books
a short history of the 20th century
geoffrey blainey s short history of the world published by ivan r. dee in 2002 rapidly became a book of choice on the subject . jacques barzun called it a unique achievement and william l. o neill described it as a delightful read gracefully written and filled with odd and interesting pieces of information as well as thoughtful comparisons than span both time and space . now mr. blainey has applied his narrative talents and his scholarly credentials to trace the history of a tempestuous century . a short history of the twentieth century carries some of the excitement of the times as well as the power of unforeseen events . the theme that dominates much of the book is war and peace a nervous peace which gripped the attention of most people who lived through a large part of the century . mr. blainey s talent for identifying the telling detail the crucial event the key personality makes for masterful storytelling and his interest ranges wide over the fields of human activity ; he is concerned not only with major transformations but also with the everyday experiences of people around the world . taking the story from the dawn of a century ripe with promise especially for europeans he shows how and why empires soon fell igniting wars and revolutions that continued intermittently through the period ; economic depressions that brought great powers to their knees ; totalitarian governments that doled out misery to their citizens ; a middle east in turmoil ; and a resurgent islam . but he has more mundane concerns as well how were children raised why did cities grow so large how did new machines and technology influence a thousand activities how did films radio and automobiles transform social life a short history of the twentieth century entertains like a novel educates and informs like the best of teachers . with 10 maps .
paperback ivan r. dee publisher 2008 isbn13 9781566637930 isbn10 1566637937
abridged n isbn 13 9781566637930 number in series 1 number of pages 367 publisher natl book network release date 62135769600000