The Harper Atlas of World History - Hardcover

Text: English (translation)
Original Language: French

The Harper Atlas of World History shares the same format as the Facts on File series of historical atlases that came out in the 1980s; it is a translation of Histoire de l'humanite (Hachette, 1992). The period of coverage is 70 million B.C. through the spring of A.D. 1992. The maps are instructive, colorful, but sometimes rather stylized. Each topic includes a chronological list of relevant events at the bottom of the page. The topics for the past 40 years could be better organized, and the index should be expanded. Despite references to Yugoslavia in the text, it is not indexed. The Commonwealth of Independent States appears in the index as "CIS," but with no cross reference from the full name. However, these minor defects do not detract from the overall usefulness of the volume as a reference tool; highly recommended as such for public and academic libraries. Historian Manley's Atlas of Past Worlds may not be as useful as a reference tool due to its narrow scope. It is an attractive work, beautifully conceived and researched, reflecting the author's consultation with scholars who have site-specific expertise. Twenty-five archaeological sites from across the world are chosen and divided into groups of five by time periods. For some sites this provides only a snapshot in time, for example, Thebes, Egypt. A general bibliography is provided for each site discussed. As a general reference source for archaeological sites, the Atlas of Ancient Archaeology (McGraw, 1974, o.p.) covers roughly 170 sites without time restrictions. Manley's atlas is recommended for public and academic libraries, though not for the reference collection.
- Edward K. Werner, St. Lucie Cty. Lib. System, Ft. Pierce, Fla.
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.