The Story of Mankind

I have read this book many times . There is NO better book that tells you about world history in a chronological sequence, with the possible exception of The Glimpses of World History by Jawaharlal Nehru. Van Loon has illustrated the entire book with his own sketches and that makes it even more interesting to read. His style is not like an essay. When you read it, it would sound like a fairy tale and you may find it hard to put it down even though your whole body is telling you that you need your sleep.

THE STORY OF MANKIND is a delight. Contrast its wit and insight with the typical history textbooks to which our young are routinely subjected--as ably described by education historian Diane Ravitch: "The dullness of history textbooks is legendary. I am involved right now in a study of history textbooks, and I must say that I have trouble reading them because of their jumbled, jangly quality. I also have trouble lifting them because they are so heavy and overstuffed with trivia and pedagogical aids. With one or maybe two exceptions, most textbooks put more emphasis on visual glitz than on the quality of their text. By the time that these books emerge from the political process that is called state adoption, they lack voice and narrative power. They lack the very qualities that make historical writing exciting. Our history textbooks are distracting, and I don't know how students learn anything from them."Van Loon's book won the first Newberry Prize, quite an achievement for a book on world history. "The Story of Mankind" remains a great read for any child thirteen and up (and up).

I first read this book in 1960 as a paperback (Pocket Library, 50 cents!) and was fascinated. Now I'm reading it to my 14-year-old son, and we're both fascinated. What we like is that it gives a broad sweep of history, explaining why things happened and why they're important. The author doesn't place a lot of emphasis on dates and battles and such, just the grand sweep. If your young adults are tired of all those reading lists that recommend only fiction, here's just the non-fiction book for them.

This reprint of Henrik Willem van Loon's "Story of Mankind", winner of the 1922 Newberry Award (first awarded) is a treasure chest of history spiced throughout with van Loon's delightful pen and ink drawings. Modern editors have tried to bring the book up to date by including major world events since van Loon originally wrote the book, but their writing doesn't have the insight that made van Loon's writings what they are. Van Loon traces the history of mankind from the beginning, starting with a brief geologic description of planet earth. His writing makes it seem as if you are reading a docu-drama, and you'll keep wishing that he could spend more time on each topic. I especially enjoyed the sections on the middle ages and renaissance, and this book serves as a good introduction to history for children with writing that brings history to life. At times, given when this book was originally written, you may be struck by van Loon's eurocentric flavor, but overall, he does a remarkable job in providing a well balanced presentation of all major world events. He does a great job of looking at major world religions. This is not an exhaustive epic of the history of humanity, rather it is an excellent introduction to history. Sadly, not many histories can claim to be as entertaining as this volume. Perhaps if more were, history would not be viewed with dread.