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Usborne Illustrated World History
Medieval World
Introduces the highlights of medieval history and society throughout the world, from the Byzantine Empire to the explorers of the late fifteenth century, with links to the Internet for further information.
Paperback
Published January 1, 1999
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About the author
Jane Bingham
322 books17 followersJane M. Bingham spent most of her adult life teaching college students about children's literature at Oakland University, collecting and studying children's books from across history and around the world, and campaigning for better materials for children to read. After she retired from that career, she began writing children's books of her own. Bingham has since authored several nonfiction books that seek to explain contemporary issues to children, including divorce, the dangers of drug abuse, and the art and culture of civilizations around the world.
In Why Do Families Break Up? Bingham attempts to demystify the process of divorce for middle-school students. The book begins by examining some of the reasons a couple might decide to divorce, then moves on to explain the process of coping and moving on after a family separates. School Library Journal contributor Sharon A. Neal described the book as "supportive [and] unbiased" and noted, "Despite the nature of the topic, the book is hopeful."
Tiananmen Square: June 4, 1989 examines the studentled protest against China's Communist rulers that occurred there, in the middle of Beijing, in the spring of 1989. On June 4 the government mobilized the army, including tanks, to disperse the demonstrators, killing several of them in the process. "The excellent illustrations and clear narrative," Elizabeth Talbot wrote in School Library Journal, make Tiananmen Square a "good introduction" to the protest and its aftermath.
Bingham is the author of three installments in the "World Art and Culture" series, examining India, Africa, and Aboriginal Australia. Each book is brief, only fifty-six pages long, and "the texts are straightforward and concise," Gillian Engberg noted in a review of AfricanArt and Culture for Booklist. Despite this brevity, much information is packed into each volume. Bingham opens each book with a chapter about the history of the region, from thousands of years ago to the present day, and follows with chapters about the art forms practiced in that area. These include architecture, basket-weaving, creating musical instruments, dance, and body modification (tattoos, piercings, and the like), among others. Indian Art and Culture also includes a chapter on one of that country's modern art forms, the "Bollywood" movie industry. As Donna Cardon noted in School Library Journal, "The texts not only describe the art forms and how they are created, but also explain the role that art plays in the cultures."
Bingham once wrote: "In 1981 I completed a trip which took me to American Samoa, New Zealand, Australia, Hong Kong, China, Thailand, Bangladesh, India, Kenya, South Africa, and Swaziland. I collected examples of children's books along the way and became acutely aware of the need for books and other teaching resources in many developing countries. I was especially impressed with the variety of India's and Bangladesh's children's books—in spite of the difficulties their creators often encounter in publishing and promoting them. I also found that becoming aware of and enjoying the literature from other countries enriched my appreciation of American children's books. I found myself asking over and over why we, with the plethora we have to choose from, too often opt for the mediocre rather than the 'rarest kind of best.' As educators, creators, and consumers, we all too often forget to think of children's books as real literature because we fail to apply critical literary standards. It is my hope that my teaching and writing will draw attention to the continuing need for quality books in our own country and will also encourage American students and teachers to adopt a wider, world view of children's literature."
In Why Do Families Break Up? Bingham attempts to demystify the process of divorce for middle-school students. The book begins by examining some of the reasons a couple might decide to divorce, then moves on to explain the process of coping and moving on after a family separates. School Library Journal contributor Sharon A. Neal described the book as "supportive [and] unbiased" and noted, "Despite the nature of the topic, the book is hopeful."
Tiananmen Square: June 4, 1989 examines the studentled protest against China's Communist rulers that occurred there, in the middle of Beijing, in the spring of 1989. On June 4 the government mobilized the army, including tanks, to disperse the demonstrators, killing several of them in the process. "The excellent illustrations and clear narrative," Elizabeth Talbot wrote in School Library Journal, make Tiananmen Square a "good introduction" to the protest and its aftermath.
Bingham is the author of three installments in the "World Art and Culture" series, examining India, Africa, and Aboriginal Australia. Each book is brief, only fifty-six pages long, and "the texts are straightforward and concise," Gillian Engberg noted in a review of AfricanArt and Culture for Booklist. Despite this brevity, much information is packed into each volume. Bingham opens each book with a chapter about the history of the region, from thousands of years ago to the present day, and follows with chapters about the art forms practiced in that area. These include architecture, basket-weaving, creating musical instruments, dance, and body modification (tattoos, piercings, and the like), among others. Indian Art and Culture also includes a chapter on one of that country's modern art forms, the "Bollywood" movie industry. As Donna Cardon noted in School Library Journal, "The texts not only describe the art forms and how they are created, but also explain the role that art plays in the cultures."
Bingham once wrote: "In 1981 I completed a trip which took me to American Samoa, New Zealand, Australia, Hong Kong, China, Thailand, Bangladesh, India, Kenya, South Africa, and Swaziland. I collected examples of children's books along the way and became acutely aware of the need for books and other teaching resources in many developing countries. I was especially impressed with the variety of India's and Bangladesh's children's books—in spite of the difficulties their creators often encounter in publishing and promoting them. I also found that becoming aware of and enjoying the literature from other countries enriched my appreciation of American children's books. I found myself asking over and over why we, with the plethora we have to choose from, too often opt for the mediocre rather than the 'rarest kind of best.' As educators, creators, and consumers, we all too often forget to think of children's books as real literature because we fail to apply critical literary standards. It is my hope that my teaching and writing will draw attention to the continuing need for quality books in our own country and will also encourage American students and teachers to adopt a wider, world view of children's literature."
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
June 24, 2022
I've read this in French and it's really a nice simple book with great illustrations.
September 4, 2022
Good book with good illustrations but unfortunately half of the book is not about mediaeval Europe but more focused on the pre age of discovery contenients like the americas and Oceania.
August 27, 2023
Reviewed for THC Reviews
Medieval World is a non-fiction book aimed at middle school readers that provides an overview of the Medieval period of history from about 500-1500 AD. It covers European historical events starting with the Byzantine Empire and traveling through the centuries to include Viking conquests, the rise of Anglo-Saxons in England and their later defeat by the Normans, as well as Charlemagne’s Empire, and the Holy Roman Empire. It discusses the roles of knights, nobles, and peasants, along with what life was like in castles, villages, and towns. It tells of pilgrimages, the Crusades, and the Black Death. It also branches out to relate events in other parts of the world as well, including the Middle East, Africa, India, China, and Japan. Then it takes readers to North and South American, where we learns of the Aztecs, Mayans, and Incas, as well as other Indigenous peoples. Then it wraps up with a discussion of the art, ideas, and inventions of the Renaissance period and the voyages of several famous explorers. It also has a glossary and is fully indexed, in addition to providing a handy timeline chart that shows how these events were happening in different parts of the world at the same time.
Medieval World is an excellent overview of the major events and players in the Medieval period of history. While it doesn’t go into great depth about these events, with each one only encompassing a page or two, it is very well put together. It must have been difficult to decide which events to include from a thousand years of world history, but I thought the author did a great job of choosing the most important ones and synopsizing each in such a way as to be understandable to the book’s target audience. Each page (or two) has a handy timeline to let the reader know what years are being covered and color coding to tell where in the world these things took place, as well as a map of the area being discussed for visualization and an important dates box to pare it down to a bare-bones quick reference. The book is also beautifully illustrated, not only with images of world leaders and other events, but also with detailed drawings of homes and villages, etc. to show what day-to-day life was like. These illustrations include cutaways to “see inside” and little side notes to show where things are located or to better describe what’s happening.
I also loved the diversity of the book. As a Caucasian person of European decent, when I hear the word medieval, I typically think of knights, castles, tournaments, and such, but of course there’s so much more than that. This book provides plenty of those things, but I was thrilled to discover that it also explores this period of history all over the world and how the different groups of people came to explore, trade, or learn more about each other. I thought this gave the book a very holistic and well-rounded feel. The only concerning thing I found is that it does talk about wars and people being killed and sometimes this is depicted in the illustrations as well. However, it’s usually no more than a brief mention, and aside from one bloody picture showing Aztecs making human sacrifices, I didn’t notice anything else particularly graphic, so overall, I’d say it’s appropriate for the middle-schoolers at which it’s aimed. Medieval World was an interesting read that I would definitely recommend for the young history buff. It even taught me a few things as an adult. I think it could also be a great way to gauge a child’s interest in certain events, providing a jumping off point for more in-depth learning. Medieval World is part of the Usborne World History series that has left me very interested in checking out the other periods of history that are covered in this series.
Medieval World is a non-fiction book aimed at middle school readers that provides an overview of the Medieval period of history from about 500-1500 AD. It covers European historical events starting with the Byzantine Empire and traveling through the centuries to include Viking conquests, the rise of Anglo-Saxons in England and their later defeat by the Normans, as well as Charlemagne’s Empire, and the Holy Roman Empire. It discusses the roles of knights, nobles, and peasants, along with what life was like in castles, villages, and towns. It tells of pilgrimages, the Crusades, and the Black Death. It also branches out to relate events in other parts of the world as well, including the Middle East, Africa, India, China, and Japan. Then it takes readers to North and South American, where we learns of the Aztecs, Mayans, and Incas, as well as other Indigenous peoples. Then it wraps up with a discussion of the art, ideas, and inventions of the Renaissance period and the voyages of several famous explorers. It also has a glossary and is fully indexed, in addition to providing a handy timeline chart that shows how these events were happening in different parts of the world at the same time.
Medieval World is an excellent overview of the major events and players in the Medieval period of history. While it doesn’t go into great depth about these events, with each one only encompassing a page or two, it is very well put together. It must have been difficult to decide which events to include from a thousand years of world history, but I thought the author did a great job of choosing the most important ones and synopsizing each in such a way as to be understandable to the book’s target audience. Each page (or two) has a handy timeline to let the reader know what years are being covered and color coding to tell where in the world these things took place, as well as a map of the area being discussed for visualization and an important dates box to pare it down to a bare-bones quick reference. The book is also beautifully illustrated, not only with images of world leaders and other events, but also with detailed drawings of homes and villages, etc. to show what day-to-day life was like. These illustrations include cutaways to “see inside” and little side notes to show where things are located or to better describe what’s happening.
I also loved the diversity of the book. As a Caucasian person of European decent, when I hear the word medieval, I typically think of knights, castles, tournaments, and such, but of course there’s so much more than that. This book provides plenty of those things, but I was thrilled to discover that it also explores this period of history all over the world and how the different groups of people came to explore, trade, or learn more about each other. I thought this gave the book a very holistic and well-rounded feel. The only concerning thing I found is that it does talk about wars and people being killed and sometimes this is depicted in the illustrations as well. However, it’s usually no more than a brief mention, and aside from one bloody picture showing Aztecs making human sacrifices, I didn’t notice anything else particularly graphic, so overall, I’d say it’s appropriate for the middle-schoolers at which it’s aimed. Medieval World was an interesting read that I would definitely recommend for the young history buff. It even taught me a few things as an adult. I think it could also be a great way to gauge a child’s interest in certain events, providing a jumping off point for more in-depth learning. Medieval World is part of the Usborne World History series that has left me very interested in checking out the other periods of history that are covered in this series.
March 23, 2020
This 96 page volume features high quality pages with full color timelines, artwork, jewels, cut-aways, portraits and more. Each page spread covers an era of sorts within the Middle Ages - this book covers more than Europe too! The focus is on what happened in Europe because that is where we have the most knowledge of what happened, but Africa, Asia, and the Americas are not forgotten - neither are Australia and surrounding Islands. There are couple unnecessary references to times in Oceania that are well before the Middle Ages (things happening 40,000 years ago), but on the whole the information is succinctly and well presented to provide an overview of the highlights of this time. The Renaissance is mentioned at the end and given a few pages which surprised me since I expected that time would be in its own book. A handy resource to have available - will provide a good springboard to learning more about the different reigns and wars of that time.
900-999-geography-history
December 5, 2019909.0
March 2, 2017
Fascinating. Such an interesting and fun book. So much fun I am going to give it to my Grandson to read. A lot of what was written in the book I was unaware of such as; the rise of Islam and its spread. Seems as though both Christianity and Muslims have been in tug of war for 1,000's of years. Must be the two oldest religions around.
And by all the travels and conquering that when on for decades we are not pure blood anything. We are all a mixture of something. Blacks are not all blacks, whites are not all white so racism is a ridiculous notion brought on by man to create chaos. We are all different though we may have more of one gene than another over the years we are all brothers.
This book has been very enlightening for me and I originally bought it for kids.
And by all the travels and conquering that when on for decades we are not pure blood anything. We are all a mixture of something. Blacks are not all blacks, whites are not all white so racism is a ridiculous notion brought on by man to create chaos. We are all different though we may have more of one gene than another over the years we are all brothers.
This book has been very enlightening for me and I originally bought it for kids.
November 15, 2012
Great informative book for children. Illistrations and short blips of text on every page, incorporates technology by linking data to internet sources. Reminds me of the Eyewitness books I loved as a kid. Awesomely includes many different areas of the world besides just Europe, though shorter sections devoted. Shows other races as the "good guys" just as often as white Europeans. Would love to have in a classroom.
November 24, 2021
I think it's very interested book about history. Here is a lot of so colored, beautiful and a large pictures. It's like enciclopedia about history 400-1500 years. And actually it's almost just pictures book, we have text less than pictures here, maybe because pictures with comments more interesting than regular black text.
September 1, 2013
It is a good little history books for young people. It is good about trying to share things from all over the world. My one gripe is that I think it is sometimes a little to skimpy on details. At the very least it should give the same level or detail to all subjects.
August 11, 2016
I really was enjoying this book to recommend to my students until I got to the history of Russia. It explained Kievan Rus as Russia. My students would not stand for that! That made me wonder how many other simplifications there were in the book that overlooked different cultures.
May 7, 2011
This book has a good learning experience.
March 5, 2016
Seriously awesome book ... one everyone should have in their home library. Informative, entertaining. Great overview of history.
May 1, 2015
I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/12942880
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/12942880
January 17, 2015
colourful and educational in a simple facts way, this is a good book to teach children about the medieval period in different parts of the world.
900-999-geography-history
April 9, 2019909.07
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews