A History of the World

First published by Odhams in , History of the World ran to three editions, the second edition in , and the third in Weech, wrote in the Preface:. Weech's History of the World is notable for bearing comparison with Ernst Gombrich 's best-selling Little History of the World , a book that is shorter and is addressed to younger readers.

History of the world

Weech's book is noteworthy, not only for being both thorough and accessible, but also not unlike Gombrich's for maintaining a tolerant and measured style, despite being written during the dark days of Nazism. Each chapter has a separate author, as follows: There are many authors that have their own ideas. Curiously, the first edition does not state its publication date.

It posts a warning that if we don't do something different then this could be the last century for Homo sapiens. But this is off-set by a brief discourse on how our ability to continually make scientific leaps artificial intelligence is used as an example will hopefully mean that we are able to come up with solutions that aren't available to us at this point. Do we keep making the same mistakes? Are we destined to be the generator of our own downfall?

View all 6 comments. Jul 06, Iset rated it really liked it Shelves: This seems on the face of it a rather traditionalist approach to history, a throwback to decades past where historians only seemed to talk about kings and queens. So why is Marr writing about powerful individuals? Marr explains that, like it or not, a small number of people throughout history had greater agency than others, the ability to act to change the circumstances around them. He sees these individuals as important because they drove the great changes of history, and although much of the human past is marked by consistency and continuation, it is the changes that have made the biggest difference in our social evolution.

Naturally this type of history leaves out a lot, but the examples Marr chooses are, he feels, demonstrative of the most important changes of their era. By picking out key figures and identifying patterns that emerge in history, Marr is able to bring together the whole and explain the significance of the patterns he draws out.

In my opinion, some of what Marr presents to us in this book is a little dubious. Marr suggests that humans had not even left Africa by the time of the Sumatra eruption c. Marr also presents the view that homo sapiens was probably responsible for wiping out the Neanderthals and megafauna such as woolly mammoths etc. In fact this is still hotly debated, and many theories are put forwards as explanations for these extinctions, including climate change at the end of the Ice Age, which have interesting points of their own. The above caveat aside, the whole work is smoothly written and very readable, I definitely found it an enjoyable read, and Marr picks out both well known and lesser known figures to discuss, and I found his identification of certain patterns in history very intriguing.

Aug 07, Michel rated it it was ok. Its really bad when a book of history is full of historical mistakes,, it is biased far from being objective and consideing the many huge mistakes in it i decided to quit reading. C and he took them back to Baghdad: View all 5 comments.

History of the World (book) - Wikipedia

A very difficult book to review. Marr clearly has a passion for history and has obviously done a huge amount of research. I am impressed that this book covers the history of so many areas of the globe, though I note that some reviewers have criticised it for leaning too much towards western history, so possibly I'm showing a bias too.

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It's well-written and, clearly showing Marr's style throughout, is not at all dry. I had difficulty with it. Partially this is because it presents a very tra A very difficult book to review. Partially this is because it presents a very traditional style of history - focused on the movers and shakers, the powerful and the wealthy - and that's never been the kind of history that interests me although Marr does explain in the introduction why this is his where his attention lands, and I can't fault his reasoning.

And partially it's because it's a gallop through history. It romps forward at a breakneck pace; I found that for the places and eras with which I was unfamiliar, this meant I had nothing on which to hang the information, and it simply poured in one ear and out the other. And for those periods for which that I did have a little knowledge, it seemed to swoop through them with almost no time to digest and connect what I was learning to previously-acquired information. I mostly did audio, and found myself repeatedly hitting the button to go back a couple of minutes - and sometimes realising that I hadn't taken in anything for a few minutes and resignedly going forward anyway.

I can't help but feel that if this had been a series, with more time and detail for each section, I'd have got more out of it.

Series 1 (January - February 2010)

But then would I have read an entire series? So I'm going with 2. I do feel that it would benefit from a second go, for me anyway, but given the length of my to-read list, it seems unlikely to get it anytime soon. Dec 10, Adebayo Oyagbola rated it it was amazing Shelves: A story of mankind from our remotest origins to the 21st century. Andrew Marr tells many tales - of themes, of trends, of cataclysmic events and of iconic characters. His approach to history is not only the usual accounts of conquerors, tyrants and kings and their doings but also stories of the deeds of unusual men and epoch defining ideas.

He takes the reader behind the scenes into the lives of extraordinary men and analyses their amazing and history making deeds. This is an extremely well writt A story of mankind from our remotest origins to the 21st century. This is an extremely well written book. It is organised into the economic periods of mankind and further broken up into the themes that have led us to the here and now. The book ends with a look into mankind's future and the threats that face us - such as global warming, huge population pressures and the global slow down in economic growth, growth we have come to expect and project for.

The only thing I would change is the title - which I believe would have been more aptly called "The History of Mankind". Nov 10, C rated it liked it Shelves: Too many factual errors. Also, before you get anything out of this book, you have to already be fairly knowledgeable about world history to be able to have any sense of continuity. Jan 27, Celeste rated it really liked it Shelves: Last year I decided to take the Texas certification test for history grades It covers historical topics from world history, US history, government, world geography, and economics from pre-civilization to the present.

I thought to myself, "wow, that's a lot to know. I've also taken the GRE, but the vast scope of the material of this test made me nervous. I decided that I needed to brush up on my world history as part Last year I decided to take the Texas certification test for history grades I decided that I needed to brush up on my world history as part of my preparation. I bought this book on my Kindle and started reading a little bit every night and more on weekends. I immediately liked it. The tone is not dry, as many history books can be.

The transitions from topic to topic were logical and meaningful. I was refreshed on some points that I knew already, and I learned quite a few things about others. I wouldn't recommend it as comprehensive for anyone who didn't already have a basic foundation in history. There are spots where the author more or less assumes that the reader knows what will happen next.

And toward the 19th and 20th centuries it felt rushed, like Marr was just trying to wrap up the whole thing. But really, it was a well rewarding read.

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I think it helped me on the test, which was what I needed it to do. Qual o motivo da revolta? Nov 19, Paul rated it really liked it Shelves: The series had eight episodes, and this book has eight substantial chapters, It has the broad brushstrokes of history with lots of details, but not all the minutiae that you would expect from a detailed book on a particular time. It is generally very readable; written with care and attention to the facts.

He uses his journalistic style to criticise where necessary, and comment on historical e A History of the World was a major series for the BBC and this is the tie in book, written by Andrew Marr. He uses his journalistic style to criticise where necessary, and comment on historical events. Once or twice he is patronising, but that is it. When reading it i had his distinct voice in my head. As a general history book, it is very good, however, if you are looking for detail then you need to seek out books relevant to the period that you are looking at. This was my first foray into the world of audiobooks.

I spend a lot of time at work filing by myself and instead of listening to music I thought it was time to expand my horizons into non-fiction. I had been meaning to read this book for a while.

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I started watching the television series it accompanies, but gave up 10 minutes in because I couldn't handle the dramatised version of history. In that sense, the book was much more satisfying. It covers human history from the earliest emigrations from A This was my first foray into the world of audiobooks.

It covers human history from the earliest emigrations from Africa up until the present day, often focussing on less well know cultures and periods in history.

A History of the World in 100 objects

It is an excellent antidote to the West-centric version of history we often are often taught in school. Apr 23, Umair Khan rated it really liked it. British historian Andrew Marr has undertaken this endeavor in his book, A History of the World and a documentary series based upon this book. The interplay of written and visual medium has given the author an advantage that is clearly visible in the narrative. In history, the important points are the dynamic events that changed the socio-cultural patterns for a long time to come. Marr has, quite painstakingly, identified such turning points and analysed them.

Most of the times, these turning points in history are linked to some charismatic and overly-ambitious leader. Our recent titles are available via Edelweiss. Join Our Mailing List: Subscribe to receive information about forthcoming books, seasonal catalogs, and more, in newsletters tailored to your interests. A History of the World. How Young Indians Are Changing the World , described the hustle, aspiration, and disenchantment she found among younger Indian citizens in the course of her research.

We got to thinking about Harvard University Press's long history publishing Latour's work. We're celebrating University Press Week with a speech given by Latour's long time editor Lindsay Waters when Latour won the Holberg Prize, which captures the early m ….