National Geographic History at a Glance: Illustrated Time Lines From Prehistory to the Present Day

by National Geographic Society, Amy Briggs (Foreword)

Beautifully illustrated, this penetrating book offers a sweeping view of humanity from prehistory to the modern day, presented in a unique time-line format.

Sweeping but succinct, this comprehensive reference presents all of world history in a browsable format featuring more than three dozen maps, along with hundreds of photographs and illustrations. From the dawn of humankind to today's global complexities, this book provides a compelling reminder that history is unfolding all around us.

The epic story of humanity on all seven continents is explored through a unique design that combines concise essays with expansive time lines that invite deeper reading on milestone moments, explained within the broader context of the era. The final chapter highlights such recent events as SpaceX's heavy rocket launch, the restoration of U.S./Cuba relations, and the historical trends that were the precursors to the state of our world today.

Informative and richly illustrated, this authoritative take on world history will be a compelling reference you'll turn to again and agian.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Reference

416 pages, Hardcover

Published November 12, 2019

About the author

The National Geographic Society (NGS), headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, is one of the largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations in the world.
Founded in 1888, its interests include geography, archaeology, and natural science, the promotion of environmental and historical conservation, and the study of world culture and history. The National Geographic Society's logo is a yellow portrait frame—rectangular in shape—which appears on the margins surrounding the front covers of its magazines and as its television channel logo. Through National Geographic Partners (a joint venture with The Walt Disney Company), the Society operates the magazine, TV channels, a website, worldwide events, and other media operations.

Reviews

[Whitney · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you @natgeo for the free books • Any history buffs out there? I have one more new release from National Geographic to share with you - History at a Glance!
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Have you ever felt like it’s hard to get a grasp on worldwide history from books? We often only get a snippet of what happened in one country or continent, without the context of worldwide events. National Geographic has done a phenomenal job of putting together timelines across history, from prehistoric to modern times, of events on every continent.
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I find it absolutely fascinating to page through this and see the pieces of world history fit together. And although this is obviously too advanced for my kindergartner, I think that in future years he will learn so much from it.
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I’m already thinking about who on my Christmas list would enjoy this book - do you have any history lovers in your life?
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Thank you @tlcbooktours @natgeo for the free book.

[Christy · Rating 5 out of 5]

This approach to an overall view of history helped me see how everything unfolded in a different light. I thought the layout of the pages was done very well, the world was divided into 5 regions and there were 5-6 categories of history it talked about during a certain time range. It was very interesting to see things that were happening at the same time in different areas of the world. It quite a beast of a book and likely meant to be referenced for the years that you're interested in, but I thought the whole thing was worth reading.

[Stephanie Ward · Rating 5 out of 5]

'History at a Glance' is another gorgeously illustrated reference book published by National Geographic that will have you so absorbed in the information that you'll forget you're learning important history. This book is certainly intimidating with over 400 pages of illustrations, time lines, maps, graphs, and loads of information filling each page. I don't think it's possible to sit down and actually look through and read this entire volume in one sitting. Even if you're not a big history buff, there's something in this book that you will enjoy and end up learning from. I don't really consider myself a big history fan, but this book was so beautiful and full of cool information that I forgot I was learning about history. I was completely absorbed into the various time periods that the book is broken down into. Each has a detailed timeline to describe a variety of things happening around the world during these times. I liked comparing how different aspects of societies - like government or culture - was both different and similar across the continents. The pictures and illustrations are on every single page, some taking up the entire thing and others only a small part. But each one is amazing and includes a fascinating caption describing it or the culture/time it represents. I'd say even if someone just went through and looked at the pictures and read their descriptions, they would still get a fantastic experience and even learn some history without knowing it. This is another wonderful reference book by National Geographic and one that I highly recommend to history buffs and readers of all kinds - no matter age or genre preference.

Disclosure: I received a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

[Christyn · Rating 5 out of 5]

National Geographic's History at a Glance is an impressive overview of humanity's history from pre-history to modern day given in the context of a world-view.

It is broken down in the following way:
The First Societies (Prehistory - 500B.C.E)
The Classical Age (500 B.C.E - 500 C.E.)
Faith and Power (500 - 1000)
Invasions and Advances (1000-1500)
Converging Worlds (1500-1750)
Empires and Revolutions (1750-1900)
Global Conflict (1900-1950)
Toward a New World Order (1950-2000)
Globalization and Disruption (2000-Present)

Each section has an introduction, essay's about particular standout historical events and the timeline pages. The timeline pages were broken down into 5 sections: Politics and Power, Geography and Environement, Culture & Religion, Science & Technology, and People and Society. They were also broken down by which part of the world the event was in: The Americas, Europe, Middle East & Africa, Asia &Oceania. I liked the timeline the best, it was concise, condensed, often with relating pictures/illustrations and you could learn something from every page you opened up to.

This is an excellent coffee table book; it has both the size and the glossy, full-color pictures. Great for any history buffs, curious minds or as a reference material.

[Sara Strand · Rating 5 out of 5]

Amazing photography and images, concise and clear timelines, and packed full of information that keeps you captivated page after page. I highly recommend this for any history buff or information junkie- you'll enjoy this immensely.