World-historical questions such as these, the subjects of major works by Jared Diamond, David Landes, and others, are now of great moment as global frictions increase. In a spirited and original contribution to this quickening discussion, two renowned historians, father and son, explore the webs that have drawn humans together in patterns of interaction and exchange, coope World-historical questions such as these, the subjects of major works by Jared Diamond, David Landes, and others, are now of great moment as global frictions increase. In a spirited and original contribution to this quickening discussion, two renowned historians, father and son, explore the webs that have drawn humans together in patterns of interaction and exchange, cooperation and competition, since earliest times.

Whether small or large, loose or dense, these webs have provided the medium for the movement of ideas, goods, power, and money within and across cultures, societies, and nations. From the thin, localized webs that characterized agricultural communities twelve thousand years ago, through the denser, more interactive metropolitan webs that surrounded ancient Sumer, Athens, and Timbuktu, to the electrified global web that today envelops virtually the entire world in a maelstrom of cooperation and competition, J. McNeill and William H. McNeill show human webs to be a key component of world history and a revealing framework of analysis. Avoiding any determinism, environmental or cultural, the McNeills give us a synthesizing picture of the big patterns of world history in a rich, open-ended, concise account.

Mythistory and Other Essays. Acls History E Book Project, 2008 - History - 238 pages. He was the co-author of The Human Web: A Bird's-Eye View of World History with his son John Robert McNeill. He also wrote a memoir entitled The Pursuit of Truth: A Historian's Memoir. He was one of.

The idea is good. To describe not the outside of history, but the inside of it, the processes that direct the flow of events. And not from one particular point of view (as f.ex. Dell Inspiron Srs Premium Sound Audio Driver. Marxists do), but taking into account various mutually independent factors, such as the spread of diseases and the speed of communications in addition to economic, political or religious factors. However, the actual book leaves a lot to be desired. First of all, there were too many factual mistakes in the areas that I kno The idea is good. To describe not the outside of history, but the inside of it, the processes that direct the flow of events.

And not from one particular point of view (as f.ex. Marxists do), but taking into account various mutually independent factors, such as the spread of diseases and the speed of communications in addition to economic, political or religious factors.

However, the actual book leaves a lot to be desired. First of all, there were too many factual mistakes in the areas that I know something about to let me trust surprising revelations in areas where I know less. Secondly, the choice of examples was quite often out of proportion. The book does not mention Charlemagne and deals in passing with Alexander the Great, but dedicates more than a page to the Taiping rebellion and more than half a page to Simon Kimbangu (while neglecting to mention any Mahdi rebellions in Africa). Once in a while the narrative got a bit tedious and another story of a migrating crop did not seem as important as it might have seemed to the authors. That said, the book contains a lot of very astute observations and convincing explanations of phenomena and processes that really set me thinking.

So yes, well earned three stars, but the ideal single volume on human history probably remains yet to be written. A very good, very broad overview of human history, perfect for those looking for an outline of the driving forces behind mankind's recent evolution, and for anyone re-orienting themselves with the history they may (or may not) have learned in secondary education. A great book to start with if you've found a new interest in learning some history, but don't know exactly what time, culture, or place to start with; as the narrative covers all of historical time, as well as a bit of prehistory in the A very good, very broad overview of human history, perfect for those looking for an outline of the driving forces behind mankind's recent evolution, and for anyone re-orienting themselves with the history they may (or may not) have learned in secondary education.

A great book to start with if you've found a new interest in learning some history, but don't know exactly what time, culture, or place to start with; as the narrative covers all of historical time, as well as a bit of prehistory in the beginning, and touches on cultures around the globe. Though the style is reminiscent of standard textbooks, the voice is clear and unpretentious, without the dry, verbose language so many people avoid most history books for. The author(s) simple, straightforward style and flow make this an easy read. The theme works to show how the many different time periods of human history fit in context with each other, and provides a logical explanation for how and why history evolved the way it did.

And though the narrative can get a little repetitious at times, I found that repetition very helpful in retaining the information being conveyed. Is this book an exhaustive explanation of human history? No, but it's not supposed to be. Used as a primer, a stepping off point, for further interest in learning history, it's nearly perfect.

I suggest this book to anyone and everyone who has a vague idea that they might want to learn some history, but have little, or no, idea where to start. In just over 300 pages, 'The Human Web' summarizes the history of humankind, from the first steps our ancestors took on the African savanna some 4 million years ago to the beginning of the 21st century. The authors, father and son McNeill, use as a framework the ever expanding networks of human interaction, networks of exchange of information, of cooperation and competition. The advantage of describing all of humanity's history and of using these framework is that it allows them to describe lo In just over 300 pages, 'The Human Web' summarizes the history of humankind, from the first steps our ancestors took on the African savanna some 4 million years ago to the beginning of the 21st century. The authors, father and son McNeill, use as a framework the ever expanding networks of human interaction, networks of exchange of information, of cooperation and competition. The advantage of describing all of humanity's history and of using these framework is that it allows them to describe long-range tendencies and broader contexts that history books that focus on a shorter period often can't provide. One example of something that I used to think of as isolated events but that the McNeills describe as a continuing, centuries-long phenomenon: The influence of steppe raiders.

I used to think that the Huns who contributed to the fall of the Roman empire in the 5th century and the Mongol army that ravaged Europe 8 centuries later were unconnected, but 'The Human Web' argues that Attila the Hun and Genghis Kahn were just examples of a centuries long influence, and often dominance, of steppe raiders on human development in Europe and Asia. Until the 17th century, these steppe raiders had military strategic advantages over the civilizations of the Eurasia.

As a result, especially in Mesopotamia and India, many, if not most, civilized governments of Eurasia descended from steppe conquerors. The strategic advantage of the steppe raiders disappeared when city dwellers started to mass produce firearms.

Because of the focus on the development and growth of human webs of cooperation and competition, humanity itself becomes the agent of change in this book, rather than individual change agents. One consequence is that very few names are mentioned in this book: If you are looking for a 'Who is who' of human history, this is not the book for you. In broad strokes, the history of the humanity goes from low diversity to high diversity and then back to less diversity. This process of growth and then decrease of diversity starts with the arrival of Homo Sapiens around 200.000 years ago.

Obviously, the web was then very small, and diversity was low. This started to change when the Homo Sapiens started to spread out over the world, some 60.000 years ago. New local webs formed, often with weak links to other webs. Consequently, diversity increased: different geographical, biological and climate-related challenges forced humans to adapt to local circumstances, which resulted in different cultures, languages, technologies. Around 5500 years ago, the first cities, and a little later, the first empires appeared, which resulted in bigger, tighter webs. At one stage, bigger and bigger webs started to absorb smaller webs. The sharing of information, from technologies to best practises to religion in these bigger webs started to reduce diversity.

This decrease of diversity intensified over the last couple of centuries, especially after the unification of the 2 main webs, the Old World web of Eurasia and the web of the Americas, when Columbus discovered the New World in 1492. Accelerated globalization, first between 1870 and 1914, later in the second half of the 20th century, resulted in a further decrease of diversity. One area where this decrease of diversity is manifesting itself clearly is in the disappearance of languages (see also: The extensive and chronic decline of languages seems to have originated in the 15th century, as the age of European expansion dawned. At least 15,000 languages were spoken at the beginning of that century. Since then, some 4,000 to 9,000 tongues have disappeared as a result of wars, genocide, legal bans, and assimilation.

Millennia of human experience are wrapped up in the planet's many languages, and this linguistic diversity may be as essential to our cultural health as biological diversity is to our physical health. No language is an exact map of any other; each is, in a sense, its own world.

By allowing so many of these worlds to slip away, we may be forfeiting a lot more than just words.) Other long-term tendencies that 'The Human Web' highlights are the impact humans have on their environment and the ever increasing inequality throughout human history. Human impact on nature started with the first use of fire to control the environment and the killing off of large land animals, and, as the McNeills don't fail to point out, continues today with, among others, the emission of CO2 and other greenhouse gasses. Their book was published in 2003. It is sad to realize not much progress on climate change issues has been made since then. Also still relevant are McNeills' remarks about rising inequality and it's dangers, described 10 years before Piketty and other contemporary prophets of inequality became household names. Some of the broad strokes of history in this book can also be found elsewhere. For instance, the McNeills give similar explanations for the dominant position Eurasian cultures had obtained by the 15th century as Jared Diamond did in his 'Guns, Germs and Steel': The earliest differences arose due to geographical and climatological circumstances and coincidences, and these differences tended to favour Eurasia.

In large parts of Sub-Saharan Africa, tropical diseases prevented the development of higher civilizations, and in the Americas, all agricultural work had to be done by human labour, simply because there were no big animals that could be domesticated to do the work. In Eurasia, its greater size, large amount of domesticable species, colder winters that killed off many tropical diseases and a more capacious communications web embracing its much larger population resulted in an accelerating rate of invention and change in the Old World. America's later start and weaker communications would have disastrous consequences after 1492 (described in more detail in Charles Mann's great books 1491 and 1493). 'The Human Web' also dedicates attention to the curious fact that several crucial inventions happened multiple times at different locations in human history.

An eloquent example is domestication of plants and animals, which happened 7 times between 11.000 and 4.000 years ago at different places in the world. The McNeills note that 'parallel pressures led to parallel solutions' (pag 7). These parallel solutions were necessary because the relatively localized webs were not yet sufficiently connected and information such as best practices about agriculture could not easily be transferred (and in the case of the Americas, could not be transferred at all). However, by the late 18th century, a global human web spanned the world. As a result, 'the steam engine did not have to be invented 7 times' (pag 7).

A great book if you are looking for a broad overview of human history and the long-term and long-range tendencies that have determined the development of human civilization. Although more focused on broad developments than anecdotal details, interesting small facts are not absent from the book. Who knew that camels were crucial for the expansion of Islam in the 7the century? A great starting point for further thinking and reading.

The best short history I've read. A great book to center your view of history to humanity an a whole. Some history books get lost in classroom academia with facts and a timeline. This one's focus is the story and the telling.

It is short and to the point with an emphasis how we got to the present. The McNeil's tell world history as an interconnected whole with the strands of the web increasing over time and pulling the disconnected parts together. They tell mankind's story in the same way as a The best short history I've read. A great book to center your view of history to humanity an a whole.

Some history books get lost in classroom academia with facts and a timeline. This one's focus is the story and the telling. It is short and to the point with an emphasis how we got to the present. The McNeil's tell world history as an interconnected whole with the strands of the web increasing over time and pulling the disconnected parts together. They tell mankind's story in the same way as an individual goes through life learning and casting one's own web of discovery. A man matures in life from a reactionary to a problem solving, change agent. Mankind and its culture evolved from reacting to it's environment to become his environment's greatest influence.

Telling history this way links the past to the present and it's problems the way the story of man should be told, the way he experiences it. I would recommend it for anyone who doesn't usually read history and wants to be knowledgeable of it. In my opinion, it is the best short world history book out there. If you only read one history book this should be it. A World History in over 350 pages, some have done it, but not the way father and son McNeill have.

They managed to put a new gridding over the complex evolution of mankind, namely that of evermore enlarging en more complicated webs, first locally (agrarian towns), than metropolitan (cities), followed by civilizations and finally the cosmopolitan worldwide web, starting from 1500 AD. To look at history in this way is especially refreshing for the period between 3.000 BC and 1500 AD because it ill A World History in over 350 pages, some have done it, but not the way father and son McNeill have. They managed to put a new gridding over the complex evolution of mankind, namely that of evermore enlarging en more complicated webs, first locally (agrarian towns), than metropolitan (cities), followed by civilizations and finally the cosmopolitan worldwide web, starting from 1500 AD. To look at history in this way is especially refreshing for the period between 3.000 BC and 1500 AD because it illustrates that civilizations and/or empires interact intensely.

This said, I've got a bit of a problem in the use the McNeill's make of the term 'the old Worldwide web', suggesting that there already was an intense interaction between the Roman Empire, the Parths and China; this seems to me exaggerated. Also, it's very odd to see that the Roman Empire only gets about 10 lines of attention, whilst the Chinese civilization gets ample attention in almost every chapter; perhaps a question of overcompensation? In short: this is a very thorough and brilliant book that gives new insight in the cohesion of human evolution, but sometimes is a bit unbalanced and forced. An ideal companion to Gun, Germs and Steel, this book looks into human history as an evolution from simple sameness to diversity and then toward complex sameness. First people lived in simple, small groups, spoke only a few languages, and pursued a narrow range of survival strategies. As groups spread out across the world, broader cultural variety - more languages, differing toolkits, more social complexity.

Through the growth of interactive webs, best practices spread, diversity declined, and c An ideal companion to Gun, Germs and Steel, this book looks into human history as an evolution from simple sameness to diversity and then toward complex sameness. First people lived in simple, small groups, spoke only a few languages, and pursued a narrow range of survival strategies. As groups spread out across the world, broader cultural variety - more languages, differing toolkits, more social complexity. Through the growth of interactive webs, best practices spread, diversity declined, and complexity became the rule - the new uniformity.

Societies that resisted disappeared. Modern human society is one huge web of cooperation and competition, sustained by massive flows of information and energy. The history of the entire human race in just over 300 pages. Dense and often slow but pretty interesting.

I learned a lot about longstanding ecological connections between humanity and the planet: the domestication of wheat, goats, etc etc. It was good at drawing complex connections: alfalfa bacteria meant certain crops could be cultivated which could support certain types of horses which meant raiders could sweep into China from the steppes. Impressively done, alfalfa bacteria! I know I ha The history of the entire human race in just over 300 pages. Dense and often slow but pretty interesting. I learned a lot about longstanding ecological connections between humanity and the planet: the domestication of wheat, goats, etc etc.

It was good at drawing complex connections: alfalfa bacteria meant certain crops could be cultivated which could support certain types of horses which meant raiders could sweep into China from the steppes. Impressively done, alfalfa bacteria! I know I had more to say but I finished this in September so WHO KNOWS what it was. Cultural cheerleaders constantly shout about how lucky we are to live in an age of miracles, a utopia of technology and progress.

Everything is just great (if you cram most of reality under the bed). But the folks who rip off their blinders know better.

They can perceive huge and growing crises that cannot be well addressed via the pursuit of shopping and entertainment. They can see that it’s time to learn, to think, and to change.

Understanding how we got into this bog of predicaments requires l Cultural cheerleaders constantly shout about how lucky we are to live in an age of miracles, a utopia of technology and progress. Everything is just great (if you cram most of reality under the bed). But the folks who rip off their blinders know better. They can perceive huge and growing crises that cannot be well addressed via the pursuit of shopping and entertainment.

They can see that it’s time to learn, to think, and to change. Understanding how we got into this bog of predicaments requires learning, lots of learning. For this, we need our superheroes, the historians. William McNeill, and his son John, heard the calls for help, and came to the rescue. William once tried to boil the human journey down to one book, but it was 829 pages, too big for general readers. John’s vision was human history in 200 pages, and he teamed up with his father to write it. The finished product was 350 pages, and titled The Human Web.

The book slices human history into time blocks, and provides snapshots of the world during each period. It’s not a sleep-inducing recital of kings, empires, wars, and dates. It’s about trends — in technology, weaponry, religion, worldviews, and environmental impacts.

Car Leasing Website Software there. The McNeills framed their discussion based on a model of webs, which are networks of communication and trade. Throughout the book, they take readers on an interesting promenade through the ages. Let’s take a peek at a few of their topics. For most of the human journey, our hunter-gatherer phase, webs were small nomadic clans. They weren’t completely isolated. For example, the freakishly powerful new technology of bows and arrows made it much easier to deplete game and enemies.

It managed to gradually spread from web to web until it was used everywhere except Australia. This was version 1.0 of the worldwide web. Technology that expands food production or kill-power has always been popular and highly contagious.

Webs that don’t adopt the latest technology have an increased risk of extinction. As humans migrated out of Mother Africa, into non-tropical ecosystems, new challenges and opportunities forced many changes. Survival depended on flexibility and innovation, and we got quite slick at this. By 40,000 years ago, we had become a potent “weed species” of invasive exotics, like dandelions, rats, and houseflies. Nothing could stop our spread.

With the emergence of agriculture 12,000 years ago, webs got bigger, and interacted more with neighboring webs. Around 6,000 years ago, the emergence of cities led to metropolitan webs.

Things and ideas spread faster and farther. Strong webs frequently expanded by absorbing weaker webs. By 2,000 years ago, the highly successful Old World web included most of Eurasia and North Africa. Finally, by 500 years ago, most of the world’s webs merged into the cosmopolitan web, which spanned the entire globe. We began domesticating animals about 6,000 years ago. Along the way, we learned a new trick, milking them.

“Herdsmen, in effect, substituted themselves for kids and lambs as consumers of milk — an extraordinary perversion of natural biological relationships.” By going into the dairy business, a herder could extract four times more calories from their enslaved animals, compared to simply eating them. Salvation religions, like Christianity, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Islam grew in popularity because they made life tolerable for the oppressed majority. Everyone, including women and slaves, had souls, so nobody was worthless. Those who obeyed the divine rules while alive were promised eternal life in paradise. Trading by barter was often clumsy. I might not want to trade my wheat for your rutabagas.

The invention of money made trading much easier. This greatly increased the exchange of goods, and the injuries caused to ecosystems. Emperors also loved money, because taxes paid in rutabagas were a hassle.

When peasants were required to pay taxes with money, they had to acquire money by selling stuff, forcing them to produce commodities. 1000, most of Western Europe was largely forest, and lightly populated.

Then the moldboard plow came into use. It enabled farmers to till heavy soils.

Cropland rapidly expanded as forests shrank. A similar explosion occurred in India and China, as rice farming spread between A.D. 200 and 1000, spurred by irrigation, iron tools, and the use of oxen. Population growth accelerated. In the good old days, communities were not diverse. Members of small webs shared the same worldview, so there was far less friction. With the invention of the printing press, cities were flooded with information from many cultures, and many of the new ideas conflicted with traditional beliefs.

Both the Pope and Luther howled, and tried to block the rising tide of science and other heresies. Today, science is working to standardize the global mind, at the expense of multinational religions and animist traditions. Civilization is addicted to agriculture. Soil mining and water mining are unsustainable. We know this, but it’s impossible for us to go cold turkey and quit the habit. Similarly, we have become extremely addicted to the unsustainable use of fossil fuels, and our modern way of life would be impossible without them.

Non-renewable resources do not last forever. Our super-sized global society is lurching toward its expiration date. The most disturbing trend in this book is a non-stop, ever-growing arms race, driven by an obsession with perpetual growth. It seems to be impossible for unsustainable societies to stop pursuing more and better ways of smashing each other. During the industrial era there has been explosive growth in death technology. In the twenty-first century, we are now capable of wiping out most of humankind in a single day, with the push of a button.

The last chapter provides two summaries. John, the son, writes first.

He sees history as an ongoing race for complexity, requiring ever-increasing flows of energy and information. In remote areas, simple cultures still work, but when complex cultures thrust into their sacred home, the days of wildness and freedom are soon over.

Complexity provides immense competitive advantages, as long as the inflow of extracted resources continues. But the inflow is beginning to sputter.

Consequently, “the chances of cataclysmic violence seem depressingly good.” Then William, the father, writes. The path that led us to having one worldwide web was driven by a collective pursuit of wealth and power. He wondered how long this web could survive on our current energy flows. William thought that for long-term survival, we needed to return to small face-to-face communities, “within which shared meanings, shared values, and shared goals made life worth living for everyone, even the humblest and least fortunate.” He concluded, “My personal hunch is that catastrophes — great and small — are sure to come and human resilience will prove more than we can imagine.” This book is part of a significant watershed in the modern perception of reality. It is pushing aside the magical thinking that assured us that technology and wise leaders could be trusted to smooth the path before us.

Very late in the game, it’s finally acceptable for respected scholars like the McNeills to state the obvious. They point to big storms ahead, ready or not.

Constantly wishing away the swarms of contradictions makes us crazy. When we stop wishing, and open our eyes, the world suddenly snaps into sharp focus, and makes perfect sense — we are not in utopia; we are lost. Finally, we have a call to action. How can we get home?

It’s time to pursue understanding, and stir in generous amounts of imagination. Our experiment in controlling and exploiting ecosystems has been a disaster. On the path forward, adapting to ecosystems is likely to work far better. It’s worth a try. McNeill tried to develop a new view and narrative model to describe the human history which is named the Global History now. I appreciate his(or their, with William McNeill and other scholars studying in this academic area) courage to create a de-Western narrative frame and the comprehensive perspective.

From Ranke, most of historians just noticed the nations and Assuenpolitik and ignore the social culture and civilizations(actually I don't like this word for it has been abused in many aspects) McNeill tried to develop a new view and narrative model to describe the human history which is named the Global History now. I appreciate his(or their, with William McNeill and other scholars studying in this academic area) courage to create a de-Western narrative frame and the comprehensive perspective. From Ranke, most of historians just noticed the nations and Assuenpolitik and ignore the social culture and civilizations(actually I don't like this word for it has been abused in many aspects).

Although Annales School and many French historians managed to induce a holistic historical method to write and explain what we now know, they inevitably fell into the dilemma of structuralism. The consequence of structural trap finally omits many details which cannot illustrate what scholars don't want to show.

McNeill's efforts open up a entirely new view of historiography filling up the empty of matters which lie in internations, intercivilizations and shadows. Though there are spacious room to advance and explore, I think this is the best outcome of the reflections of history during past 30 years. First of all, this book could seriously do with a reference list. The few existing notes don't actually lead to sources, merely more in depth comments on the topic. Secondly, this is a very economic (liberal) and teleological view on history, which is ok but does affect the conclusions and I would have liked them to at least acknowledge this and discuss why some perspectives were chosen over others. The Human Web is a mix of facts and speculation, making it pretty flat (and honestly, boring).

How First of all, this book could seriously do with a reference list. The few existing notes don't actually lead to sources, merely more in depth comments on the topic. Secondly, this is a very economic (liberal) and teleological view on history, which is ok but does affect the conclusions and I would have liked them to at least acknowledge this and discuss why some perspectives were chosen over others. The Human Web is a mix of facts and speculation, making it pretty flat (and honestly, boring). However, it is informative and in parts very well written. Could be good for anyone fancying a crash course in basic history.

A comprehensive guide for Human History. From our hunters and gatherers ancestors to the electronification of society in current times. McNeills built a metahistory around the concept of 'Webs'.

These are nodes of interaction between societies, more or less complex. These interactions include competition, cooperation but also transfers of technologies and diseases. For them, those people who are part of these webs benefit from these interactions but also they lead to more complex societies based A comprehensive guide for Human History. From our hunters and gatherers ancestors to the electronification of society in current times. McNeills built a metahistory around the concept of 'Webs'.

These are nodes of interaction between societies, more or less complex. These interactions include competition, cooperation but also transfers of technologies and diseases.

For them, those people who are part of these webs benefit from these interactions but also they lead to more complex societies based on specialization and division of labour, which also make these societies more unequal. Summing up, 'The Human Web' is a must not only for fans of History but for any humanist. This book was assigned to the AP World History class of my daughter, Annie. I read it after the class was over in order to see what she, and the class, had been up to, and found it interesting, so finished it. Some of the more interesting points (to me) below: - language was the most important aspect to increased human cooperation, but dance, ritual and art were important as well - the first useful wool-bearing sheep were mutants, and then of course were bred for that trait - caloric yield of milk This book was assigned to the AP World History class of my daughter, Annie. I read it after the class was over in order to see what she, and the class, had been up to, and found it interesting, so finished it. Another entry into my Read Your Library series, continuing in the World History section of the library, this particular book takes a look at the spread of humanity throughout the course of history, picturing it like a series of webs that form and grow, eventually connecting or being overtaken by other, stronger webs.

Starting with the earliest forms of gathered humanity, the McNeills trace the growth and expansion of the human race from the early hunter-gatherer societies, to the shift to agraria Another entry into my Read Your Library series, continuing in the World History section of the library, this particular book takes a look at the spread of humanity throughout the course of history, picturing it like a series of webs that form and grow, eventually connecting or being overtaken by other, stronger webs. Starting with the earliest forms of gathered humanity, the McNeills trace the growth and expansion of the human race from the early hunter-gatherer societies, to the shift to agrarian tribes, to the formation of the first major civilization in Mesopotamia. From there they explain the rise and fall of the first empires, the spread of technology, food, and illness across the globe, and the eventual combination of various webs to form a vast, interconnected web that covers most of the globe. One thing I enjoyed about this book, as it is designed as a textbook, is that the information is presented in the barest factual form. The authors try to avoid their own bias and simply present the history as it happened, giving a full account of why things happened the way they did, never taking sides on a single issue. I will say this fully factual presentation did make the reading a bit dry on occasion, but again, being a textbook that aspect was expected. I did not account for how much time that meant it would take me to get through it, however.

A World History in over 350 pages, some have done it, but not the way father and son McNeill have. They managed to put a new gridding over the complex evolution of mankind, namely that of evermore enlarging en more complicated webs, first locally (agrarian towns), than metropolitan (cities), followed by civilizations and finally the cosmopolitan worldwide web, starting from 1500 AD. To look at history in this way is especially refreshing for the period between 3.000 BC and 1500 AD because it ill A World History in over 350 pages, some have done it, but not the way father and son McNeill have. They managed to put a new gridding over the complex evolution of mankind, namely that of evermore enlarging en more complicated webs, first locally (agrarian towns), than metropolitan (cities), followed by civilizations and finally the cosmopolitan worldwide web, starting from 1500 AD. To look at history in this way is especially refreshing for the period between 3.000 BC and 1500 AD because it illustrates that civilizations and/or empires interact intensely.

This said, I've got a bit of a problem in the use the McNeill's make of the term 'the old Worldwide web', suggesting that there already was an intense interaction between the Roman Empire, the Parths and China; this seems to me exaggerated. Also, it's very odd to see that the Roman Empire only gets about 10 lines of attention, whilst the Chinese civilization gets ample attention in almost every chapter; perhaps a question of overcompensation? In short: this is a very thorough and brilliant book that gives new insight in the cohesion of human evolution, but sometimes is a bit unbalanced and forced. Covering the history of the world in a mere 350 pages (including notes, bibliography, and index) is quite a challenge, but McNeill and McNeill found a useful metaphor to bind it together. Humans have, over time, formed more and more complex and interactive networks - the 'world wide web,' even before computers.

Initially, these webs were local, perhaps a small city and its surrounding countryside. Then, local webs joined, however tenuously.

Empires rose as more complex and wide-ranging webs, unt Covering the history of the world in a mere 350 pages (including notes, bibliography, and index) is quite a challenge, but McNeill and McNeill found a useful metaphor to bind it together. Humans have, over time, formed more and more complex and interactive networks - the 'world wide web,' even before computers. Initially, these webs were local, perhaps a small city and its surrounding countryside. Then, local webs joined, however tenuously. Empires rose as more complex and wide-ranging webs, until much of Eurasia formed one web, with a smaller, less connected counterpart in the Americas. With contact between the continents, a single web began, which expanded to cover the whole world, with interactions taking place at faster rates. Highly readable and enjoyable.

Definitely an interesting look at the development of human society, giving due coverage to development in non-Western areas for the world and positing reasons of why some societies were able to develop faster or more effectively than others. I do wish the book was more self-critical, however; rarely did the authors concede that there was disagreement about how events happened or how these events should be explained, and the book contains few citations. It'd also be nice if the prose was a little Definitely an interesting look at the development of human society, giving due coverage to development in non-Western areas for the world and positing reasons of why some societies were able to develop faster or more effectively than others. I do wish the book was more self-critical, however; rarely did the authors concede that there was disagreement about how events happened or how these events should be explained, and the book contains few citations. It'd also be nice if the prose was a little livelier - the authors, especially toward the beginning, tend to stack facts on top of each other, and going on about who was growing sorghum and who was growing alfalfa without context of what these different agricultural trends meant doesn't make for fascinating reading. Not nearly as gimmicky as I thought. They did a great job of sticking with a theme and following it - not getting caught up in the details of history.

The father wrote one of the most important and best books of all time (Plagues and People) and this book is almost as good. My only critique is that because they don't allow themselves to get caught up with the details, I am not 100% sure this book will translate to people who don't know those details. I know that I felt more comfortable with the Not nearly as gimmicky as I thought. They did a great job of sticking with a theme and following it - not getting caught up in the details of history. The father wrote one of the most important and best books of all time (Plagues and People) and this book is almost as good. My only critique is that because they don't allow themselves to get caught up with the details, I am not 100% sure this book will translate to people who don't know those details. I know that I felt more comfortable with the time periods I know more about, although I enjoyed the parts that I knew less about.

Also great: multiple shout-outs to Cahokia, IL. A very macro approach to history that weaves together a compelling and interesting perspective on the history of humans. Using the web as a focal point I was able to learn, remember and track the events of history as they related to the web. This was all a byproduct of the web though as the web and its consequences are truly the reason that this book was so good.

That being said, my ignorance forced me to take a lot of what was said as facts, and there were a lot of built in assumptions due to t A very macro approach to history that weaves together a compelling and interesting perspective on the history of humans. Using the web as a focal point I was able to learn, remember and track the events of history as they related to the web. This was all a byproduct of the web though as the web and its consequences are truly the reason that this book was so good.

That being said, my ignorance forced me to take a lot of what was said as facts, and there were a lot of built in assumptions due to the nature of the book. Well, technically I didn't finish the whole thing, but I did my last reading for my Global History course today, so I'd say it counts. This book was a really good overview of the history of humanity, told with an emphasis on globalisation which I liked. There is a lot of information to take in though, and at times it can seem overwhelming. However, if you have an history event you want to get a good overview for, and maybe view it from a different global perspective, this book is likely to have w Well, technically I didn't finish the whole thing, but I did my last reading for my Global History course today, so I'd say it counts.

This book was a really good overview of the history of humanity, told with an emphasis on globalisation which I liked. There is a lot of information to take in though, and at times it can seem overwhelming. However, if you have an history event you want to get a good overview for, and maybe view it from a different global perspective, this book is likely to have what you're looking for. This is a great book for those who are either about to teach AP World History or are in the midst of teaching it. William and John McNeill emphasize the connections, the webs, which link groups and regions across time and space, something which is an important component of the AP World History curriculum. The focus on the webs means that certain finer details will be left out.

Other works should be used to supplement this volume to provide the details. For those who are already working with more This is a great book for those who are either about to teach AP World History or are in the midst of teaching it. William and John McNeill emphasize the connections, the webs, which link groups and regions across time and space, something which is an important component of the AP World History curriculum. The focus on the webs means that certain finer details will be left out. Other works should be used to supplement this volume to provide the details.

For those who are already working with more detailed texts, this book will help the reader see the forest for the trees.

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