我們的歷史

by Yvan Pommaux, Christophe Ylla-Somers, 邱瑞鑾 (Translator)

◎按時間順序，平行呈現世界各地、從古到今的「我們的故事」。
◎從更全面的角度欣賞與認識人類文明。
◎繪本式的圖像與文字，容易閱讀、理解。
◎書末附六大頁歷史人物介紹，讓歷史脈絡更立體。

這不是關於某個皇帝、皇后、總統、獨裁者或任何大人物的故事，而是「我們」的歷史。
從十五萬年前，甚至在更早之前，我們的故事就開始了。我們經歷過戰亂、病痛和災難，也創造出許多改變世界的事物，帶來驚奇和美好。我們之中有衝突，也有關懷。我們有時幸福快樂，有時哀傷難過，而我們懂得用藝術、音樂和舞蹈來表達這些感受。不論是什麼性別、做什麼工作、住在哪裡，無論是大人或小孩，這是我們──生活在地球上的所有人──共同的故事。

獻給「我們」，以及如今仍正在延續發展的「我們的歷史」。

「我們」是誰？從哪裡來？
如果「我們」共同源自十五萬年前的非洲祖先，
為什麼從以前到現在，世界上總是有各種理由，
將「我們」區分成不同的人群，彼此對立呢？

《我們的歷史》的細膩文字與圖畫，呈現了從古至今人類文明的轉變，
不強調人名與事件因果，而是盡可能全面呈現每一段時間的各地面貌。
說一個不同於過往世界史框架的人類的故事，邀請讀者找到自己的觀點與詮釋。

本書常用「我們」為主詞，以第一人稱描述各民族文化以及戰爭中的觀點，在精鍊的九十頁篇幅中，暗示人類文明和各民族立場帶來的問題。書中也提及一般世界史較少著墨的澳洲、非洲、東南亞早期發展。全書文字簡潔易讀，擁有圖畫書的文句韻律；而圖像則多有大畫面細緻構圖，交織展現各地環境與文明精采之處；亦有巧妙設計，嘗試在單一頁面內比較同時期不同地區的發展。書末更有六大頁的歷史人物介紹，讓讀者可依年代把人物對應到正文內容，更加充實本書的知識層面。這本大開本的歷史繪本，不只是從史前、古文明娓娓敘說至現代的世界史，更是帶讀者思考何謂「歷史與文明」的哲思作品！

Genres: Nonfiction, History, Childrens, Historical

90 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

Yvan Pommaux is a beloved children's book author in France who is known for his detailed research and illustration style. In 1995 he was awarded the prestigious Grand Prix de la Ville de Paris. Three schools have been named after him as a testament to the joy and educational appeal of his work for children. Theseus and the Minotaur is Pommaux's first book in English.

Reviews

[Halon W · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 - tons of info, and the art was nice, but it does have some outdated stuff. a book with this level of scope is bound to trip up on old ideas and stereotypes though, so i'm not too surprised. would love to see an expanded version with new info spanning beyond wwii

[Azamat · Rating 5 out of 5]

Хорошая книга по истории человечества. Конечно, рассказывать про Древний Рим на одной странице в трех абзацах как бы не але, но с другой стороны, книга для детей 10-12 лет и им не должно стать скучно. Хорошо позволяет поверхностно пробежаться по нашей истории и не забыть про разнообразие, которое так актуально сейчас в США — вспомнили и про китайцев и Мали и индейцев, даже индусы упоминаются. Если раньше вся история мира вращалась вокруг старого и нового Света, то теперь впихивают самых малозначительных персонажей, чтобы никто их не упрекнул в том, что они написали историю белых. Картинки классные. В целом я доволен. Купил дочери, а прочитал сам :-)

[Metin Yılmaz · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hızlandırılmış dünya tarihi. Nerden başladı nasıl ilerledi? Çocuklar için uygun bir okuma. Yaradılış mitlerinden uzakta güzel bir anlatım.

[Elaine · Rating 4 out of 5]

This has so much good in it! But I just can't give it 5 stars. First, I hate books that stop "history" right at the Second World War. Kids need to know what came after! And a short "things changed" sort of epilogue like this has is just not enough when you've read through the rest of it. Also, there is a tiny but irksome sentence that annoys me when talking about the "middle ages": "Men showed little interest in those [children] who survived--whining babies who knew only how to cry or play before being able to make themselves useful." UGH. This whole book you focus on how people act the same way century over century, but you assume (wrongly, based on many written accounts of the time), that men were not involved with parenting and did not really care about their children. This has been debunked all over the place!

Things I do like: The resistance to naming the "greats" of civilization, good and bad. (Though you put all of them in the back matter except Hitler, what's up with that??) The focus on all the civilizations of the world during any given period without glorifying or demeaning any of them. Though I think it could go into more detail on the colonization that Asian states perpetuated on each other and the lingering effects of that colonization today. I also like that religion is discussed but is not a main focus, which shows that all of humanity was looking for answers in some form or another.

With all its faults, this is still one of the best history books for children out there. We need more books like this that cover more cultures and more modern times!

[Yasmin · Rating 1 out of 5]

A very low rating to a wonderful idea because this book is so full of historical errors. Honestly the information in this book cries out to be up to date. Not least of all should the out dated terms of "Old World" and "New World" should be dropped simply for the fact that historically it's inaccurate and geographically impossible. Even the adage of historical figures should have been updated with more women and non-European historical figures. The concept of this book would have been difficult enough with a very brief and vague look at the history of humanity and regrettably this book is not up to the task. It's hard to know what age group this book was meant for and realistically it will please no one.

[Sara Pigott · Rating 3 out of 5]

To be honest DNF - while a good book to introduce youngsters to history, and get them interested in how the world we know was shaped, it is VERY (overly?) simplified. Very paired down and gives the impression that nothing much has changed, that humans have always been exactly the same regardless of time or place. Good start but parents beware there is a lot you'll need to fill in and explain.

[Patricia Long · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is not just for young people. I am 79 and learned a lot from it . . .

[Jbondandrews · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an interesting concept to try to tell the history of the world in a child's book. Too much information to relate. And you can't be a Celt and not one. The peoples of Wales, Scotland and Ireland , etc. had many clans, a favourite word of the authors, but Cellts is not the right terminology for them. Some of the costumes depicted weren't acurrate. Though I liked how cats were shown in a lot of the scenes.

[Claudia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Un gran bel viaggio lungo la storia.
Si attraversa la Terra in lungo e in largo, passando per le più svariate realtà geografiche e culturali.
Bellissime illustrazioni, molto evocative.

[Rowena Aldridge · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lovely, honest telling of human history from the perspective of a child.

[Nina#Sreads · Rating 4 out of 5]

Richtig tolle Idee, unsere Menschheitsgeschichte sehr chronologisch und so vergleichend über möglichst alle Erdteile zu illustrieren: Chapeau!

[Fr4ise I S A A C · Rating 3 out of 5]

trop mims

[Daiana]

Captivating and courageous!