Alessandro Barbero – författare

The most important study of Charlemagne in a generation, this biography by distinguished medievalist Alessandro Barbero illuminates both the man and the world in which he lived. Charles the Great--Charlemagne--reigned from a.d. 768 to a.d. 814. At the time if his death, his empire stretched across Europe to include Bavaria, Saxony, parts of Spain, and Italy. With a remarkable grasp of detail and a sweeping knowledge of Carolingian institutions and economy, Barbero not only brings Charlemagne to life with accounts of his physical appearance, tastes and habits, family life, and ideas and actions but also conveys what it meant to be king of the Franks and, later, emperor. He recounts how Charlemagne ruled his empire, kept justice, and waged wars. He vividly describes the nature of everyday life at that time, how the economy functioned, and how Christians perceived their religion. Barbero's absorbing analysis of how concepts of slavery and freedom were subtly altered as feudal relations began to grow underscores the dramatic changes that the emperor's wars brought to the political landscape.Engaging and informed by deep scholarship, this latest account provides a new and richer context for considering one of history's most fascinating personalities.

The most important study of Charlemagne in a generation, this biography by distinguished medievalist Alessandro Barbero illuminates both the man and the world in which he lived. Charles the Great—Charlemagne—reigned from a.d. 768 to a.d. 814. At the time if his death, his empire stretched across Europe to include Bavaria, Saxony, parts of Spain, and Italy. With a remarkable grasp of detail and a sweeping knowledge of Carolingian institutions and economy, Barbero not only brings Charlemagne to life with accounts of his physical appearance, tastes and habits, family life, and ideas and actions but also conveys what it meant to be king of the Franks and, later, emperor. He recounts how Charlemagne ruled his empire, kept justice, and waged wars. He vividly describes the nature of everyday life at that time, how the economy functioned, and how Christians perceived their religion. Barbero's absorbing analysis of how concepts of slavery and freedom were subtly altered as feudal relations began to grow underscores the dramatic changes that the emperor's wars brought to the political landscape. Engaging and informed by deep scholarship, this latest account provides a new and richer context for considering one of history's most fascinating personalities.

"A vital guide ... It is difficult to imagine anyone seriously interested in Dante who will not want to own this book" AN Wilson, The TimesSince Dante Alighieri wrote the Divine Comedy it has defined how people imagine and depict not only heaven and hell, but romantic love and the human condition. However, while Dante''s works are widely celebrated outside Italy, the circumstances of his extraordinary life are less well known. Born in 1265, Dante''s adolescence was characterised by literary genius, but his political activism in one of the medieval world''s wealthiest cities led to his death in exile. Pre-eminent Dante scholar Alessandro Barbero and celebrated translator Allan Cameron bring the poet vividly to life. Animating the political intrigue, violence, civil war, exile and cities that shaped Dante''s poetic and political life, this is a remarkable portrait of one of the creators of European literature and a towering medieval figure in time for the 700th anniversary of his death.

"A vital guide ... It is difficult to imagine anyone seriously interested in Dante who will not want to own this book" AN Wilson, The TimesSince Dante Alighieri wrote the Divine Comedy it has defined how people imagine and depict not only heaven and hell, but romantic love and the human condition. However, while Dante's works are widely celebrated outside Italy, the circumstances of his extraordinary life are less well known.Born in 1265, Dante's adolescence was characterised by literary genius, but his political activism in one of the medieval world's wealthiest cities led to his death in exile. Pre-eminent Dante scholar Alessandro Barbero and celebrated translator Allan Cameron bring the poet vividly to life.Animating the political intrigue, violence, civil war, exile and cities that shaped Dante's poetic and political life, this is a remarkable portrait of one of the creators of European literature and a towering medieval figure in time for the 700th anniversary of his death.

A middle-aged judge driven by curiosity and the intellectual challenge of his work, a nervous and neurotic young historian willing to run all manner of risks to uncover the state crimes of the forties, a nerdy, well-educated and good-natured young journalist motivated principally by the desire to enjoy life and not to dwell on the miseries of the past, a KGB general once responsible for some of the purges and now an Islamist radical, an inept, capricious and delightfully self-aware Jewish actor, and an Islamic cleric loyal to the Soviet Union, whose murder has so many repercussions, all these carefully constructed characters could be found in any society but Alessandro Barbero has brought them to life in one of the most elusive, unstable and neglected historical realities: Gorbachev's Russia. And this proves to be fertile ground for Barbero, one that generates endless themes and the opportunity to express his love for Russian literature and culture. Barbero used his skills as a historian to study the reality of that society through its newspapers and journals, and his skills as a novelist to weave a complex plot - a tale of two cities: Moscow and Baku.And throughout, the narrative voice - perhaps the greatest protagonist of them all - represents not the author's views but those of the Russian public as they emerged from one dismal reality and hurtled unknowingly towards another.

Benditas guerras. Cruzadas y yihad explora, por un lado, la historia de las Cruzadas: los motivos religiosos y económicos que las originaron y la justificación que las validó; y por el otro: analiza la respuesta musulmana a las invasiones, el papel de los textos santos, tanto cristianos como musulmanes, y el redescubrimiento del concepto de yihad presente en el Corán.

El Diccionario medieval es un compendio de términos medievales, en el que, de forma clara y concisa, se explican conceptos de las artes, las ciencias, la vida cotidiana, la religión y la política de la Edad Media. Este libro es una herramienta indispensable para todos aquellos interesados en el Medievo y para todos los que, al leer textos de temas afines, se crucen con términos desconocidos.

En la Atenas del 411 a. C., Trasilio y Polemon, dos viejos amigos veteranos de guerra, pasan sus ultimos dias hablando de politica, mientras buscan al mejor marido para sus respectivas hijas, Glicera y Caris. Los atenienses inventaron la democracia y ahora deben defenderla: los ricos conspiran para instaurar la tirania y el pueblo muestra su recelo a los ciudadanos acaudalados. Sin embargo, las jovenes no comparten el punto de vista de la plebe; para ellas, el joven Cimon, rico, elegante y engreido, es el objeto de sus suenos secretos. Asi, cuando Glicera y Caris rompen las reglas de esa sociedad patriarcal al entrar en casa del joven, lejos de los severos ojos de sus padres, se desata en todo el pueblo un drama de siniestra actualidad, que deja expuestas la intensa lucha de clases y la persistente prepotencia de los hombres contra las mujeres.

Da Alessandro Barbero, il professore più amato d''Italia, una raccolta di "racconti" da leggere con il sorriso sulle labbra, che ci mostra un Medioevo diverso da come lo abbiamo sempre immaginato.Il Medioevo francese ci ha lasciato circa centocinquanta fabliaux, brevi poemetti di contenuto erotico. Una materia che nelle mani di Alessandro Barbero, provvisto della giusta ironia e arguzia, si è trasformata in un volume modernissimo, ricco di trovate sorprendenti e valenza letteraria.Una scoperta per tutti coloro che non conoscono il lato giocoso e godereccio del Medioevo!

Por que comemos a determinadas horas y no a otras? Entre finales del siglo XVIII y comienzos del XIX, la aristocracia de Londres y de Paris altero de manera significativa los horarios de las comidas: introdujo un desayuno abundante a media manana, retraso el almuerzo hasta bien entrada la tarde y relego la cena. Lo que podria parecer un simple cambio de costumbres acabo convirtiendose en un eficaz marcador social. A lo largo del siglo XIX, estas practicas se difundieron entre las clases medias y en otros paises, mientras las elites seguian desplazando sus habitos para preservar la distancia. A partir de este fenomeno poco estudiado, el presente ensayo propone una lectura original de la relacion entre alimentacion, sociedad y lenguaje, desde la Ilustracion hasta nuestros dias, y arroja nueva luz sobre como los habitos cotidianos reflejan jerarquias y transformaciones culturales. El desayuno, el almuerzo y la cena no parecen tan evidentes despues de leer este libro de Alessandro Barbero. A traves de novelas, cartas, relatos de viajes... esta investigacion sobre gustos y modas, ritmos y costumbres alimentarias en Europa desde el siglo XVIII nos descubre que los horarios de las comidas son una construccion cultural, distintos segun el pais, la clase social y la epoca, y que siempre estan en evolucion . La Lettura, CORRIERE DELLA SERA

Set in Gorbachev's Russia, The Anonymous Novel is a complex and compelling story of many varied characters dealing with the problems of change, coming to terms with the past and fretting about the future. Barbero manages that typically Italian trick of combining both humour and profundity.