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Title: The 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Persons in History by Michael H. Hart ISBN: 0-8065-1350-0 Publisher: Citadel Press Pub. Date: 01 October, 1992 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $22.50 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.41 (58 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: A superb distilation of people of historical consequence
Comment: This is a superb distilation of people of ultimate consequence. The author not only has the audacity to put together a ranking "the most influential persons in history", but he provides a solid, thoughtful rationale in each case. This book is very informative, and is an easy read, particularly for those of us who are trying to broaden their general knowledge of history, significant events, and of course historical figures. There's no doubt that you'll disagree with his ranking of some of those listed among the most influential, or disagree with their placement in the 100, but that's just half the enjoyment of the book... as one reads it, you look critically at his rationale and his list, and you start to put together your own list and - following the author's lead - start to devise your own criteria for what constitutues influence and who deserves (for better or worse) to be listed as among history's greatest. With a broad scope that dips into science, religious, art, military conflict, and politics, this book will turn even the most culturally deficient of us into almost-scholars with a fair smattering of knowledge of events and people of consequence. ..... Excellent.
Rating: 5
Summary: Both Fun and Important
Comment: I first read this book nearly 10 years ago when a friend lent it to me. Since that time, I have referenced his "logic" in ranking the top 10 people (in particular) so many times that I had to buy the book for myself and my family. Many will disagree with Hart's ranking (Christians especially are often appalled that Jesus was ranked third behind Muhammed and Isaac Newton), but the reasons are so compelling that it might actually be a force for change!
Beyond that, this book is an exceptional little collection of mini-biographies of 100 influential people in history, and is a great reference book for families. My teenagers have been reading it and talking about it, and for that alone, it was worth purchasing! (Um...it's an excellent "Bathroom Book!")
Rating: 4
Summary: Good biographical summary
Comment: First off, this book is recommended simply because it is a useful resource of biographical sketches and analyses of the respective impacts these individuals had on history. It is a good conversation starter and always thought provoking.
What disappoints me, however, is that he doesn't take a "hinges" of history approach to the concept. In theory you can take this to the extreme--for example, who's more influential, Muhammed or the woman who gave birth to Muhammed? However, there are key characters in world history who do not even make the "near miss" list, yet alone the Top 100.
What about Themistocles, whose foresight in investing in an Athenian navy helped to save Athens from the Persian invasion? No Themistocles, no Greek victory, no Greek hegemony, likely no Socrates, no Aristotle, no philosophy. Or Scipio Africanus, who saved Rome from Hannibal by basically inventing the scorched earth military tactics and taking the battle to Carthage while Hannibal owned Italy. Scipio was an original tactician. No Scipio, no Roman conquest of Spain and North Africa, no doorway into Egypt and Palestine (and we know how important Roman influence is around 30 C.E. in Palestine), no Roman hegemony of the Meditareanian, no economic monopoly of Med trade, no Roman empire, thus no Ceasar, and possibly no Rome, period, as Hannibal probably could have destroyed Rome if not for Scipio's victories in Spain. Or Woodrow Wilson, who got the U.S. into the first World War (and thus helped to win it), who helped to form the modern world as we know it, who helped to create the map of the Middle East which is giving us such headaches (not to mention Yugoslavia), who helped to craft the post-WWI world which directly contributed to WWII? Or James Madison, who wrote the Constitution, a legal document that lawyers are still fighting over how to interpret the 1st, 2nd, 10th Ammendments? No Constitution, duh, no United States. He should be ranked ahead of Jefferson, not a "near miss".
Or Pope Gregory the Great, who basically formed the political role of the papacy in Europe for a 1000+ years. No Attila the Hun? He played a critical role in empowering the papacy AND weakening the Roman empire. Or Columbanus, who helped to keep European intellectualism from completely falling into barbarianism during the 7th/8th Centuries by building intellectually rigorous monasteries across the continent, planting the seeds for scholasticism, and thus, eventually, science (although it takes a couple of centuries). Or Muawiya, who contributed to the split in Islam between Sunni and Shi'a, and we know how much impact *that* has had on world history, especially the past 25 years. Or Emperor Meiji, who modernized Japan in the 19th Century? In fact, Hart basically jumps from St. Paul to Guttenberg w/o mentioning anyone of note during the middle ages when the seeds of Modern Europe and Japan were planted (the G8 countries are all European in origin, except Japan and maybe Russia). Mani? JFK? Guy who invented birth control? No, no, NO! Kick them off the list, and pick any if not all of the aforementioned figures!
It will be interesting to see what an updated list would have. Reagan would probably be listed higher, considering he transformed the U.S. economy and helped to defeat the USSR. Ossama Bin Laden? George Bush? The person who defined Wahhabism? David Ben Gurion? Kemal Ataturk? Watson and Crick?
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Title: The Scientific 100: A Ranking of the Most Influential Scientists, Past and Present (100 (Paperback)) by John G. Simmons, John Simmons ISBN: 0806521392 Publisher: Citadel Press Pub. Date: 01 September, 2000 List Price(USD): $21.95 |
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Title: 100 Events That Shaped World History by Bill Yenne ISBN: 0912517034 Publisher: Bluewood Books Pub. Date: 01 July, 1993 List Price(USD): $7.95 |
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Title: The 100 Most Influential Women of All Time: A Ranking Past and Present by Deborah G. Felder ISBN: 0806522712 Publisher: Citadel Press Pub. Date: 01 October, 2001 List Price(USD): $22.50 |
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Title: 100 Scientists Who Shaped World History by John Hudson Tiner, John Tiner ISBN: 0912517395 Publisher: Bluewood Books Pub. Date: 01 February, 2000 List Price(USD): $7.95 |
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Title: Books That Changed the World by Robert B. Downs ISBN: 0451626982 Publisher: Signet Book Pub. Date: 01 June, 1992 List Price(USD): $7.99 |
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