From Publishers Weekly
The final installment of Gonick's deeply funny and impeccably researched series has finally arrived, and like the rest of his Cartoon History series, the book covers a wide range of key and fascinating historical events and topics that have managed to slip through the gaps of common knowledge. The section linking the slave trade, the Haitian revolution and the Napoleonic Wars is particularly good, as are the segments on the modern history of Japan and China. Brilliantly funny, the series finds the inherent humor in history rather than pasting on irrelevant jokes. This is the most politicized book in the series, a jarring but perhaps unavoidable element, since it covers an era ending when Gonick sent the proofs to his publisher. Also, the pacing is odd and frequently rushed—it seems to need an extra hundred pages. Possibly as a result, the book has some interesting gaps. Most notably, aside from the occasional snide remark or allusion, the entire pre-Vietnam history of the United States is completely left out. While Gonick has covered these topics in depth in other books (the stand-alone
Cartoon History of the United States) and perhaps tired of them, the absence is glaring.
(Oct.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
Review
“With limber pen and nimble mind, Larry Gonick completes a cartoon journey that started at the dawn of time. Brisk, informative, and hilarious, The Cartoon History Of The Modern World fills us in on exactly how we got so screwed up on a global scale.” (K. Thor Jensen, author of Red Eye, Black Eye )
“Like any good historian, Larry Gonick seasons his facts with a good dose of perspective, and like any good cartoonist, he mixes his drama with a good dose of humor.” (Jeffrey Brown, author of Clumsy and Funny Misshapen Body )
“Gonick makes history fun for comic book nerds and comics readable for history nerds. If you’ve ever looked around this modern world and wondered how we got into this mess, it’s time to curl up with his latest book. You won’t even realize you’re learning—histo-tainment at its best.” (Alex Robinson, Eisner Award winner and author of Box Office Poison )
“The final installment of Gonick’s deeply funny and impeccably researched series has finally arrived... Brilliantly funny, the series finds the inherent humor in history...” (Publishers Weekly )
“Full of facts and wisdom, horror and humor….Gonick’s one-two punch of pictures and words isn’t just a gimmick; it makes it much easier to remember the facts of history. If we really wanted kids (or adults!) to learn history, we’d throw away our textbooks, and teach Gonick.” (Bryan Caplan, The Library of Economics and Liberty EconLog )
“Lively cartooning and pretension-puncturing wit.” (Booklist )
“Funny, informative, and comprehensive, Gonick’s history concludes with this second volume. His unique wit, sense of irony, and passion for humanity’s complex story of triumphs, compromises, and disasters are as evident here as they are in his previous books... An insightful review of history.” (School Library Journal )
