rose from insignificance to become a leader of the region. He started a family that conquered most of Asia from Hungary to Korea, from India and China to Russia and south to Israel - and all areas between, and left huge foot prints that lasted hundreds of years in an area of the globe where most people (60%) of the earth lived. He did this with a small group of peoples - the Mongols - and they became the masters of all they could find. It is sort of similar to someone conquering Asia and Europe with the Swiss army, and then changing the histories of these vast regions forever. He amalgamated Russia and China from a series of provinces, created Korea, among other things, and left in place an organization that lasted over 200 years. Khan and his sons succeeded through a combination of mobile forces, quick action, and later propaganda. Many peoples when hearing that they were coming simply surrendered. The Mongols were known as a small tribe of scavengers on the northern Asian steppes near the Siberia forests, and are descendents of the Huns that had attacked Rome. "Hunting, trading, herding, and fighting formed a seamless web of subsistence". The author tries to paint a very detailed picture in the format of a semi-biographical novel all in chronological order that must contain a certain amount of fiction to fill in all the biographical details (see Secret History reference in the book). But it all seems realistic and is compelling reading. The book tells the story of the rise to power, seemingly year by year, battle by battle. At age 48 he controls Mongolia, but then with a change of power in Beijing, they (the Jurched) demand that he show submission to their power. That was not in his nature. Instead, he gathered his forces, crossed the vast Gobi region and invaded in groups of 10,000 men (like mobile divisions). The men took no "honor in fighting; they found honor in winning". Starting in 1211 it took him three years to reach the walls of Zhongdu (Beijing). Once that region was conquered he returned to Mongolia very wealthy and was content to stay there. But as his trade and other activities increased, the reach of the Mongols expanded and encountered hostile neighbors. When he sent friendly commercial travelers westward loaded with commercial goods, they were met with death by their unsuspecting neighbors - the Khwarizm campaign (Kazakhstan). The neighbors did not appreciate the retribution that would be unleashed by their actions. Incensed by their deeds, Khan invaded killing their soldiers and aristocrats, and then running the societies according to his own laws. Next he tried to pass his holdings onto his sons. But when they were divided and quarreling, so he sent them out to conquer new areas covering much of Asia and Europe. The story continues on into the middle of the 14th century and the great plague when the role of the Mongols diminished. We can all learn a lot by reading this book including part of Khan's philosophy, i.e. you can conquer an army by force but one can only win a nation by winning the hearts and minds of the people - to paraphrase. It still seems to be applicable. Excellent book. Five stars. Jack in Toronto
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful, overlooked subject
Review: In history the Mongols have been remembered solely for their warlike ability to conquer the known world in such a short time and then subsequently remembered for disappearing so quickly from the world stage unlike comparable empires such as Rome. Yet this book sheds new light on the Mongol influence throughout the world. From the dynasties of china to the Moguls of India to the many potentates throughout central Asia and even in Russia Mongol influence didn't simply disappear but survived even to the modern day. The secret to this 'hidden' impact on world history is the quick assimilation of the Mongols. They quickly adopted the faith of those they conquered, in most cases Islam, and through this new medium they spread themselves out, founding dynasties and small empires throughout the world. Mongol 'hoards' existed in Russia for hundreds of years having an impact felt even in Europe. This wonderful book sheds light on this frequently ignored impact of the descendants of Genghis Khans famed horsemen of the steppe. Seth J. Frantzman
Rating:
Summary: Extraordinary work!
Review: In my opinion this is the best book written on the life of Genghis Khan. There is a variety of reasons for this assessment. First and the far most important reason is the ease of reading in Weatherford's style. He has kept details succinct and facts precise and relevant to the events at issue. The book is a testament of Weatherford's extensive research and grasp over Mongolian 'Secret History.' I recommend this book to all the readers indiscriminative of their previous knowledge on Genghis Khan. The book is not simply a historical reference, but also an analytical study in to the mind of Genghis Khan, and the strategies he employed in enhancing his campaigns, economy and diplomacy. I was quite impressed with Genghis Khan's approach on the legal system he developed for the conquered tribes and nations. In many aspects this illiterate Khan was applying the legal theories that were yet to be debated in the rest of the world. Religion and legal autonomy of local states was surprising. Genghis Khan left religion to the individuals and encouraged the legislation of local laws so long as they are not in conflict with the Supreme Mongol law, a concept American constitutional law scholars and judiciary confronted more than six hundred years later!
Rating: 
Summary: Changhis Khan,
Review: In order to understand the future, one must comprehend the past. I have always been interested in history and outcomes of my native country. I always wondered why some people in the eastern part of the country look different than me. I realized that thanks to Ghanghis Kahn and his conquests, he scared the world. I am sure if he was alive and if his sons were as talented as a warrior as he was, the rest of Eurpoe would have also been effected.
This was a great book. I enjoyed reading it and it persuaded me to study him further.
Rating:
Summary: Fascinating History that peaks your Attention
Review: Jack Weatherford has done an outstanding job relaying the life and times of Genghis Khan. For a reader not well versed on this subject, Weatherford, shines a light on the remarkable struggles and eventual successes achieved by this "infamous" Mongol leader. Particularly interesting are the achievements not only by the Mongol Empire under Genghis, but eventually those by his successors. From paper money to religious freedom, the Mongols were an unlikely predecessor to modern day examples of tolerance and progressive ingenuity. Weatherford describes in full detail the advancements of the Mongol trade systems and their affect on what was then a very closed western society. This book was interesting from the very first page and takes the reader on a great journey through barren plains and forbidden cities. This is highly recommended and worthy of placement in any history library.
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