An interesting and well structured introduction to the World Civilizations. The second volume covers from the 1700s to the 1980s. The perspective of the book is "the course of human history as a whole, as it ebbs and flows over various parts of the globe". A particular civilization's history, development and interactions are focused in each chapter by primary, secondary and visual sources, maps… I appreciated the overall balance between political, economic, social and cultural history. I especially liked the special emphasis on women in each chapter...