Worlds of History, Volume I: To 1550: A Comparative Reader

by Kevin Reilly

Compiled by a widely respected world historian and community college teacher, Worlds of History fosters historical thinking through thematic comparisons of primary and secondary sources from around the world. Each chapter takes up a major theme — such as patriarchy, love and marriage, or globalization — as experienced by two or more cultures. "Thinking Historically" exercises build students’ capacity to analyze and interpret sources one skill at a time. This flexible framework accommodates a variety of approaches to teaching world history. The latest edition offers a broader range of sources with an even more global perspective.

Genres: History, Nonfiction

553 pages, Paperback

First published June 3, 2010

Reviews

[Cock Johnson]

Not the most all-encompassing history book- it takes like 15 grand narratives and gives a bunch of primary resources supporting or challenging each idea. It's interesting in general to see how we form historical narratives we come to accept as true through primary sources of the time.

[Pieter Cramerus]

Just a short review. This text has two advantages. It is concise (ie. short) and inexpensive, about 1/6th the price of those big textbooks the public schools like to use (because they have the budget). It is well written and gets across the main themes that students need to grasp, but obviously you won't get as many gorgeous pictures, graphs, and timelines, etc.With history (no matter what area) I find two types of persons: those who love history, and those who are bored by it and/or hate it. If you are one of the former, and don't have the money, strength, or space in your backpack for the gargantuan, gold-plated textbook. This one will do nicely.

[Jessica Strozewski]

This was one of my textbooks for a world history course I took at Washington State University. It is now one of my favorite history books. There are many biased accounts that counterargue each other, which makes it an interesting read. The reader can take the biased accounts and synthesize their own ideas and conclusions. My favorite parts in the book are the accounts of Easter Island, the Black Death, and the various sections on religion's effects on various civilizations and societies.

[Connie D]

I've read parts of this and I like the way the author has chosen (so we can compare and discuss) important primary texts from different but contemporary cultures. The selections are short enough that they're not overwhelming to those who don't know the culture, with questions for thought by the author in-between.