Twentieth Century: The History of the World, 1901 to 2000 [Hardcover]

J. M. Roberts (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 1, 1999

One of our greatest contemporary historians greets the millennium with an authoritative and engrossing survey of the twentieth century

When it comes to narrative history, J. M. Roberts is an undisputed master of his craft. His classic History of the World (more than a quarter million copies sold worldwide) remains, in the words of eminent historian A. J. P. Taylor, "a stupendous achievement...the unrivaled World History of our day. . . unbelievably accurate... almost incontestable in its judgement." More remarkable, his History of Europe was acclaimed as "the best single volume history of Europe. . . combining authority and good sense with fluency and wit" (London Times Literary Supplement). In his latest sweeping and entertaining work, Roberts focuses on our own momentous century.

Twentieth Century places a chronological narrative of events in the context of the long-term changes that colored them. Among these are worldwide increases in life expectancy; major strides in science and technology; the radical reconfiguration of the global economy; vanished empires, shrunken white hegemony, and reassessment of "western" civilization; and the ever-evolving role of women.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

J.M. Roberts's monumental Penguin History of the World became a publishing phenomenon and sold in the hundreds of thousands. Now he has produced an equally brilliant new book, focusing solely on our own troubled and dramatic century, and it has all the breathtaking sweep and confident judgment of his previous work. Most important, Roberts takes a truly international view of things. The 20th century, he argues, is marked as much as anything by the decline of Europe as the world's sole arbiter and the emergence of today's cosmopolitan, global civilization, born of decolonization, the resurgence of Islam, and the vibrant, self-assured new nations of Asia and Latin America. He also examines the other two major trends of our time: the social and economic empowerment of women and the extraordinary quadrupling of the world's population, most of it in Third World countries. A challenging and exacting read, Twentieth Century is destined to be a classic. --Christopher Hart, Amazon.co.uk

From Publishers Weekly

Joining the many eminent historians who have tried to summarize the 20th century, Roberts (A History of Europe, etc.) takes as his framework the compelling argument that "in many ways, the world... was centered on Europe when the twentieth century began" and "much of that century's story is of how and why that ceased to be true before it ended." It's a good argument, and it distinguishes Roberts's history from those of Martin Gilbert (A History of the Twentieth Century, 1952-1999, Forecasts, Oct. 25), who takes a strict chronological approach, and Clive Ponting (The Twentieth Century: A World History, Forecasts, Feb. 1), who takes a more multithemed tack. With broad strokes, Roberts traces the political and economic events that led to the demise of Europe's empires and the continent's descent into two world wars, while also tracking the vicissitudes of democracy and communism throughout the world during the Cold War. He scrutinizes the development of the U.S.S.R. and the Asian powers, China and Japan in particular, but the U.S. generally gets short shrift, even during the second half of the century. Too frequently, Roberts appears frustrated by being forced to generalize, and he unnecessarily apologizes for having to do so (notably in his discussions of fascism and modernism). The greatest casualty of the book's scope is character. This is a book of trends, not people. The century's geopolitical rainmakers--FDR, Hitler, Mao, etc.--are present, but they exist on an epic rather than a personal scale. Fortunately, at any level of detail, the 20th century is a fascinating saga, and Roberts brings wit as well as a gift for summary to the task.
Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 906 pages
• Publisher: Viking Adult (December 1, 1999)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0670884561
• ISBN-13: 978-0670884568
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.4 x 2.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.8 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (17 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #342,098 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You're in good hands with Roberts, March 23, 2001

By 

"michaeleve" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Twentieth Century: The History of the World, 1901 to 2000 (Hardcover)

From the first lines of the opening page of 'Twentieth Century' Roberts proceeds to put 100 years into context. Definitions, historiography, illusions, and myths are all discussed. Even our use of the term 'century' is shown to be an arbitrary concept useful for descriptive purposes only. It is very obvious that this is a well thought out and carefully crafted history and like Allstate's advertisement which implies that we are in the hands of insurance experts, this book makes it clear we are in the hands of an expert historian.

One of the difficulties with writing a world history is the problem of perspective. With such a broad subject, and a lengthy period of time, you have to be selective; you have to take a stand and start somewhere. As Roberts himself says "history varies according to the position from which you view it." There must be an emphasis or a theme. The chapter entitled 'structures' quickly draws our attention to the importance of 'human numbers' such as commerce and demographics. Roberts does not try to say something about everything because, at best, it would mean offering general explanations, which he rigthly says are "generally unhelpful". Perspective is more than an emphasis or starting point; it's also perception. "What must never be lost to sight is the fact that all pasts were once upon a time, presents; all outcomes were once upon a time, peoples futures. History is made by people confronting predicaments [and] we are liable to judge them wrongly unless we try to keep in mind the limits to their own perception of what those predicaments were". Here Roberts has given us a lucid description of the relativism of history. How our ancestors perceived their world at the start of the century is vastly different from the perspective we take today. It is a point Roberts drives home; "we can only begin to approach understanding by recognizing how much they were not like us. Any history of the 20th century must begin in a world deeply unlike our own". This justifies the section on 'the shape of things to come' and explains why nearly one quarter of the book concentrates on the period before 1918. A constant frame of reference against which we view some of the revolutionary changes that took place in our century.

Robert's explanation of one of those revolutionary changes; the one of my youth, put me in my place. Like most youth of the sixties, the experience of the decade was, I thought, profound. Not so; "although attention-catching [it] was largely froth, the least profound manifestation of a great change". He's finished with the sixties within 30 pages. To have my youthful existential ruminations so callously dispatched was definitely bubble-bursting. Roberts is not finished pin-pricking. Although the book is justifiably Eurocentric - "in many ways the world actually was centered on Europe when the 20th century began" - he is quick to point out that those days are gone. Appropriately, "much of that century's story is of how and why that ceased to be true". One of the indicators of a true Eurocentric perspective is the emphasis placed on the role of the 'Great War'. Roberts gives it short shrift - 30 pages, bursting the bubble of that particular world view.

The book takes a truly international view, with historical strands from the periphery being explained, and woven together into larger themes. In the event that an international perspective is mistaken for globalization, Westernization or even Americanization - as in Francis Fukuyama's post Cold War victory of liberal democracy - think again. The Cold War serves as the half-way marker for Robert's history but that's about it's only significance, and although globalization is mentioned, he is not convinced about the effectiveness of international institutions. As for the idea of civilizational and cultural influences usurping the role of nation states; he's ready with his pins for anyone daring to float those balloons.

Refreshingly opinionated, but very balanced; well written and very educational. A thoroughly enjoyable history of our century.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A book that every 21st century habitant should read, October 14, 2004

By 

Lorenzo Gazmuri (Santiago, Chile) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Penguin History of the Twentieth Century: The History of the World, 1901 to the Present (Allen Lane History) (Paperback)

I'm not an historian and English is not my native language, but I found that this book gave me a new and broad understanding of the world we are living in. I feel that if more of our politicians and authorities would have the knowledge this book provides we could be guided in a better way in the difficult years of this first decade of the new century. The book is easy to read,the prose of Mr. Roberts is fluent and any good reader will really enjoy it.

24 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Save your time, February 19, 2000

By 

Christopher C. Cole - See all my reviews

This review is from: Twentieth Century: The History of the World, 1901 to 2000 (Hardcover)

J. M. Roberts' Twentieth Century was a major disappointment. I have loved his other books, but this one seems to have been put together in haste, and the results are poor. Viking should be ashamed at the terrible printing job; almost every page, of my copy, has printing problems that look to be lack of ink. This interferes with reading- hardly what you would expect in a book in this price range. The index of this book is appallingly poor and inaccurate. Roberts gets the second half of the 20th century wrong. For example Apollo XI landed two astronauts on the moon not three (Mike Collins orbited the moon while Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin landed.) Harry Truman's name is Harry S Truman- not Harry F. Truman. His one and half pages on the Internet are so bad they hurt. In summary this is a collection of repetitive vignettes, almost exclusively focused on the political history of the century. Save your time and read anything by William Manchester, Scott Ambrose, or David McCullough, or even read Roberts' History of Europe, but pass on this poorly done tome.