History of the World Map by Map (DK History Map by Map)

I bought History of the World Map by Map as a Valentine’s Day gift for my husband, and it has been an absolute home run. My husband is a huge history enthusiast, but he’s definitely a visual learner—he often finds dense, text-heavy history books a bit of a chore to get through. This book changed the game. First off, the construction quality is top-tier. It’s a heavy, beautiful coffee-table-style book with high-quality paper and vibrant printing that makes the maps pop. But the real magic is in the content. He has a habit of "dual-screening"—watching a period piece or a historical movie and constantly reaching for his phone to look up the actual borders or timelines of the era. Since getting this book, the phone stays on the charger! He now keeps this on the coffee table and flips through it while we watch movies. It provides the perfect amount of historical context through incredibly detailed, easy-to-digest maps and infographics. It’s rare to find a book that is both an academic resource and genuinely "unputdownable." It’s visually captivating enough to compete with a smartphone, which is saying a lot these days! If you’re looking for a gift for someone who loves history but prefers seeing the "where" and "how" rather than just reading the "when," I cannot recommend this enough. It’s a stunning addition to any library and a perfect gift for the curious mind.

This book is outstanding. The maps are outstanding and are heavily complemented with historical context and anecdotal information and photos/drawings. They type font is easy to read. The paper stock is substantial - no see-through, no crinkling - an easy-to read matte finish. The book weighs about 5 1/2 lb. The binding is substantial. The open book thus does not lie fully flat, but the margins are wide enough that 0you can readily see all the information the authors have provided. I've long been a fan of DK tourism guide books, and this volume is even more impressive. I heartily recommend it.

If you are a visual learner, this book is a revelation. Unlike standard history books that rely on dense walls of text, History of the World Map by Map uses cartography as the primary narrator. What I Loved: The Scope: It covers everything from the first human migrations to the digital age. It doesn’t just focus on Western history; it feels truly global. Layered Information: Each map is accompanied by a timeline and "step-by-step" explanations of how borders shifted and why. DK Quality: The oversized format and high-quality paper make the colors pop. It’s a "coffee table book" that you’ll actually end up reading cover-to-cover. Verdict: This is the perfect gift for history buffs or students who find traditional textbooks dry. It turns complex global shifts into something you can see and understand instantly.

DK Publishing has been a conspicuous presence in bookselling for a very long time, and for good reason. The company sometimes releases publications whose price seems very much like a misprint or some mistake. This book is an example of that. It is a finely bound, completely professional and reference-quality hardbound book, for next to nothing. The book might strike some readers as rather juvenile in the reading level assumed, and they'd be correct in that; it is a very basic introductory text, and directed at the novice. Which I am, mostly. So I'm quite happy with that. The graphics and artwork are incredible and most worthwhile. The text is very basic, uncomplicated, direct, avoids controversy, and is well-sourced. An exceptional value, and one of my favorite purchases ever on Amazon.

Great graphics and easy to follow. Not only will you find many historical maps from our distant past, recent past and present, but there is a lot of important historical information included that many of us have either forgotten or never knew. It helps to connect the past with the present and to explain why things are as they are today.

I like this book. It does many things well. For the price it provides excellent content Nevertheless, I wish it were more complete in certain key areas. In European and other world history, it leaves out cartographic and literary content with respect to some pivotal events which led to the development of the world as we live it today. Likewise, there are key omissions from Latin American, African, and Asian histories which have profound influence on our present world. I will refer to just a few following. On pages 166-7 it has a fine ecclesiastical map Europe near the beginning(1555) of the Christian reformational era, and it discusses on 169 the Thirty Years War ending in 1648, but it omits including a map of the settlements of the Treaty of Westphalia which ended that conflict. A 1648 map to compare to the one of 1555 would be very helpful. It has a decent coverage of the French Revolution and the Napoleonic era, but it fails again to indicate cartographically how the boundaries of the European political units of and the titles of noble lords of the units changed as a result of the wars and their aftermaths. Continuing, 200-1 has a map of South America at the time of the independence movement from Spain. But subsequent to this, we have nothing which illustrates the development of the boundaries of today's nation states, nor some of the events which led to the establishment of those borders. Leaping to the 20th Century, of course it covers the two world wars. It has considerable material on WW1, but what is missing is a more detail and clear cartographical and descriptive material on how the new nation states were born, and how the new borders of Germany were decided. Of course some of Germany's losses were simply imposed by the victors, but others were determined by plebiscite. I think this is important. The Austrian, Russian, and Turkish empires all lost land. How was this determined and how did the new political frontiers compare with the ethno-linguistic boundaries? (See for a good example the excellent map of Yugoslavia on pages 338-9) Also I think that the border settlements in Europe and Asia at the end of WW2 need a more thorough treatment, as well as a discussion again of political vs. ethnic boundaries and the large scale ethnic cleansing which went on in central and eastern Europe. There are other issues, but finally I wish there was some discussion and cartographic information around the partition of India in 1947.

Bellissimo! Im so happy about this book. Perfect paper quality, perfect! I will read it and save it for life. That’s exactly was I was looking for (And ofc Italy on the cover page ;) )

This book is fantastic. Not too detailed to get bogged down, but a wonderful overview of world history. The maps are essential to understand what is happening, as they change dramatically between each era. I’ve learned so much. Can’t compliment it enough.

Es un libro muy bonito sobre historia universal, fue un regalo para mi novio y le pareció muy interesante y bonito

I came across this at a physical bookstore while I was browsing but its size/weight made it impractical to buy at the time. It seemed like a great book and I thought it would be a good Christmas present for my children. Anyway, I got home and got onto Amazon and, incredibly, the book was marked 55% RRP off so I think the Universe was giving me a gift there. I saved $35... yay!

Bought this as a Christmas Present and it made the perfect gift. It’s absolutely full of interesting information and being by Map you can easily locate anything you want to focus on.

Love it and excellent to use with my students

Etat nickel