World Civilizations [Hardcover]

Philip J. Adler (Author), Randall L. Pouwels (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0534599338 | ISBN-13: 978-0534599331 | Publication Date: February 1, 2005 | Edition: 004

Bringing more than 50 years of combined teaching experience and expertise into WORLD CIVILIZATIONS, Philip J. Adler and Randall L. Pouwels present an accessible, comprehensive, and balanced global overview of the world's major civilizations from the ancient world to modern times. Well more than half of the content focuses on the world outside of Europe. As one of the most graphic and pedagogically driven books in the market, the text appeals to students and professors alike. Hundreds of illustrations, maps, and documents, overviews, self-tests, and additional rich pedagogical features make the history of world civilizations easier for students to study and understand. Fifty-six concise chapters make content manageable for students while giving instructors the flexibility to present the material in any way they choose. Available in the following split options: WORLD CIVILIZATIONS, FOURTH EDITION (Chapters 1-56), ISBN: 0534599338; WORLD CIVILIZATIONS, VOLUME I: TO 1700, FOURTH EDITION (Chapters 1-30), ISBN: 0534599346; WORLD CIVILIZATIONS, VOLUME II: SINCE 1500, FOURTH EDITION (Chapters 23-56), ISBN: 0534599354.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Adler's short chapters set the book apart. Virtually all the world civilization and world history textbooks I have reviewed have about 30 pages per chapter and contain a bewildering amount of detail. They are encyclopedic. Adler's book is much better suited to my survey, which meets three days a week for an hour; students read one chapter per meeting. It's easily manageable and the topic of the day is clear. I can supplement as I want and students are still not overwhelmed by a massive amount of material."

"As a geographer as well as a historian, I love the inclusion of maps, especially an introductory 'Worldview' map to orient readers to textual materials. … With each new edition of this text, I have been pleased at the changes made. This demonstrates to me that Adler, and now Pouwels, are committed to continued excellence. They are not satisfied to rest on their laurels, but instead really work on the text revisions. I applaud these efforts. And I look forward to reading the latest version."

"One of my original suggestions for the revision was to include more maps, so I am delighted to see that we are doing that. The 'spot maps' are nice, but the worldview maps are absolutely great, especially if they are accompanied by the interactive icons. My students know absolutely zero about world geography, so the worldview maps will be a very valuable addition. Color-coding the maps to the end-of-part material is a good idea, the sort of thing that students never pay any attention to, but which they notice, even if they don't realize it."

"The three strengths of the Adler text are: a) its emphasis on interpreting the import of history's broad themes; b) its encouragement of the learner to think about the implications of these themes; and c) its brevity and cogency, which appeal to the student who has little interest in the minutiae of history. … Adler offers a better focus on interpreting the import of history's broad themes, and does a better job of encouraging the learner to think about history rather than just recite it."

"Adler is smooth, well-organized, colorful, and readable."

About the Author

Philip J. Adler has taught college courses in world history to undergraduates for almost thirty years. Dr. Adler took his Ph.D. at the University of Vienna following military service overseas in the 1950s. His dissertation was in the activity of the South Slav emigres during World War I, and his academic specialty was the modern history of Eastern Europe and the Austro-Hungarian Empire. His research has been supported by Fulbright and National Endowment for the Humanities grants. Adler has published widely in the historical journals of this country and German-speaking Europe. He is currently professor at East Carolina University, where he has spent most of his teaching career. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 816 pages
• Publisher: Wadsworth Publishing; 004 edition (February 1, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0534599338
• ISBN-13: 978-0534599331
• Product Dimensions: 11.2 x 8.7 x 1.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3.8 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #766,081 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars World Civilizations, March 16, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: World Civilizations (Paperback)

This text is meant to be the backbone reading material in a standard college-level introduction to world history. It is aimed especially at the student encountering the more exotic elements and areas of civilization for the first time, and particularly in junior and community college courses. It has been written from the beginning with such students in mind, and is uniquely equipped with pedagogic devices meant to aid these persons grasp the interrelations among world civilizations. Chapters are keyed to class lecture coverage, with strong emphasis on social and cultural trends and events. Proportionately more space is given to nonwestern peoples than any other text on the market.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent Survey Text for Global View, May 3, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: World Civilizations (Hardcover)

Adler's World Civilizations is an excellent introductory survey text. The language is pleasant without being banal. Most importantly the text gives attention to a worldview that shows history globally instead of through the Western tinted glasses our texts in High school usually did.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great for a general reference of history and geography., September 11, 2009

By 

Lake Waters (Kentucky) - See all my reviews

This review is from: World Civilizations (Hardcover)

I picked this up at a library used book sale of donated items. I paid zero for it as it was used and not many people want these large textbooks around the house.

But after paging through the book it really is very nicely arranged with chapters very logically presented with enough, but not an overwhelming amount of of text to slog through until the next heading appears. I find it very appealing visually with a great balance of maps (nice ones), photos and side panels. This is a book I would have considered keeping after using it in a class.

Sometimes its just nice to reach for a book to read about some battle or treaty or geographic region without using the internet to learn something.

In my case, it will be used for filling in historical periods which I might be curious about. It would be worth a few dollars but I can't say more than $20 for a reference work.