A Short History of the World in 50 Places

A Short History of the World

by Jacob F. Field

From the Olduvai Gorge in Tanzania, where remains of some of our earliest tool-using ancestors were found, to the CERN laboratory, where revolutionary technologies such as the World Wide Web were developed, each entry shows its influence on not just politics, but on the economy, culture, religion, and society, as well as their links to great historical figures such as Alexander the Great, Buddha and Nelson Mandela. The size of the places ranges from small geographical features like a cave in Saudi Arabia where Islam began, to larger areas or regions, like Hollywood. Many entries are cities, such as Jerusalem, Amritsar, and Rome, some others are buildings, like Anne Frank’s House in the Netherlands or the Confucius Temple in China, and there are even some that are rooms, such as the Hall of Mirrors in Versailles Palace. No place is too big or too small to be included, as long as it has had a significant impact on history.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Historical

288 pages, Hardcover

Published October 1, 2021

About the author

Jacob F. Field is a historian and writer. He grew up in South London, completed his undergraduate degree in History at the University of Oxford, and then moved to Newcastle University for his PhD. He completed his doctoral thesis on the Great Fire of London in 2008, and has worked as a research associate at the University of Cambridge since then. Jacob has contributed to books including 1001 Historical Sites and 1001 Battles That Changed The Course Of History and published articles in journals including Economic History Review, London Journal and Urban History.

Reviews

[Rıdvan · Rating 3 out of 5]

İnsanlık tarihi boyuncu önemli olayların yaşandığı 50 mekanı baz alarak mekanları anlatırmış gibi yapıp insanlık tarihi anlatan yüzlerce yıl öncesinden başlayıp günümüze kadar gelen güzel bir kitap olmuş.

[Lune2008 · Rating 3 out of 5]

overall, this book was really interesting.
the places chosen by the author were good, and he did not take too much time and explanations about a certain place (they were around the same number of pages).
I also thought that there was a great number of countries exposed in this.
I would recommend this book to people who have a hard time remembering historic things, because it would help them to associate a place to an event.

[Azia · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is for anyone looking for a quick-read informative book. Although recounting the progress of human history in the last 200,000 years or so, this book is not a heavy read and is very easy to follow, giving the big picture perspective of how human civilisation has reached where it is currently standing. My only issue with this is that it's too simple of a picture that could be misleading at times. But then again, this is a small book,

[Dipra Lahiri · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loved the way concurrent events across different parts of the globe are discussed. The focus on 'places' is an interesting way to delve deep into the origins of events, that later bloom to larger consequences.

[Mary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another way of reading about the history of the world, nothing mind blowing but it was enjoyable.

[Zachary Barker · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Every corner of the world has the potential to be the site of history”

This book has a unique premise, exploring the history of the world through specific places around the world.
These places vary in size and shape, from an entire valley which mankind emerged to a cave where one of mankind’s greatest religions did. Some of these places served a singular purpose, but some have had curious histories in which they have been used for a purpose, forgotten, then remembered and repurposed. Some places, like the Temple Mount in the Holy Lands are important to different tribes of people for different reasons.

One of the features I most appreciated in this book was it’s commitment to consciously avoid being too Eurocentric in it’s goal of telling world history in a unique way. Because of this I found myself very interested in chapters including that about early Korean and Chinese histories, both of which are due more exposure to willing Western readers. The first chapter telling the story about families of archaeologists who shared a passion looking for skeletons of man’s ancestors in a Tanzanian valley, helped to remind the reader how it is the unique characters of history that bring places alive.

I appreciate this book for approaching history telling in a way that is unique and accessible. In fairness, many of the 50 historical places it mentions could have several books each written about them, not including events including them. I found it continually fascinating how some places mentioned were the centre of attention for many years, only to be forgotten not too long after, but then restored by some conscientious citizen conservationists. The way we people can perceive places can change dramatically over time. Take Kilmainham Gaol in Dublin for instance. It was once infamously the sight of the execution of the leaders of the 1916 Easter Rising. It was later used by the pro-treaty forces on the Irish Civil War. A few decades after this the place was simply abandoned, only to be reopened after a public campaign to restore it as a historical site.

I only have to walk down the street to realise the ultimate point of writing a book such as this is. I live in Bristol in a part of town called Old Market, so called after being the Old Market for Bristol Castle, long since taken apart by Oliver Cromwell. The site of Bristol Castle is now a park, made after the rubble was cleared away from the Bristol Blitz that happened during the Second World War. Some survivors of the Bristol Blitz to this day cannot bring themselves to come to the city centre due to the scenes of horror they saw. As I look over the park from my local gym I see a beautiful park, while they see something else. History marches on.

[Richard Subber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Field’s intriguing approach to history is a success.
Probably you don’t know much about the great city of Samarkand, south of the Aral Sea in Asia. Its history begins in the 7th century BC, and it was an important commercial stop on the Silk Road until the 15th century AD. Samarkand is one of the 50 places.
A Short History is a broad sweep that’s appealing, easy to read, and a lot to learn.
Read more of my book reviews and poems here:
www.richardsubber.com

[Andreas Constantinou · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting approach to history through a selection of 50 places across the globe that have had a significant impact on human civilization. From caves to cities and from trees to palace rooms, the author unfolds world history in 2-3 pages for each place. Not a heavy read and very easy to follow, I did notice some small inaccuracies, but overall, it’s a great choice if you want a quick world history lesson.

[Rudi · Rating 4 out of 5]

4,4999 , ik vond het een mooi boek met ( voor mij) allerhande nieuwe (geschiedenis) weetjes , de schrijver neemt je mee op wereldreis naar verschillende plaatsen en tijdstippen met nu eens hier dan eens daar een geschiedkundig weetje over de streek en de bewoners , men voelt zich een beetje een (tijds) toerist met een leuke gids ,

[Kevin Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

Egypt, Achaemenid, Persia, Roman, Byzantine, Ottoman, Mongol, Timur, China, Mugul, Spain, Bratain, France, Prusia, Habsburg, Russia then CCCP, Japan, and the United States of America vs Simón Bolívar's United States of Latin America

[Karen Orduna · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very enjoyable book with short snippets of history all around the world. For those who can connect better to locations than to timelines, I highly recommend this book. Very easy to understand so this can also be a good book for younger readers.

[Nivedita Dhar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Highly recommended by. If you love to read Historical Non fiction, then go for this.

[Tiago Trigo · Rating 4 out of 5]

Classification: Great Reading - 17 (scale 1-20)

Scale detail:
18-20: Masterpiece
15-17: Great Reading
12-14: Worth a Look
0-11: Stop the Waste

[Verena Peper · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun lil, informative holiday book

[mado · Rating 2 out of 5]

technically a school book but it was just so much work i thought it deserved to be counted as a real book

[Pascal · Rating 2 out of 5]

Unfortunately a bit boring, shows again that academics are not necessarily entertaining writers.

[Ed · Rating 5 out of 5]

very good

This book was a great read , an interesting and informative account of 50 places spread throughout history and the major events that occurred there.

[Dr. Jeevashi Pareemanen · Rating 5 out of 5]

A very interesting way to learn about history of the world in a concise and easy to read book

[faith adams-michaels · Rating 4 out of 5]

I learned a lot. felt a little UK centric but that is to be expected.

[Martijn Huynen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice, concise short histories of every place that seem to, at least as far as I know, give an accurate overview of events and longer term effects. It would have been nice if there had been specific references for every location to learn more.

[Maja · Rating 5 out of 5]

5/5