Greece: A Short History of a Long Story, 7,000 BCE to the Present

by Carol G. Thomas

A Short History of a Long Story presents a comprehensive overview of the history of Greece by exploring the continuity of Greek culture from its Neolithic origins to the modern era.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

224 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2014

Reviews

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is definitely a quick overview of the long history of Greece. While it did provide insights to the history, I have to say I was a little disappointed. First off, I don’t think this book was edited very well as there are a lot of grammatical/editorial errors that just annoyed me. But also, I felt like there was too much focus on Ancient Greek history, and not nearly enough on more modern Greek history. I must admit that I already knew the Ancient Greek history through my undergrad program in classical civilizations, but still, 4 or 5 of the 11 chapters focused on that time period. While I’m not saying that those chapters should have been condensed or combined, I do think the post classical history of Greece should have had more chapters. For example, chapter 10 ranged from 1935 to the present (2014) ...so much happened in Greece during this time and I don’t feel like it got enough respect. If you know nothing of Greece this is a good place to start (if you don’t mind ok writing), but it does give the very bare minimum, especially concerning modern Greek history.

[Gail Barrington · Rating 4 out of 5]

A wonderful overview, possibly more informative about earlier periods while the 20th century was a bit confusing. I know. So were events! Greater clarity and structure in the last two chapters would be helpful. Overall very worthwhile. What an amazing history. I felt much more informed when I visited Pella and Vergina and toured Philip II’s tomb.

[Lydia]

A fantastic overview of a very long history. Gives a good overall context for the current state of the nation and culture, with plenty of references and recommendations for further reading following each chapter. Really glad to have gotten a grounding in the vast history of my heritage, and excited to learn more.