Rating: 
Summary: Required reading for all Christians
Review: This is an excellent book about a largely ignored chapter of European history. Filled with stories about the Vikings, Moors, Magyars, and the Papacy, Reston paints a facinating picture about the consolidation of christian power in Europe. Filled with facinating annecdotes, and quite a few horrifying atrocities this is one of the few historical texts I can give a universal reccomendation to. Especially reccomended to readers of Scandinavian or Hungarian descent; whose history has been obscured by myth, or generally ignored. In addition, the history of the Papacy has to be read to be believed. This provides an excellent groundwork for the study of the crusades, or western christianity in general throughout it's second millenium. Ironically, the accesible nature of this book, and it's wonderful readability, may encourage some to catagorize it as a frivilous catalog of mutilation; but this is a well researched work and absoloutely worth reading.
Rating: 
Summary: So what if it's slightly academically challenged,
Review: This is one of those few history books that is capable of lighting a fire under its readers. The theme -- Christianity's advance out from the center of Europe -- is fascinating. The structure ties together the histories of great peoples who are no longer major factors in world events (except of course the Muslims). The writing makes it fun! Massacres and Viking tortures and wild crusades initiated in the name of hopeless love affairs. The story of this opaque period could never be exactly identical to the facts, but if we restricted ourselves to the facts, we'd be more ignorant than ever. Reston has mixed factual and literary sources to capture something more important -- the gestalt of a great, if somewhat ignored, era.
Rating:
Summary: So what if it's slightly academically challenged,
Review: This is one of those few history books that is capable of lighting a fire under its readers. The theme -- Christianity's advance out from the center of Europe -- is fascinating. The structure ties together the histories of great peoples who are no longer major factors in world events (except of course the Muslims). The writing makes it fun! Massacres and Viking tortures and wild crusades initiated in the name of hopeless love affairs. The story of this opaque period could never be exactly identical to the facts, but if we restricted ourselves to the facts, we'd be more ignorant than ever. Reston has mixed factual and literary sources to capture something more important -- the gestalt of a great, if somewhat ignored, era.
Rating:
Summary: good reading
Review: This was a pretty good scholarly work on the 10th-11th centuries. I was looking for some insight on the time period and was not disappointed. It jumps around a bit, but I guess it has to. Maybe it could have used some segways though.
Rating: 
Summary: Not History, Not Interesting
Review: Unless you're interested in what Reston had for breakfast on a given day rather than history look elsewhere.
Rating: 
Summary: A disjointed, uninspired collection of stories.
Review: What a disappointment. The author offers us no insight, no perspective on the events related to us in this book. The description of the characters, places and events are extremely superficial. I get the sense that the author doesn't care about Europe at the last millenium. My guess is that the author or publisher came up with the idea of writing about the last millenium as the sales pitch for the book. The author spent a couple of months reading the different histories of Europe and tried to bring them together in this text. He failed. One of the binding themes is supposed to be the conversion of Europe to Christianity. He certainly weaves this statement throughout his individual chapters. What he doesn't address is, "Why is this conversion taking place?, What is the power of the church? How is ruler x using the conversion to Christianity as part of his political power? What are the motivations of the people in his stories?" I could go on with this list of unanswered questions, but I won't. At the end of this book, what I was left with was a list of kings and rulers and no real knowledge of how they lived, what motivated them or who they were. An empty book, filled with meaningless trivia. -Tom
Rating:
Summary: An epic history that shows the fragility of society in 1000.
Review: With the new millennium quickly approaching, it has become obvious that the populace of today's world has no fear, or any thought that there may be an apocalyptic event in the year 2000. I am not Nostrodamus, so I am not saying that there will be. I am just observing the fact that people today are looking at the year 2000 as a big party. Cruises are being booked; Hotels are sold out for the New Years Celebration; People are basically optimistic about the year 2000. The only catastrophic event we have to look forward to is the Y2K computer glitch and another presidential election. However, our ancestors of a 1,000 years ago faced the four riders of the apocalypse, death, famine, war and pestilence on a daily basis. In The Last Apocalypse, James Reston reminds us of a not so simple time when Viking hoards from Norway and Denmark, Muslim Moors and Hungarian Magyars had most of Europe under siege. Violence and cruelty were rampant and the invaders were spreading fear and destruction among the people of Europe. Leading many to believe that the proverbial end was at hand. And where was this new God of Christianity? 950 years have past since the death of Jesus and the pagans were running rampant in Europe. Where was the Church in this time of need? Reston answers these questions and more in the 287 pages of the book in which he enchants the reader with an absorbing saga of the end of Europe at the last millennium. As the year 1000 approaches Christianity is seen in a battle for its existence against pagan and Muslim enemies, which were on the brink of conquering the Christian Kingdoms. The Vikings had a stranglehold on England, Ireland and France, the Magyars were laying waste to Germany and Italy and the Moors were chipping away at the last remnants of Charlemagne's empire in Spain. In the meantime, corruption and internal conflict are undermining the Church, rendering it useless against the rising tide of pagans and Muslims. Yet by 1000 AD, the Church has pulled its act together and got its! house in order. It managed to convert the ruthless Vikings and the Hungarian Magyar Chiefs from their pagan ways to Christianity. It also checked the Muslim advance in Spain with the First Crusade, keeping them from reaching into the heart of Europe. Reston convincingly argues that it was the conversion of pagan rulers to Christianity that truly made possible the transformation of the embattled kingdoms of 10th century Europe into the familiar history that we know today. He brings to life legendary leaders and warriors from King Ethelred the Unready of England, to the Moor Al-Mansor the Illustrious Victor to the abiding genius of the age, Pope Sylvester II, all bringing this strife-torn period to vibrant life with each page. Reston begins the book visiting the site of the Battle of Muldon, wandering about Northy Island in Britain, referencing a tattered copy of The Battle of Muldon, an Old English epic poem of the last great battle between the Vikings and the people of Britain. Restons vast knowledge of 10th century history combined with his vivid interpretations of the periods events, makes for fascinating reading. Reston shows that the period was in fact, a type of apocalypse. As a result of all that happens up to 1000 AD, the ancient world passed and new one replaced it. A dawn of a new age, where the Christian Church would battle for dominance in the world arena, Europe would become vastly more Christian and people would prosper as new trade develops with the rest if the world. The Last Apocalypse is a book rich in historical detail, flavored with the stark detail of life in an apocalyptic age.
Rating:
Summary: One of the best books on history ever
Review: _The Last Apocolypse_ is a great book, and has wonderful writing. There's enough great reviews here, so I'll just add some details: 1) The Prolog for me was hard to get into. If you want to get straight to the action, go straight to the first chapter... but be sure to read the prolog before you toss it out. 2) Minor aggrivation: The sub-title should be "Europe AD 1000" As it stands, the sub-title means "Europe in the year 1000 In the Year of Our Lord" 3) The chapters themself are wonderfully entertaining, but the ironically titled epilog, "December 31, 999" is the crown of this book. Definitly read that afterword. Buy. this. book.
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