Asimov's Chronology of the World

by Isaac Asimov

Book Overview

From the world's greatest science writer, a history of the world from the Big Bang to 1945, told in irresistible short takes and highlighted by a timeline. This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0062700367
• ISBN13: 9780062700360
• Release Date: November 1991
• Publisher: Collins Reference
• Length: 674 Pages
• Weight: 3.05 lbs.
• Dimensions: 2.2" x 7.5" x 9.8"

Customer Reviews

Essential

Asimov's Chronology of the World is a superb reference work. Although not really (and not meant to be) a coherent narrative, it is highly readable and absolutely essential to any historical research. It is useful as a reference tool in almost any historical context; if you're not sure when something happened, or exactly what happened, consult the Chronology. If it was a major happening, it's almost certain to be there, and realtively easy to find. Asimov does sacrifice depth for breadth in this work; many more minor events are not covered. Also, if you plan to read this work cover to cover (I did, and it was very well worth the effort--doing so gives a broad perspective on history very difficult to find elsewhere), you need a good historical atlas on hand to understand how events unfold.The only complaint I have with this work is that Asimov did not live long enough to write the sequel, chronologizing the events from 1945-2000. If anyone has found a good book to fill this gap, please let me know!In sum, Asimov's Chronology is the essential one-volume reference to world history. No home library should be without it.

The blood, the sweat, the HUMANITY!

Isaac Asimov was a man of amazing intelligence, curiosity, humor, and encyclopedic knowledge. He wrote over 465 books (easily the world record), including the popular sci-fi Foundation series, but the "Chronology of the World" is perhaps his greatest monument.Spanning the entire duration of the universe (until September 2, 1945), this astonishing history sweeps across the whole of human existence, covering vast amounts of material from the spheres of politics, military history, science, mathematics, art, music, literature, even athletics. If it has defined humanity, Asimov, a one-man publishing house, throws it in, somewhere in this massive volume.This book is not another pedantic purgation of history--it's very exciting to read. As a professor of biochemistry and author of thousands of scholarly essays, Asmiov certainly has the intelligence to write this book. But as a writer of popular science-fiction stories, he also knows what it takes to make the book fun and compelling to read. This rare combination of brain wits and communicative wits make Asimov a great guide through history. His accounts of the outstanding people and wars are gripping--especially his treatment of Genghis Khan and the Mongol raiders, the rise and fall of Greece and the rise and fall of Rome, and the climactic battles of World War II. While I am astounded by the breadth and the depth and the insight and the sheer achievement of this book, I cannot pretend that it's perfect. Asimov chose to structure it purely chronologically, country by country, from start to finish. The result is one massive block of near-continuous text, making it difficult to grasp the big picture, and difficult to review the major events. There is a timeline at the beginning and an index at the end, to try to compensate for this flaw. Also, there is nary a map to be found in the entire book. This was a disappointment and I often found myself referring to a world map to see what in the world Asimov was talking about.Even with the flaws, this is an amazing achievement and a fantastic read. In few other books does humanity, at its worst and best, unfold so brilliantly as in this one.

Possibly the best one volume history of the world.

Asimov is an acknowledged genius. This book is a great example of the man's genius.A general problem with history books is seeing how the little bit you are looking at fits in with the big picture. Asimov doesn't over-analyse - he gives his history in bite sized chunks so the thread of the overall historical flow remains undisrupted.Asimov has the good sense to draw the book to a close while it is still history 50 years before his writing date. The little mention of his birth is just one of the many points that raises a smile.I would have liked more on Australia, but I guess like many parts of the world the stuff Australia did up to the middle of the 20th Century did not have major international impacts.Start reading your history here and then specific areas afterwards.

A Must-Have

If you have any interest at all in the world you live in, you should have this book. Basically chronicling the complete history of the world from its creation until 1945, it is an amazing, concise, helpful, fun quick referance.If you are reading a historical novel and want to check how accurate it is, this book'll help you. Want to know what else was going on in the world during this war or that revolution? Just open 'er up!I have this book handy at almost all times when I am reading. It is compartmentalized into sections concerning individual countries or groups, not just a big mishmash of everything going on all at once, and it reads very easily, not like a school history textbook. It includes a nifty "outline" timeline at the beginning, too, so you can just skim it over without reading every word.An amazingly hefty, helpful, well researched book that no one should be without.

One of Asimov's best non-fiction works

This is probably Isaac Asimov's best non-fiction history book. It tells the story of history from a simple prespective of what happened when. Lots of modern historians have gotten away from that simple approach. It helps that Asimov is not a historian in the traditional academic way. He was just a person who knew a lot about many things, one of them being history.Coupled with his work about Science and Discovery, it makes for a good reference work that is also a good read.