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The World's Worst Atrocities
Part of a series of books which examines real-life stories that have made newspaper headlines around the world, this looks at the world's worst atrocities. Other titles available include "The World's Greatest Blunders" and "The World's Greatest Cults".
192 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1999
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About the author
Nigel Cawthorne
317 books127 followersNigel Cawthorne is an Anglo-American writer of fiction and non-fiction, and an editor. He has written more than 80 books on a wide range of subjects and has contributed to The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph Daily Mail and The New York Times. He has appeared on television and BBC Radio 4's Today programme.
Many of Nigel Cawthorne's books are compilations of popular history, without footnotes, references or bibliographies. His own web site refers to a description of his home as a "book-writing factory" and says, "More than half my books were commissioned by publishers and packagers for a flat fee or for a for a reduced royalty".
One of his most notable works was Taking Back My Name, an autobiography of Ike Turner, with whom he spent a number of weeks working with him on, taking up residence in Turner's house. The book caused much controversy, resulting in court cases for three years following its release.
Cawthorne currently lives in Bloomsbury, London with his girlfriend and son, Colin (born 1982).
Many of Nigel Cawthorne's books are compilations of popular history, without footnotes, references or bibliographies. His own web site refers to a description of his home as a "book-writing factory" and says, "More than half my books were commissioned by publishers and packagers for a flat fee or for a for a reduced royalty".
One of his most notable works was Taking Back My Name, an autobiography of Ike Turner, with whom he spent a number of weeks working with him on, taking up residence in Turner's house. The book caused much controversy, resulting in court cases for three years following its release.
Cawthorne currently lives in Bloomsbury, London with his girlfriend and son, Colin (born 1982).
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
August 14, 2020
This book offers harrowing accounts of some of the worst examples in history of man's inhumanity to man, documenting some of the most horrific genocides and mass murders in history.
It is difficult to digest in some parts , as a lot of it is very graphic , but if truly opens a window on some of history's real life horrors up to events very recent.
Events documented include the Mongol Hordes of Genghis Khan and their devastation of Central Asia and parts of Russia , the Auto Da Fe and the horrors and tortures of the Spanish Inquisition , Robespierre's Reign of Terror , King Leopold of Belgium's atrocities in the Congo , the murder of the Romanov family by the Bolsheviks in Russia in 1918 , which preceded the mass murder of 60 million people in the Soviet Union under the monsters Lenin and Stalin , the Amritsar massacre by the British of unarmed Indian protestors in 1919 , , the massacre by Stalin of 50 000 Polish officers in the Katyn Forest in 1940 , the liquidation of the Warsaw Gehetto by the Nazis in 1941 and the massacre at Babi Yar of 200 000 Jews in that same year, the killing fields of Cambodia in which the Marxist Khmer Rouge murdered over 2 million Cambodians , in the most gruesome ways imaginable , the gassing of the Kurds by modern day Hitler Saddam Hussein , the Lockerbie bombings in 1988 , the Tianmen Square Massacre n Beinjing , China in 1989 , and the holocaust in Rwanda in which over 1 million Tutsis and moderate Hutus where butchered.
The horrors documented in this book are extrememly descriptive and often hard to believe. It essentially poses more question than it answers. What drives man's brutality to his fellow human beings? Not only do we need to ask what drives the butchers of history like Genghis Khan , Torquemada , Cortez , Robespierre , King Leopold , Lenin , Stalin, Hitler , Mao Zedong , Pol Pot , Saddam Hussein , Muammar Gadaffi , the Interhamwe and Omar al Bashir , but also what drives their minions who carry ot the atrocities.
Some of the more recent atrocities listed answer some questions about recent events. when we know more about the atrocities carried out by Saddam Hussein , who was himself a weapon of mass destruction , responsible for the death of well over a million Iraquis , we understand that the USA did the right thing to remove him!
When we understand the atrocities commited by Lenin , Stalin , Mao , Pol POt to name only a few , we understand that Communism is a ruthless killing machine that must be resisted at all costs!
Of course there are some events that I believe should have been included in this digest , which where not.
These include the massacre of Jewish communities in the Land of Israel ('Palestine') during the 1920's and 1930's by Arab gangs , such as the destruction of the ancient Jewish community of Hebron , Mao's Cultural Revolution and Great Leap Forward , the rape of Lebanon by Syria and Palestinian terrorists , in which 100 000 Christian Lebanese where murdered , (A massacre which could have been covered was the destruction of the entire population of the Christian Lebanese village of Damour by the PLO in 1976 , under the orders of Yasser Arafat) , the massacre of Israeli schoolchildren at Maalot and Kiryat Shemona in 1974 , by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine , and Soviet atrocities in Afghanistan in the 1980s.
Then of course in the last three years we have witnessed the genocide of 100s of thousands in Southern Sudan by the Islamic Regime.
It is difficult to digest in some parts , as a lot of it is very graphic , but if truly opens a window on some of history's real life horrors up to events very recent.
Events documented include the Mongol Hordes of Genghis Khan and their devastation of Central Asia and parts of Russia , the Auto Da Fe and the horrors and tortures of the Spanish Inquisition , Robespierre's Reign of Terror , King Leopold of Belgium's atrocities in the Congo , the murder of the Romanov family by the Bolsheviks in Russia in 1918 , which preceded the mass murder of 60 million people in the Soviet Union under the monsters Lenin and Stalin , the Amritsar massacre by the British of unarmed Indian protestors in 1919 , , the massacre by Stalin of 50 000 Polish officers in the Katyn Forest in 1940 , the liquidation of the Warsaw Gehetto by the Nazis in 1941 and the massacre at Babi Yar of 200 000 Jews in that same year, the killing fields of Cambodia in which the Marxist Khmer Rouge murdered over 2 million Cambodians , in the most gruesome ways imaginable , the gassing of the Kurds by modern day Hitler Saddam Hussein , the Lockerbie bombings in 1988 , the Tianmen Square Massacre n Beinjing , China in 1989 , and the holocaust in Rwanda in which over 1 million Tutsis and moderate Hutus where butchered.
The horrors documented in this book are extrememly descriptive and often hard to believe. It essentially poses more question than it answers. What drives man's brutality to his fellow human beings? Not only do we need to ask what drives the butchers of history like Genghis Khan , Torquemada , Cortez , Robespierre , King Leopold , Lenin , Stalin, Hitler , Mao Zedong , Pol Pot , Saddam Hussein , Muammar Gadaffi , the Interhamwe and Omar al Bashir , but also what drives their minions who carry ot the atrocities.
Some of the more recent atrocities listed answer some questions about recent events. when we know more about the atrocities carried out by Saddam Hussein , who was himself a weapon of mass destruction , responsible for the death of well over a million Iraquis , we understand that the USA did the right thing to remove him!
When we understand the atrocities commited by Lenin , Stalin , Mao , Pol POt to name only a few , we understand that Communism is a ruthless killing machine that must be resisted at all costs!
Of course there are some events that I believe should have been included in this digest , which where not.
These include the massacre of Jewish communities in the Land of Israel ('Palestine') during the 1920's and 1930's by Arab gangs , such as the destruction of the ancient Jewish community of Hebron , Mao's Cultural Revolution and Great Leap Forward , the rape of Lebanon by Syria and Palestinian terrorists , in which 100 000 Christian Lebanese where murdered , (A massacre which could have been covered was the destruction of the entire population of the Christian Lebanese village of Damour by the PLO in 1976 , under the orders of Yasser Arafat) , the massacre of Israeli schoolchildren at Maalot and Kiryat Shemona in 1974 , by the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine , and Soviet atrocities in Afghanistan in the 1980s.
Then of course in the last three years we have witnessed the genocide of 100s of thousands in Southern Sudan by the Islamic Regime.
July 12, 2019
Written well, short and to the point. It's truly horrific: the history of human cruelty and barbarism - and the history, as the author admits, incomplete, since numerous other acts of horror are omitted. A sobering read.
June 5, 2015
The book will strike any reader... the history of mankind is full of atrocities that cannot be imagined .. the book may depress the readers by reading about the cruelty of the people in all around the world without any exception.. the book is interesting and recommended
October 26, 2019
Horrific.
December 29, 2023
This book sheds light on some of the world's worst examples of human-on-human cruelty. With a selection of stories from various centuries throughout history, the author goes back in time to reveal details of some of the world's most horrible atrocities.
The author portrays the stories from the perspective of an insider. The book includes detailed descriptions of the names, places, and people who were present, and even a few photos to add some context.
If you are a sensitive reader, then this book is probably not for you, as many of the descriptions in the book are quite graphic and can be upsetting to read.
This book will also challenge the reader to think critically about how they view certain topics such as human rights, politics, nationalism as well as alternate views of history.
The author portrays the stories from the perspective of an insider. The book includes detailed descriptions of the names, places, and people who were present, and even a few photos to add some context.
If you are a sensitive reader, then this book is probably not for you, as many of the descriptions in the book are quite graphic and can be upsetting to read.
This book will also challenge the reader to think critically about how they view certain topics such as human rights, politics, nationalism as well as alternate views of history.
November 28, 2007
These real life reports are quite interesting
December 14, 2022
Imagine someone writing about the most horrific crimes in human history as a children's book. That is what you have here.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews