Martin Puchner

What good are the arts? Why should we care about the past? For millennia, humanity has sought to understand and transmit to future generations not just the "know-how" of life, but the "know-why"—the meaning and purpose of our existence, as expressed in art, architecture, religion, and...

Centuries ago in middle Europe, a coded language appeared, scrawled in graffiti and spoken only by people who were wiz (in the know). This hybrid language, dubbed Rotwelsch, facilitated survival for people in flight - whether escaping persecution or just down on their luck....

The story of literature in sixteen acts—from Homer to Harry Potter, including The Tale of Genji, Don Quixote, The Communist Manifesto, and how they shaped world history In this groundbreaking book, Martin Puchner leads us on a remarkable journey through time and around the globe to reveal the...

Da cidade perdida de Nefertiti às peças de Wole Soyinka; dos teatros da Grécia antiga aos diários de viagem chineses e às bibliotecas árabes e astecas; desde uma estatueta do sul da Ásia encontrada em Pompeia até uma cápsula do tempo deixada na Lua...

Eine triumphale Neuerzählung der Menschheitsgeschichte Auf einer Reise von der Chauvet-Höhle in Frankreich durch das klassische Griechenland, die Bibliotheken der Azteken, Ashokas Indien, das China der Tang-Dynastie, Nofretetes Ägypten und weitere Epochen: Diese leicht verständliche und...