Summaries and Customer Reviews are supplied by Amazon.com

Average Customer Rating:

Just what he wanted	Customer Rating:
I bought this book as a gift for my son-in-law. It is a beautiful book and he has really enjoyed it.

few maps for a history book	Customer Rating:
In my opinion the book has a major flow, which is it contains very few maps. Unless the reader has a good idea about ancient and modern world history, it is quite hard to figure out where everyhing is where. The book is very superficial in this respect.

Excellent narrative (oh, but where are the maps?)	Customer Rating:
This book provides a wonderful way of learning history -- interestingly written and great pictures and photographs. The only thing lacking (and a major omission) is maps. In covering world history over its complete span, the reader cannot be expected to know the exact location of the Asian Steppes or Bithynia. Please include adequate maps for the next edition.

Too simplistic

Customer Rating:

I wish I could agree with most of the other reviewers but I did not find this to be a remarkable work. I instead found it simplistic, often insultingly so. Its coverage, for instance of the 'Second World War' is absolutely disgraceful. It is almost as if Churchill were just another ordinary politico, who happened to be leader of Great Britain at the time. Nowhere is there any indication of the great role he played in turning the tide towards Allied Victory. Simplicity reigns everywhere. And it is of course possible to say that this is only for high- schoolers, only meant to provide material at a certain level. But by being so simplistic one does not really provide even a basis in understanding. I remember the History Text Books used in American schools five decades ago. They were more detailed and my guess is as well or better written than what we have here. I do not like to down books especially ones which are aimed to being educational tools, and better informing the general public. But I just believe that the coverage given here to the subjects I know something about, and examined is really not adequate.

Superb	Customer Rating:
aspiring writers take note: this is how all books should be formatted... 50% pictures, 50% words. I especially liked the story of Napoleon who was, in my honest opinion, an even better leader than George W Bush. Unfortunately, there was no mention of Nathan Rothschild - which I found staggering - but that is not a good enough reason to deduct a star. Verdict: Buy it!