Wonders of the World: 100 Great Man-Made Treasures of Civilization [Hardcover]

Rosemary Burton (Author), Richard Cavendish (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 31, 2003

What city claims to be the world's oldest? What is the largest construction ever built by human hands? The answers to these and many other questions are here, revealed in fascinating detail and shown in remarkable photographs of the world's most spectacular sights. There are enigmatic megaliths such as Stonehenge and the Easter Island statues that have not yet yielded their age-old secrets. Exquisite edifices, such as St. Peter's in Rome, rub shoulders with the surreal structure of Gaudi's Sagrada Familia in Barcelona. The stark outline of the Great Pyramid at Giza contrasts with the extravagant opulence of Hearst's castle at San Simeon. Feats of engineering are represented with the Trans-Siberian Railway and Japan's Seto Ohashi Suspension Bridge. Each entry includes location details, a description of the site, a panel of additional information, and large color pictures. For easy reference, everything is broken up by continent with its own location map and introductory feature, and arranged chronologically.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: MetroBooks (December 31, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1586637517
• ISBN-13: 978-1586637514
• Product Dimensions: 12 x 8.6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #531,413 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Quick reading, interesting and informative, June 12, 2004

By 

J. Lizzi (Costa Mesa, CA) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Wonders of the World: 100 Great Man-Made Treasures of Civilization (Hardcover)

This is a very good compilation of man-made "wonders" in a concise and easy-to-read format. With a hundred entries, "Wonders of the World" would be monstrous were it to include much detail about each wonder. However, many readers will find this an easy way to learn the salient points about many fantastic places, all in one book.

The primary arrangement is by continent, within which the wonders follow in chronological order. Each time you turn the page, you're reading about a different place. Every so often, there's a mini-chapter which generally describes civilizations or feats of man which proliferated, but couldn't be represented in a comprehensive way (e.g., "The Inca Empire" and "Houses of God"). These touch on key points, and might inspire the reader to pursue further study of more in-depth literature.

Each of the wonders is presented very simply: a world map in the corner, with a dot showing where on the planet it is situated; below that, a tiny political boundary map depicting area cities; two or three nice color photos; a five- to ten-paragraph description of the wonder; and lastly, a few paragraphs of complementary information relating to some part of history or related trivia. For example, the entry for The Grand Canal (Venice) has interesting notes about the gondola and Piazza San Marco.

As with any "best of" book, one may question why some things are included and others are not, but that's an argument I won't take up here. Yes, there are surely more than 100 magnificent places/things to see in the world; however, what's in this book is worth reading about, and I'd recommend "Wonders of the World" to just about anyone.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Going Places, March 8, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Wonders of the World: 100 Great Man-Made Treasures of Civilization (Hardcover)

As a person who loves to travel, I am always drawn to coffee table-type books with beautiful photos of intriguing places. This book not only contains wonderful photos, but also descriptions of each place. I enjoy it, but truth be told, I was able to purchase it for $5.00 at Barnes and Noble in the bargain books section. May want to check that option...

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Wonderful reference book!, December 26, 2004

By 

j.h. "jukir96" (Montgomery, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Wonders of the world

This colorfully illustrated book contain useful information about man-made historical buildings, monuments and artifacts from around the world. From the Great Wall of China, to the pyramids of Egypt, this book shows and describes so many spectacular creations that have stood for thousands of years. My 60 year old father as well as my teenage nephews loved this book!