The 100 Most Influential Books Ever Written: The History of Thought from Ancient Times to Today [Hardcover]

Martin Seymour-Smith (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1998

As entertaining as it is enlightening, this analysis of the 100 books that have most influenced human history profiles such works as "1984" by George Orwell, Adam Smith's "The Wealth of Nations", Kant's "Critique of Pure Reason", Newton's "Principia", and "The Feminine Mystique" by Betty Friedan. Photos & drawings.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

British literary historian Seymour-Smith's survey of what he considers the 100 most influential books is a searching inquiry into major thinkers, writers and philosophers. Arranged in chronological order from the I Ching to B.F. Skinner's Beyond Freedom and Dignity, the selection is admirably inclusive, setting Confucius's Analects, India's Upanishads, the Koran and the Zoroastrian Avesta alongside the Old and New Testaments, Plato's Republic, and works by Dante, Shakespeare, Spinoza, Gibbon, Copernicus, Voltaire, Marx, Thoreau, Einstein, Freud, Jung. His compendium features concise, opinionated essays marked by intellectual depth and scope, and includes vivid biographical details of each book's author. Seymour-Smith finds most modernist techniques already present, or anticipated, in Cervantes's Don Quixote, and he views Rabelais as the first truly popular writer. His eclectic choice of influential moderns?de Beauvoir, Mao, Orwell, Keynes, Chomsky, cybernetician Norbert Winer, mystic G.I. Gurdjieff, Wittgenstein?is unpredictable, a roster he defends with alacrity. This is a mind-expanding one-volume humanities course. Illustrations.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

Grade 9 Up-Pulling together works from science, political science, philosophy, religion, and literature, Seymour-Smith provides a chronologically arranged history of thought and knowledge. Each four- to five-page essay includes background information on the time period, how and why the book was written, the author, and an examination of the influence of the work today. Although the publisher says this is for the "general reader," the author assumes some prior knowledge in the various fields. This title will be useful as a reference source because it includes many ancient works and many selections from Eastern cultures that are not fully discussed in other tools. It could also stimulate a discussion or writing assignment on the inclusions and omissions.
Claudia Moore, W. T. Woodson High School, Fairfax, VA
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 498 pages
• Publisher: Citadel (September 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0806520000
• ISBN-13: 978-0806520001
• Product Dimensions: 10.4 x 7.3 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 2.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (34 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #461,725 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

21 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars 3 Stars if you have a BA in Philosophy, 1 if you don't, September 29, 2004

By 

Matthew C. Cummings "mattc5000" (Washington DC) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The 100 Most Influential Books Ever Written: The History of Thought from Ancient Times to Today (Hardcover)

I struggled through the enitre book, and then read all the comments here, and the sum total of all of this is as follows:

1. Seymour Smith does suffer for the same impenetrable prose that he castigates many of the authors he is writing about, especially, as mentioned before, the lengthy sentence structure he is in love with. (As you can see, it is contagious)

2. Anyone who has not read at least 20% of the books in the table of contents need not try this book until they have. Smith is tracking influences in western thought and without a BA in Philosophy, you may not stand a chance

3. He is an agnostic liberal, and not liberal in the American Dem/Rep fashion, but as in liberal like a British left Labour type. His suggested venom towards the church, to be fair about it, is based mostly on judgements of the behavoir of the Catholic Church from 800 - 1700, which almost everyone can agree was not their finest hour.

4. His comments on Gnosticism are interesting as he sees a tie in between it and many of the undelying themes of modern religions. I would suggest anyone interested in this actually do some original source reading with an open mind. Smith does at least point you in some good directions for that.

5. Be prepared to consult a dictionary to define some words chosen by Smith. Also, many of the reviews expect that you have read the work in question. One unfortunately gets the feeling that Smith is sometimes either trying to show off his knowledge, or like many professors (and some I met at Oxford) one who just likes to hear himself talk.

In summation, the earlier the entry the better. His reviews of ancient literature are the best in the book, as he focuses much more on thinkers than pieces. However, by the end of the book, when he is discussing books that obviously had an impact on him as they were written, his prejudices against the authors are much more implicit. This is especially true is his feeble attempts to explain modern psycholgy, physics, and most of all, economics.

Read it if you are already well versed in the history of philosophy and want a new viewpoint on some old arguments. Use it as a guide for some items you might want to read in their original form. But, if you are looking for the Cliff's Notes of these books, keep on trucking...

They are not to be found here...

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Could Have Used A Good Editor!, February 1, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The 100 Most Influential Books Ever Written: The History of Thought from Ancient Times to Today (Hardcover)

I am sorry to admit that I have rather mixed feelings about this book. On one hand, it is a fantastic collection of what are undoubtedly some of the most influential books know to man. Given the limitation of 100 books, Seymour-Smith has done a fine job, in terms of scope and of wise selection.

HOWEVER, I have found this book to be one of the most convoluted reads I have ever experienced. For example, in the chapter concerning Wollstonecraft's "Vindication of the Rights of Woman" (page 301), the reader is assaulted with this sentence: "William Goodwin, who became Mary's loving husband - she lost her life after giving birth to their daughter, who became Mary Shelley - devoted much of his time to the memory of her and to the printing of her writings (including her letters to him in the candid and explicit 'Memoirs of the Author of A Vindication of the Rights of Woman); but for many years she was known as a "prostitute" and her ideas rejected on such grounds, or on grounds like it - "lascivious", "disgusting", "shameless", "advocate of priapism" (this from a Rev. Polwhele, horrified by the discussion of the "organs of the generation" in one of her books)." A PERIOD! FINALLY A PERIOD! Alas, the books is full of such sentences, lined one after another throughout the book.

One also needs a good encyclopedia readily available, as the book also has a number of editorial errors: for instance, the same chapter on Wollstonecraft states she was born in 1859 (page 301), when of course, this is not the case. I also noted some errors in the chapter on Heroditus.

So, while I find the content of this book excellent beyond reproach (when it is not in error), I must say the writing itself is laborious to follow. Still, I would recommend the book as a good introduction to some classic books that should be on everyone's reading list.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Inspiration for the unintentionally ignorant, October 7, 2003

By 

Richard Laird (Dallas, TX) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The 100 Most Influential Books Ever Written: The History of Though from Ancient Times to Today (Paperback)

OK, so it's full of run-on (and on and on and on....) sentences, and it has an abundance of Christian-bashing (although raised a Christian, I did find myself agreeing with the author most of the time), and he did leave out the other Little Red Book, by Harvey Penick, but how can you not appreciate the sheer girth of this guy's insight into all of these.... Sorry, I'd better end this sentence and start a new one. You see, not only have I read it through twice, but this book is a mainstay next to the toilet. Despite its obvious flaws, this collection of 100 refreshingly blunt book reports is simply one of the most inspirational things I've ever read. It stunningly reminded me of how limited my influences have been in shaping by beliefs (or lack of), and was instrumental in my decision to get a Masters in Social Science. I'm obviously not speaking to the nit-pickworthy scholars out there, but for the thirsty non-intellectuals ready to realize that most of what we know is what we've been told by other narrow minded (however well meaning) people. And arguing about who or what's left out is a moot point; this book is merely a starting point to expanding our capacity for understanding others. Of course, like Mr. Seymour-Smith's, all this is just my opinion.