Mastering Modern World History [Paperback]

N. Lowe (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1984

'...clear, uncluttered text and simple explanations of complex issues...a book with little pretensions beyond helping to prepare candidates for examinations, but it does its job well.' W.K.Ritchie Following the enormous success of the first edition, Norman Lowe has revised his best-selling book, bringing it up-to-date and in line with the latest GCSE syllabus developments. In this edition coverage of world history has been extended to the present day and there is a new work section with documentary exercises for practice in interpreting historical sources. Additional illustrations have been inserted for even clearer presentation.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Norman Lowe has had many years' experience of teaching history at all levels in schools and colleges and for twenty years was head of history at Nelson and Colne Tertiary College in Lancashire. He is the author of Mastering Modern British History and Mastering Twentieth-Century Russian History, and is now a freelance writer and lecturer.

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: St. Martin's Press (June 1984)
• ISBN-10: 0312521022
• ISBN-13: 978-0312521028
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #10,068,568 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best modern history book, April 14, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Mastering Modern World History (Macmillan Master Guides) (Paperback)

I would give this book 10 stars if it were possible, this is the best modern history book I have read so far. It's the perfect book for people who hated history at school and now find it difficult to understand modern world affairs. The author writes in a concise, to-the-point, clear way providing simple explanations to the most important events which took place during the 20th century: the two World Wars, Vietnam War, Cold War, Communism, Fascism, Decolonization, Middle-East, United Nations, etc. He also provides the reader with interesting questions, hyphotesis, excerpts, and pictures which make the reader "participate" in an original kind of way. If you are having trouble watching the news daily because you never quite understand the basis of current affairs and politics, this book will provide you with the necessary insight to better understand the world today.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Clear but doesn't oversimplify ..., March 8, 2005

By 

M. B. Alcat "Curiosity killed the cat, but sa... (Los Angeles, California) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Mastering Modern World History (Palgrave Master S.) (Paperback)

Can I recommend this book too many times?. I don't think so. In my opinion, Lowe's book is a great way to start studying history, or even to learn more if you have already started.

The reasons for that statement are many. "Mastering Modern World History" is clear but doesn't oversimplify the events it talks about. It isn't long, but it gives you a brief summary of the subjects under study and the motivation to investigate more. Also, I would like to point out that the author includes at the end of each chapter some interesting questions that are eerily similar to those a teacher might ask in an exam. If you are a student, don't panic: take advantage of this opportunity :)

"Mastering Modern World History" has many interesting illustrations, and also quite a few useful maps. This third edition includes relatively new historical events, for example the collapse of communism. All the same, I wish I could have the 4th edition, that unfortunately hasn't been published yet, because many relevant things have happened since 1997 and I would like to read about them here. That is the only reason I give this book 4 stars instead of 5.

To sum up, I think this is a wonderful book, and as such a great gift to yourself and others. Lowe manages to write clearly about subjects that are not simple, and surprisingly enough for those who aren't fond of history books, he also happens to write quite well. What else can I say?. Strongly recommended!.

Belen Alcat

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Incredibly Helpful for IB History Review, April 2, 2009

By 

David (FL) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Mastering Modern World History, 4th Ed. (Palgrave Master) (Paperback)

This book corresponds perfectly to the IB SL History syllabus (HL might need additional resources) and as such has been extremely useful for reviewing and studying for IB exams in May. The text is organized around topic questions such as, "What caused World War I?" or "What were the failures of the League of Nations" with supporting perspectives and snippets from historians with various points of view, extremely helpful for the broad essay questions.

The fourth edition is practically identical to the first, second and third editions, but with minor revisions and reformatting, some additional pictures, aside from the newly created "history" which occurs between revisions of the book.

As with any review book, I wouldn't recommend using this to learn new topics if studying for an exam. It's useful only for bringing back and refreshing old, perhaps forgotten concepts or events. All in all I'm confident I'll continue to use this in college!