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Title: Cartoon History of the Universe 1 by Larry Gonick ISBN: 0-385-26520-4 Publisher: Main Street Books Pub. Date: 10 September, 1997 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $21.95 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.76 (38 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: The BEST introduction to history possible...
Comment: Some of the big, thick and juicy history books can make the average reader's eyes bulge with terror. "The History of the Whole World!" or "World History Second by Second!" will probably disencourage the general interested reader by the threat of massive papercuts alone.
There's something about the word "cartoon" that adds appeal to any subject. "The History of the Universe!" by itself may make knees tremble, but "The CARTOON History of the Universe!" now my hands are a-grabbin' at the bookshelf. And grab we should; we should grope, fondle, and possess this great volume that will likely turn any historaphobe into a walking timeline.
History? Entertaining? NEVER! Yes, awake from your dogmatic slumbers, the dream can be realized. This book is funny, genuinely funny. And it's not a parody along the lines of "1066 and All That" - it's real history presented in an amazingly underrated educational genre.
The first book is chopped up into seven volumes which can be read more or less like serial comic books. Dramatic teasers provide segueways between the volumes, and keep the story flowing. Like it's subtitle says: "From the Big Bang to Alexander the Great", and since subtitles never lie, that's what you get.
THE BIG BANG starts off this book, and the book follows an evolutionary line - at one point outright stating "Darwin was right" (pg. 52). So, be warned all of you whose cars are adorned with fishes labeled "Truth" eating smaller fishes labeled "Darwin" - this tome may not be for you.
There is a long discussion about the evolution of sex, some "naughty" cartoons - which are usually hilarious - which leads into the evolution of species from the cambrian to the quaternary period. Humanity enters the scene, and the evolution of humans is covered through homo habilis to the "Cro-Magnon Conquest of the World". From then on some of the major early peoples and their societies are covered: Sumeria, the Semites, the Egyptians, the Acheans, the Hittites, the Assyrians, the peoples of the Old Testament, the Philistines, the Acheans, the Spartans, the Athenians... I'm sure I left a lot out, but you get the idea.
There is a great chapter on the war between Persia and Greece, including the events that lead up to it. The final chapter of the book is aptly titled "All About Athens" and covers such historical stars as Pericles, Socrates, Plato, Aristotle, etc. The book ends, as the aforementioned subtitle promises, with Alexander the Great's entry into India. Volume 7's teaser suggests that book II will linger in India for a bit.
The book also includes great footnotes, great drawings (a sidenote: why does the style of the artwork change so drastically in Volume 7?), a great bibliography with short reviews of works Gonick used in researching this cartoon cathedral, and a stubborn refusal to consider anything out of the scope of inquiry. Gonick brings up historical issues that would never be taught in schools (I leave the reader to discover these). Even the issues surrounding the status of women and the rich and the poor are put in for good measure.
I can't imagine a better way to be introduced to history, especially for the curious adult, since to say that the book is NOT G-Rated would be an egregious understatement (since the book contains many adult themes, graphic cartoon violence, and descriptions of many disturbing things that make up human history, it's hard to say if the book is for kids or not, notwithstanding the "cartoon" in the title - I guess this is best left as a personal decision). Still, even those knowledgable in history will enjoy it, because, dang it, it's a comic book after all! Of course, and this is obvious, hopefully this book will serve as a springboard for an interest in history. By itself it's a great outline filled with general knowledge, but supplemented with more reading it becomes a road to unfathomable historical knowledge with which can come a better understanding of our place in the universe.
Rating: 5
Summary: A must for any home library!
Comment: Want to read about history without reading about history? Buy this book! Not only does is serve up science in a way to keep you awake but it slices up history into easy to swallow portions too. If you find chapters or subjects that pique your interest beyond that provided by the witty cartoon panels, the book has the most extensive bibliography (with reviews!) you could ask for. I bought my copy many years ago and it drove me to reread all those Greek Classics that I slept through while I was in school! It is apparent that portions of the Ancient Greece section was drawn earlier when Mr. Gonick was developing his style. His wit is trenchant in all the chapters in a way to make the reader think. Summary: I wish I had this book when I was in school...
Rating: 5
Summary: Wonderful
Comment: A seminal work. Simply a fun great account of the history of man. This book does a great job telling the story of civilization from the dawn of man to Moses and the Greeks. A very accurate and funny story that illuminates the essentials of western civilization in many pages of hilarious cartoons. A great gift.
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Title: The Cartoon History of the Universe III: From the Rise of Arabia to the Renaissance by Larry Gonick ISBN: 0393324036 Publisher: W.W. Norton & Company Pub. Date: 21 October, 2002 List Price(USD): $21.95 |
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Title: Cartoon History of the United States by Larry Gonick ISBN: 0062730983 Publisher: HarperResource Pub. Date: 14 August, 1991 List Price(USD): $17.95 |
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Title: The Cartoon Guide to Physics by Larry Gonick ISBN: 0062731009 Publisher: Perennial Pub. Date: 01 February, 1992 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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Title: Cartoon Guide to Genetics by Larry Gonick ISBN: 0062730991 Publisher: Perennial Pub. Date: 14 August, 1991 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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Title: Cartoon Guide to the Environment by Larry Gonick, Alice Outwater ISBN: 0062732749 Publisher: HarperResource Pub. Date: 24 April, 1996 List Price(USD): $16.95 |
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