3/2/2023 Question of the day

[petrea_mitchell]

World Book Day: What are you reading at the moment or what have you just finished reading?

I've just finished The Secret History of the Mongol Queens: How the Daughters of Genghis Khan Rescued His Empire by Jack Weatherford. The title is rather misleading since the book actually confirms the history you already know, where the Mongol Empire started falling apart the moment Genghis Khan died. But it continues the story on through to the emergence of the later nation of Mongolia, and does introduce many powerful women you probably haven't heard of, or have only heard of indirectly (like Khutulun, the inspiration for the play and opera Turandot). It also fills in many things I hadn't known about the administration of the empire and the daily life of the Mongols (for instance, how the women transported themselves, the kids, and the household supplies while the men were all riding around on horses).

I don't know what I'll be picking off the TBR shelf next, but I'll have to make the decision shortly.

Comments

[delosharriman]

Presumably the title is a reference to the so-called Secret History of the Mongols, which is mostly a sort of biography of Genghis Khan. It's poorly-named but the name has been with it for centuries, so there's not much to be done.

[petrea_mitchell]

Yup, there are references to it early and often in The Secret History of the Mongol Queens.