Book Review: Genghis: Birth of an Empire by Conn Iggulden

About:
Genghis: Birth of an Empire by Conn Iggulden is a historical fiction story following the young man who will eventually become Genghis Kahn. 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.

• 416 pages
• Publisher: Bantam (July 13, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 038534421X

My rat­ing for Genghis — 4

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More Books by Conn Iggulden

Thoughts:
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). Once I got started though, the book was difficult to put down.

Mr. Iggulden weaves a good story with fascinating historical detail while keeping up the drama in the story. 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.

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). While the book is certainly not an encompassing biography of the famous leader, the author does wonders with his story-telling.

Aside from the historical aspects, this is mainly an adventure story of a young boy who grows up to be an incredible leader. 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.

Genghis is an exciting, fast paced story. The characters in the novel are wonderful, the historical detail fascinating and the author’s affinity to Mongolia is felt on every page.

Related Reads:
Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World by Jack Weatherford
The Secret History of the Mongol Queens by Jack Weatherford

Synopsis:
Temujin is a son of Mongol tribe leader who has been killed. Temujin and his family get exiled, hunted and forced to abandon their childhood and innocence. The charismatic Temujin grows stronger and soon takes control of his father’s tribe to become Genghis Khan.