Our World's Story

by Eric Burnett

Do you know how we got to here? Well, if you're like 97.4% of the people walking the planet, you haven't got a clue. Sure, you might know a bit about a couple rivers in Mesopotamia, how Socrates wandered around Athens asking questions or how Martin Luther got ticked off one day and nailed a really long essay to the door of a church. But to be honest (and don't be embarrassed), you've got some gaps. Be dense no more. In "Our World's Story," Eric Burnett takes you through all the major tales, traditions and turning points of world history - not just European history, but WORLD history. You'll figure out real quick that the West might have had some crowning moments, but for the whole of human history, it's been the Persians, the Indians, the Chinese, the Muslims or some horse peoples from the steppe that have truly turned us into the clever little creatures we are today. And when most world history books fade off once the Cold War comes to a close, this sometimes cheekily-written tome just gets going. It finishes with a distinctively comprehensive look at the 21st century challenges facing the nine major regions of today's world - Africa, Latin America, Japan, China, the Middle East, India, Russia, Europe and the United States. "Eric Burnett expertly understands exactly what his audience wants to know, what they need to know. A page-turning account of our proudest achievements and our most colossal bumblings. It's world history for the rest of us." - Ibn Battuta

Genres: History

618 pages, Kindle Edition

First published May 29, 2013

Reviews

[Hajra Jamil · Rating 4 out of 5]

05/06/2017
The book “Our World Story” by Eric Burnett is a creative mode of expressing historical context. It conveys the ideas of enjoying history through direct understanding. Although one can agree with the gleeful mood of the text, however there is a downfall as well. The downfall of the book is how the book is supposed to appeal to the readers. Since there is no showcase of illustrated context, it loses its appeal somewhat. But overall it is a much enjoyable read, compared to regular textbooks.

[Mariyam · Rating 4 out of 5]

Our World’s Story written by Eric Burnett is an instructive piece. Although it can be said that the writing is boring at times, one can be sure that the reading exceeds a normal history textbook that might make readers feel dreary. This book teaches World History through an imaginative way.

[John Ezra · Rating 5 out of 5]

"For students who would rather not spend their hours excruciatingly devoted toward the bland, dry content of a school-issued textbook, Mr. Burnett provides a more lucid and witty alternative without completely disrupting the propriety of learning. Unlike the superfluous and stoic content of most textbooks, Our World's Story caused my weekly reading assignments to be seen with less disdain since it emphasized key ideas as opposed to overwhelming me with every convoluted detail of history. Mr. Burnett maintained an obvious zeal toward each and every chapter, and I daresay that his methods were comparable, if not reminiscent, to that of the beloved John Green from the auspicious CrashCourse Series. He constantly engaged his readers and was mindful of the fact that the people reading this were not necessarily deep-rooted fanatics of history, and rather, he appealed to a wider audience by incorporating his personal commentary and even humor into the book, humanizing himself to further engage me. In my opinion, his beliefs do not abate the information to which he presents- in fact, the candor that he showed throughout the chapters were what kept me on track and focused. Ultimately, this book allowed for a breath of fresh air and a novel way to help aid me in preparation for my AP World History exam. Thank you, Mr Burnett for a more than tolerable textbook read."

[Hadia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hadia Iqbal 5/25/17
Ap World History
Book Review
I’m a freshman and I’m new to a lot of things in my high school. This year has gone fast not only with extra curricular activities I do in school and outside of school but also with the topics I have learned over the period of time in AP World especially. I chose to take AP World because I am a kind of person who likes to try new things and see where the difficulty of things will take me and how it will be beneficial. I took AP World and after I found out what we are going to be learning and how much of a challenge it would be it was way more than I expected. I really didn’t understand the topics as much until my teacher introduced me and the other students to Our World’s Story by Eric Burnett. We get assigned to read specific chapters that are related to what we learn and we answer the questions that our teacher give us using the textbook. When my teacher told me we were to do this I was very mad because I’m not much of reader when it comes to reading things and so I was hoping that it wouldn’t be too bad and it would be interesting because when certain readings interest me then I read them. When I read Our World’s Story it was way different from other textbooks. I was expecting in my mind that it was going to be boring words that would make me want to rip my eyes out. But it was very good and I liked the concept of it. It is a great read especially for students because the way Eric Burnett wrote the chapters were modernized and it “fit’s in” with the way students read which is what I like to say. It really helped me with the tough topics I was learning because it gives a lot of information about topics especially religion. I didn’t really put religion into thought like Christianity and Islam but Our World’s Story gave way more deep insight into this type of information really helped me. Overall I believe Eric Burnett did an amazing job with this writing and I recommend other students especially high schoolers who are taking AP World to use this as a guide because it really helps.

[Melena · Rating 5 out of 5]

Engaging and brilliantly written source of learning
“Our World’s Story” is an intriguing and contemplative textbook that manages to do what most informative books cannot- teach the reader along with entertain and motivate them to continue on with the material. This book is more interesting and detail-orientated than the other AP World books I have tried in the past, and made the reading less of a chore and for it to have more of the feel of an actual story. I enjoyed the author’s personality and subtle jokes strewn about throughout the book. It is true that Burnett does seem to let his own biases and beliefs occasionally be evident in the writing, which for the most part should be a retelling of history and not a persuasive essay on why his vision is right, but his emotions are light enough that the reader should be able to ignore his opinions and understand the material just fine. I agreed with most of his feelings about history and it’s effect on the future, so they did not bother me, and rather they enhanced the feeling of a human connection throughout the textbook. One last thing I really liked was how he would always end each chapter the same way, as it was a fun and motivating quote to look forward to. I could go on, but that is for another review.

[Meghan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This encompassing text gives a broad overview of history, in a funny, captivating manner. With most texts, young readers are left to read extraneously long chapters, that are often very dry. Burnett has done something different, here. The humor that Burnett brings to the history of the world makes the devastating task of spending our weekend, as students, a little less boring. With better editing, I am sure that this textbook can achieve an even greater standard and become even more liked by students. My only other critique is that in some there was a deep bias, that was clear in the way the author worded certain things. Besides that, Burnett, you have something truly special and I hope that you will produce other books, perhaps Europe’s Story, or China’s Story, etc.
-Meg from CCHS

[Abbie Weidman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought Burnett did a very well job of explaining historical events and facts. Probably what I enjoyed most about the book was that it was so much easier to read than a textbook because the voice of the author made it easier to stay focused and engaged in reading. I really liked the comedy and jokes that Burnett incorporated into "Our Worlds Story" but visually I think the book could use improvements. There weren't any pictures so the book was very boring to look at and I think that pictures could really improve the experience of reading the book.

[Saba · Rating 5 out of 5]

Our World's Story covers history without being too factual. It describes the events, giving the general overview of why its important, with the relevant cause and effect details. With the modern-day references, sarcastic but humorous tone it makes the read not only enjoyable but engaging. The brief intro to the next chapter makes it easier to get started on the next reading. The chapters discussing current events are also a nice touch, making the book overall a captivating read.

[Eliza · Rating 4 out of 5]

While Mr. Burnett brought a fun twist to history through his dry humor and view on past events, his opinions somewhat spoiled the facts and caused the truth to be underwritten. It appeared as if Mr. Burnett was trying just a little too hard to be like “one of the cool kids” and in the process my education suffered. But otherwise it was an overall interesting book to read, 4 out 5- somewhat recommend.

[Jenna Hoffay · Rating 5 out of 5]

The informative book, "Our World's Story,"gives an appropriate broad overview of our world's history. It is well formatted, which helps students grasp onto specific topics. There is some humor that makes the overall chapter(s) more interesting and intriguing, allowing others to want to read more. Teacher's encourage students to read it, so it seems that it's not only teaching students, but it's also wanting them to learn and discover more about our world's history as a whole.

[Manning DelCogliano · Rating 4 out of 5]

This textbook, Our World Story accurately and cohesively depicted world history in an efficient manner. While this book told the contents of about ten thousand years worth of history, it was full of information that was described in a humored and opinionated way. This disposition allowed for a more enjoyable and easier to read book.

[Vivi M · Rating 4 out of 5]

AP World History is one of the most painful classes a honors student could take and reading thirty pages of a dry textbook that's the weight of a cinder block is the most dreaded homework that I receive. Our World Story is significantly less bulky and makes a valid attempt at entertaining the reader as they go over history. It made class reading much more tolerable.

[Lexi Harrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a very helpful source of information. It gave an in-detail description of history around the world. It was very intriguing and I learned a lot from it. Burnett gives the reader everything they need to know about history; it digs deeper to explain the crucial points of world history.

[Miala · Rating 3 out of 5]

A very good history book that gives an overview of world history. This author does a good job in explaining and making the events throughout history easier to understand for students. Also this book draws more interest to students, rather than reading the textbook, which can be less interesting.

[Braidee-Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

Our World Story seems very personal because Eric Burnett includes many of his own opinions throughout the chapters. However, I wish there were some pictures to help me understand things more clearly. Overall I think this book was very informative.

[Faith · Rating 4 out of 5]

Our World's Story was a very useful book in my world history class. I would recommend it to all students taking that class. It provided multiple examples and explanations to increase the knowledge of readers. OWS also was broken up into sections so it is easier to find what you are looking for

[Meredith Miner · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is much easier to read than a textbook, but it does unfortunately have a bias that cannot be avoided when written by a single person. I do like the voice the author provides along with the history, but I would opt for a more open minded perspective on history.

[Shakory · Rating 5 out of 5]

Personally I really liked Burnett’s work. He gave the book his own voice, one not like most history books. The way he narrated was in a unique way in which reading was actually enjoyable and didn’t put me right to sleep. Burnett’s own little tidbits like he did in page 45, in which he suggest a song on Youtube to look up to learn the Chinese dynasties. “Our World’s Story” by Eric Burnett is an interesting modern approach to a history book and earns a five star rating.

[Madison Almonte]

Madison Almonte
Grade 9
AP World History I Lasky
Growing up, reading textbooks were always a bore. Too much unneeded information, I would think to myself. Just get to the point! That’s where Ourworldzstory comes along. It’s the textbook this generation is built for. Available online for students, it’s the perfect combination of history review and modern day references, along with a dash of comedy to keep the reader hooked. I dd always have a thing for history, but no one puts it into a story like Eric Burnett, the author of Ourworldzstory. He manages to craft the world’s history into terms and ideas that the youth, like a ninth grade AP World History student such as myself, can interpret and understand. This has helped my peers and I through many of our toughest subjects, such as “The Middle East United”, which summarized the Persian empire, or “Crusade and the Kingdom of Heaven”, the chapter that explain all nine of the holy crusades made by the Crusaders to take back Jerusalem, the holy land. There are many more topics in this textbook that any person can read and learn from. But that’s for another chapter...

[Lindsey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a freshman taking AP world history. I am not the biggest fan of reading and I obviously don’t know everything about history, but this book has definitely changed my perspective on history. This year, I was introduced to this book by my AP world teacher. It has helped me so much and certainly serves as a guide for the course.
Even if you are a history freak, you probably still don’t know half of what has happened in the world. Sure, you might be able to memorize the presidents or state a few lines of the Declaration of Independence, but do you know what happened before that? If you are like most people, you probably can't name every river in the middle east and you probably don’t know who Martin Luther is (no not the one that had the dream or his father, but the one that got angry and nailed an insanely long essay to a church to explain his feelings.). Even if you know that Istanbul is Constantinople, you still don’t know enough about world history.
In Our World's Story, Eric Burnett takes us through the long journey of what happened before we existed. He takes us into the most specific details and explains the traditions, languages, religions, and turning points in world history. We are able to learn who changed the world and we can see all of the events that made our world what it is today. This book goes deeper into our world history and truly helps us examine history in a way like no other. Mr. Burnett adds his own thoughts, ideas, and humor to put a twist on the way we see our past.
Eric Burnett understands what it takes to make students interested in world history and he puts it into his words. His book is certainly educational and the pages contain some of the greatest achievements and people in our history. This book helps you learn about history while enjoying it at the same time.

[Ahnalese]

This year I am taking AP World History and I have been assigned homework based off of reading Eric Bernett’s Our World’s Story. His book takes your average, boring history book and adds a humorous twist. He writes the book in a way that makes sense by using vocabulary that any student would be able to easily interpret and understand. It actually makes learning about history interesting, and sometimes I forget that it is still a history book. I would definitely recommend reading Burnett’s humorous and witty take on history textbooks, Our World’s Story.

[Laura Avila]

"Our World's Story" has a great sense for the AP course with only mildly suggested opinions throughout. Burnett was able to keep the information from becoming too dull with his clever wit while still prepping for the quintessential information needed to pass the exam. Although it's got a few flaws in particular events, I would absolutely recommend this book to budding AP students in the future. With its convenience of the internet, students can immerse themselves in history if they're willing to work with the book.