A Little History of the World Paperback – Illustrated, October 7, 2008

Great, simple, and understandable snapshot of history. Exactly what I needed.

Really fun and factual readLike stated on the title of my review, the book was pleasant and informative. The author begins around the time of the hominids, and descriptively details [their] life without communication, unity, laws, and material. Then he transitions to prehistoric times - that of the Neanderthals. This was the inception of communication (through paintings), language, man-made fire and tools. The periods discussed here are the Ice Age, the Stone Age, and the Bronze Age. In the proceeding chapters the author details the life of primitive civilizations living in Egypt, Mespotamia, Palestine and Israel. This is were religion formed, and historical religious prophets are spoken of such as Moses, David, Solomon and more. Around the time came the Phoenicians and the inception of the alphabet; therefore resulting in intelligible language. Other ancient civilizations are mentioned and expounded on, and same goes with their rulers (and influential figures). For example:Ancient China - the influence of Confucious and ruling of Shih Huang-tiPunics - HannibalRoman Empire - Julius CaesarEtc.After the A.D. point, there was inception of superstition and the Dark Ages. There was Christendom, chivalry, cities and markets, merchants and knights. Throughout early times, the Arab world came to be and had a strong advantage on the world intellectually and powerfully. Then came the new age, with new religions and new wars. Eventually we come to the enlightenment; a time of intellectual triumph in anthropoid history. Revolutions occurred, and so did Napoleon. Seas were crossed and America was founded, late of course, and local inhabitants were brutally slaughtered by the Spaniards. And eventually we get to modern times. The text transitioned fairly well and I enjoyed it much and learned a lot. To me it seemed that the author was of Christian faith, because of what looked like minuscule attempts at times to justify Christian actions. A little caveat for sure but overall there are a lot to learn from this short book on a huge subject.

'A Little History of the World' is exactly what the title indicates. Gombrich takes the reader from the dawn of time to the mid-twentieth century. Gombrich covers cave men, great religious leaders, philosophers, and events over an incredible timeline.I got this book for my eight year old son and I to read together. There were certain chapters and topics which grapped his attention. Other chapters were a little over his head in regards to understanding the causes for certain events. In particular, the chapters covering the Inquisition and the causes that lead to the French Revolution were a little difficult for him to truely understand.This book is a great way to introduce a child to the wonderful stories that make up the world we live in. It may also be a stepping stone to further reading on subjects that spark some interest.

Writing a history book on which every reader will agree is tantamount to impossibility. In this regard, I will not let his perspectives affect my evaluation on this book as a history book.The author uses a simple and friendly language so as for the readers to learn the history readily. As was this text intended for young readers in relatively short length, many historical memorabilia are omitted. However, I do think that is forgivable, given the short length and intended usage of it. This book is not textbook worthy, but a book to compliment history textbooks.Hugely argued against this book was the lack of contents of other worlds than the West. I do agree that the title of this book "a little history of the world" is a bit misleading in this sense. However, I ascertain that this is condonable as well, based on that fact that the author showed much efforts to cover the history of Asia and Middle East.By and large, this is a great history book that is not just dry, nor boring. I recalled many that I had forgotten since high school history class and learned some new things. Never have I felt bored all the way through the book, and it is very rare that I feel this way about a history book. I do plan on reading more books written by this author.

I purchased this book because I was looking for an interesting juvenile world history. I wasn't disappointed.According to the preface, A Little History of the World began in 1935, when Gombrich was a newly graduated but unemployed art historian. A publishing acquaintance asked him to read an English history book for children in preparation for translation and inclusion in a German nonfiction series for children. Gombrich was so disappointed with the quality of the work that he told the publisher it was not worth translating, and concluded his remarks by saying that he could probably write a better history himself. The publisher invited him to submit a chapter, so Gombrich wrote a lively account of the age of chivalry. The publisher was so delighted with the result that he asked Gombrich to write an entire history book for the series---and gave him exactly six weeks to do so, the time originally alotted for the translation of the English book.Gombrich chose the historical episodes he included by asking himself which events were best remembered and had touched the most lives. He read selections from his writing to the young woman he was courting, who later became his wife. The book was published in 1936, then rapidly translated to five other languages, but by then, Gombrich and his wife had moved from Germany to England.More than thirty years later, a German publisher asked Gombrich to produce a second edition, and he complied. Then in the 1990s, he decided to write an updated edition of the book, and this time, he decided to translate it to English. Gombrich unfortunately died before the book was completely revised, but this is a good, lively volume of juvenile world history, perfect for reading aloud.