The Penguin Atlas of World History: Volume 1: From Prehistory to the Eve of the French Revolution (Penguin Reference Books) [Mass Market Paperback]

Hermann Kinder (Author), Werner Hilgemann (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 25, 2004 | Series: Penguin Reference Books

This wide-ranging, chronological summary of the main cultural, scientific, religious, and political events from the beginning of world history to the eve of the French Revolution is accompanied by detailed maps that clarify complex historical situations and make this an essential reference book for students and for the home.

Editorial Reviews

Language Notes

Text: English, German (translation) --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Herman Kinder & Werner Hilgemann

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 18 and up
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Penguin (Non-Classics); Revised edition (May 25, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0141012633
• ISBN-13: 978-0141012636
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.3 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.1 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #196,518 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Discover books, learn about writers, read author blogs, and more.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

41 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I Rate and Compare World History Atlas Books, December 16, 2005

By 

J. E. Robinson - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Penguin Atlas of World History: Volume 1: From Prehistory to the Eve of the French Revolution (Penguin Reference Books) (Mass Market Paperback)

As a reader I like to have quick reference books at my finger tips including a new version of the Oxford English Dictionary about 3500 pages long - that I use almost daily. So I decided to add a "history atlas". In the process of doing my research I read the other amazon.com reviewers and then made three trips to two large book stores to actually look at the books and get a better feel for which was the best. I ended up buying the Oxford Atlas of World History. Here are my picks and rankings.

Listed by My ranking, #1 is the best, #2 is a creative alternative but no substitute.

1. Atlas of World History, Oxford University Press 2002, 368 pages, $57.80, 13.5" x 10.3" x 1.62" ranked 46,632 on Amazon.com. Hands down winner - professional - good text descriptions, outstanding maps and drawings, covers most things from the cave man forward. Negatives: Big and heavy. If you want to save a few dollars buy the "concise" version.

2. Creative alternative: The Penguin Atlas of World History, Penguin Books 2004, $11.20, just a paperback sized, just published, 304 pages. Surprisingly impressive, lots of text and pictures mixed together and it is easy to carry around. A nice quick alternative but it will be printed in two volumes.

3. Timelines of World History, DK Publishing 2002, 666 pages, $27.20. 10.0" x 1.6" ranked 25,800 on Amazon.com. Second with lots of value but in some ways not as comprehensive.

4. National Geographic Almanac of World History, National Geographic 2003, 384 pages, $28.00, 9.6" x 7.8" x 1.17" ranked 24,426 on Amazon.com. Similar to but less impressive than Oxford books. More text, narrower coverage, fewer maps and drawings.

5. DK Atlas of World History, DK Publishing, 352 pages, $35.00, 10.96" x 14.66" x 1.28" ranked 10,716 on Amazon.com. My last place book seems like a giant comic book. I love the DK travel books but this seems like one step beyond DK's area of expertise. Superficially it is similar to the Oxford book and it is cheap, and some might like it but it tries to be politically correct and fails.

6. Oxford Dictionary of World History, Oxford University Press, 704 pages, $7,66, pocketbook sized, sales rank 330,000. Mainly terms, people, and dates but has a few maps also. Limited use but an alternative. I prefer the new Penguin book but this is the best history dictionary to buy.

22 of 23 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you have gone so far as reading this, you need this book., February 24, 2000

By 

Thomas Edward Topham - See all my reviews

This review is from: Penguin Atlas of World History: Vol 1 (Reference Books) (Paperback)

This has been my bible ever since I bought it 15 or so years ago. For the sheer information to weight ratio this is the densest and most useful book I have ever seen. Every single page is a high colour, quality map on one side with extremely concise notes on the other side. Massively indexed. Quite different, and I think considerably better, than the books I have just bought in Penguin's new series. Although the new ones are a bit more user friendly and less intimidating for the general reader, I suppose.

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Useful information in a compromised package, November 6, 2005

By 

Charles G. Fry "cgfry" (Madison, WI) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Penguin Atlas of World History: Volume 1: From Prehistory to the Eve of the French Revolution (Penguin Reference Books) (Mass Market Paperback)

Note the small size of this atlas (7"x4.5"), and you'll understand the low cost. Therein lie many compromises. This atlas does continue a lot of useful information, but it often fails as a self-contained atlas. The biggest problem is the maps themselves, which are quite "pixilated"; not sure if that's because of the way they were drawn, or something to do with the printing process. But the final effect is one that makes many of the maps difficult to use; I kept having to pull out a larger map or atlas to understand where it was that I was looking at on the Penguin map. I found the complete loss of artistic quality more troublesome than the actual loss in content. I learned using this atlas, but did not enjoy the experience.

The atlas will surely fail to satisfy anyone that loves maps and higher quality atlases. We have to suppose this is an atlas meant for students, and for that purpose, it likely is a useful resource at a reasonable price.