Volume 2 of The Story of Civilization, the Durants' dynamic synthesis of world history, deals with Greek civilization. THE LIFE OF GREECE tells the whole story of Hellas, from the days of Crete's vast Aegean empire to the Roman conquest. The Durants' picture of 5th-century Athens is a masterpiece of compression, synthesizing the high spots and highlighting the significance of what many consider the most fruitful epoch in history.