An Illustrated History of the World: How We Got to Where We Are

From the origins of the earth to the present day and beyond, this whimsical illustrated history links chronological events, personalities, and geographical locations as it highlights key periods of human history.

Grade 6-8-- Clements covers the important events of world history, comic-strip style. She begins with the prevailing theories of the origins of the universe, covers all the major developments through the 1970s, predicts "future" changes, and ends with a timeline showing "ages" and the corresponding trends in each continent, which also serves as an index. Each single- or double-page treatment presents a different period (e.g., Ancient Egypt) or topic (e.g., Leaders and Government) illustrated with small, often humorous, full-color cartoons. Some pages contain maps, while others present a way of life, such as that found within a medieval town. The text appears to be hand printed and is found in borders, boxes, columns, captions, and as summaries of historical epochs. The eye is kept busy looking at all the figures and reading all the commentary. Visual puns occur frequently, such as the Diet of Worms being shown as a container of earthworms. The story of George Washington and the cherry tree is presented as fact, not myth; but otherwise, this is a straightforward summary with attempts made to show all parts of the world, religions, and races. The book may be best used as a short entertaining review for students to see humorous depictions of events they have already studied. Arnold's Book of Dates (Watts, 1990) offers a more serious and comprehensive chronology, but Clement's guide is fun to browse through. --Jean H. Zimmerman, Willett School, South River, NJ
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Clements makes good on the promise she delivers in her introduction: to describe some important developments in world history in pictures and words "with a few jokes thrown in." Beginning with a roundup of various theories on the origins of the universe, these information-crammed pages cover such topics as ancient civilizations; the Middle Ages in Europe; the Renaissance; the Reformation and Counter-Reformation; European explorations in the West and East; the Industrial Revolution; the "scramble for Africa" in the 19th century; and the Victorian Age. The author concludes with a cursory decade-by-decade look at the 20th century and a speculative glance "into the future." Generously peppered with amusing comments and asides, this chronicle has a lighthearted edge--a figure at the site of the Egyptian boy king's tomb quips: "Toot and come in!"; "I've been waving for ages," says a gesticulating fellow pictured by a note on the future of wind, wave and solar power. Though hardly an exhaustive historical oeuvre, this is an instructive and diverting chronology. Ages 8-up.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.