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3.24 AVERAGE
3.24 AVERAGE
informative
reflective
fast-paced
Well curated and excellent concept. Would like to have seen more developing nations included and potentially some dialogue, e.g. two authors per country.
informative
reflective
I liked this book because it gave such a broad overview of some nations that I knew practically nothing about whilst also keeping me interested about topics I wouldn’t have thought I would be. However, I would have liked the ‘essays’ to be longer, often they came across sprawling and all over the place due to the amount of history they were trying to fit in in such a small amount of pages.
informative
reflective
medium-paced
informative
challenging
informative
reflective
fast-paced
Educational essays on the history of nations across the world. It’s very interesting to read the perspective of historians on their own countries’ history, even though it is of course just one perspective that is offered. Would recommend!
This is a very ambitious book, perhaps too ambitious. It's not easy to summarise the entire history of a country in only a few pages and compilations will always be hit-or-miss with authors interpreting the title differently. Unfortunately, some of the chapters are only as informative as a Wikipedia article and the book as a whole has a lack of analysis. The book fails to live up to the promise of its title and there isn't an explanation of how nations identities were formed.
Other reviewers have said much of what I would say on this one, and far more clearly and articulately than I - here's just one example. In short, for the most part this is less a book of how national identities were forged and more short, thin histories of major historical events - you'd learn more from each country's Wikipedia page.
I'd also be interested to know how the entries were selected. Of 28 countries represented, 14 are European (15 if you count Turkey, which considering their efforts to join the European Union seems not outside the realms of possibility). European history is ground that is well-covered enough already, and I would have been more interested in other regions.
Also, my Thames & Hudson print copy of this had some appalling typos. Including, in just one chapter (Japan) a random "9" in the middle of a sentence, and multiple words hyphenated randomly in the middle of a page e.g. "Capi-talist".
I'd also be interested to know how the entries were selected. Of 28 countries represented, 14 are European (15 if you count Turkey, which considering their efforts to join the European Union seems not outside the realms of possibility). European history is ground that is well-covered enough already, and I would have been more interested in other regions.
Also, my Thames & Hudson print copy of this had some appalling typos. Including, in just one chapter (Japan) a random "9" in the middle of a sentence, and multiple words hyphenated randomly in the middle of a page e.g. "Capi-talist".
slow-paced