The Human Story: Our History, from the Stone Age to Today

Are you interested in purchasing this book, but hesitating because of the five (or so) one-star reviews? I just finished reading it, and here's what I think. The one-star reviewers seem to me to have failed to consider the audience that Davis has in mind. He's not writing for graduate students in history, or even history majors or history buffs. He's writing for the sort of person who is fairly bright and aware of what's going on in the world, but a bit embarrassed about his lack of knowledge of history. Such a person has to start somewhere, and this book is an excellent place to start. I suppose I should also warn, for those who care about such things, that Davis's book is a traditional history: it is somewhat Euro-centric, and it's not revisionist, or post-modern, or PC. If that offends you, don't buy it. You may also wish to check out David Fromkin's "The Way of the World." It's another sort of "universal history" which has been widely praised, and is perhaps written for a slightly more sophisticated audience. (I haven't read it yet, so I'm just pointing it out, not recommending it.)

A good overview of history. Well written and very interesting but don't expect too much time spent on any event or period.

I slept through the one world history class that I was required to take in high school so this book was perfect for me. It is written in an entertaining, light-hearted fashion which kept my interest from beginning to end. It would be impossible to describe, in depth, 4000+ years of history, but this book does a great job in giving an overview of the major historical events that shaped our world today in a mere 450 pages. I highly recommend this book to those that are history-illiterate and want to understand how we arrived where we are.

I really enjoyed this book for one major reason - it really helped me put major historical events in context with the global timeline. Like many people, I have learned history generally in isolated segments. For instance, I learned the European history & Asian history independently. By going through the years quickly but with subject-related chapters, this book helped me put a lot of it together in my head in a useful way. This is not the book you would buy if you only want buy one history book. This is a book you buy to bring a lot of bits of knowledge together.

For those who didn't pay any attention in your world history classes and are looking for an overview, this is a great option. I was looking for a book that would introduce me to the people of the past and then allow me, from that intro, to choose what I'm most interested in and then dig deeper (through other books). This book does just that, and it does it at a high enough level that you don't get bogged down or lose interest half way through. I read sections out of the 20-30 odd World History books at Barnes and Noble, and this was one of the few that didn't just list out fact after fact. Another idea, is to purchase the Guide to the Mona Lisa as well and read them together - section by section - from this you'll be able to get a high-level view of art and history.