The Goths

David Gwynn’s The Goths is the latest in Reaktion Books’ consistently informative and well-written Lost Civilizations series, and a fascinating retrieval of a people whose memory touches the antipodes of civilisation and barbarism. * Minerva *
This is a splendid introduction to Goths in all their diversity: not just the Goths of History, who sacked Rome before setting up successful kingdoms in Italy and Spain; but also the “Goths” of later mythology, who built the Gothic cathedrals of medieval Europe, wrote the eighteenth-century Gothic novels, and even went on to invent Gothic Rock. From Alaric to Siouxsie and the Banshees, David Gwynn introduces them all. * Professor Bryan Ward-Perkins, University of Oxford *
Gwynn's monograph, which features high-quality illustrations, provides a readable introduction to the history of the Goths. * Sehepunkte *
Those who read a little history suffer from the continuing humiliation of being proven wrong. Some of us have always believed, for example, that the Goths of ancient times were brutal conquerors, famous among the marauders of history. But, once more, what we knew was wrong. The truth is that they began their collective life in Europe as a mass of polite immigrants, anxious to like and be liked. This is the earliest truth we learn from The Goths: Lost Civilizations, an expertly made book. * National Post *