A History of Western Society, Vol. 2: From Absolutism To The Present

by John P. McKay

Long a best-seller in the field, A History of Western Society examines the lives of historic figures and ordinary people from an extraordinary perspective--and sustains that vision with an engaging, lively writing style. While social and economic history are areas of special emphasis, the authors pay careful attention to traditional political and cultural developments, providing a balanced, well-rounded view of Western history as a whole. The Sixth Edition offers a wider geographic/ethnic scope, with added coverage of Eastern Europe, the Celtic region, and Islam and Muslims.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Textbooks, Reference, School, World History, European History

2 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1979

Reviews

[Erin Siu · Rating 1 out of 5]

My worst nightmare - sophomore year.

[eve · Rating 2 out of 5]

Forever scarred by shirtless Putin riding a horse :)

[Béla · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5.

A good introduction to the vast history of the different Western societies, but not a very in-depth book. It often contained older historical ideas and sometimes showed a simplified idea of (European) society.

[Malka Amalka]

AP EuroHis je boj. ahoj.

[Adrienne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I did not put a "finished reading" date on this, because as a social studies teacher I have read this book in its entirety more than three times and will likely continue to re-read it until death. I love it, I love teaching its contents to my students and though I gripe and complain alongside them about the density of its text, I'll continue to read it forever and ever, world without end, amen.

[Christine Walsvick · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well, I read this entire book over two years, every page. I learned a lot.

[Leia / Felix · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a good history bible

[Tomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

It's dry as a bone but written in an easy to understand manner.

[Helena · Rating 1 out of 5]

morbid.

[Suze Jacobs · Rating 2 out of 5]

Prima handboek, alleen echt verschrikkelijk outdated in sommige stukjes en ik snap dat het “western society” heet maar jeetje wat is het perspectief erg zeg. (Hier een voorbeeld om dit te illustreren: het is wel heeeeel sneaky om te vergeten te zeggen dat de VS kernkoppen in Turkije had staan tijdens de Cubacrisis)
Ook echt verschrikkelijk dat vrouwen in elk hoofdstuk een oppervlakkig kopje hadden. Dat had veel beter kunnen worden geïntegreerd. Voorderest prima.
Kan niet geloven dat hij eindelijk uit is. Nu tijd om hem ritueel te verscheuren, uit het raam te gooien en te verbranden. Groetjes!

[Sander Meere · Rating 4 out of 5]

Jaaaa dit boek is zo goed. Echt het beste handboek voor geschiedenis. Leuk dat ik m bij de Uni Leiden, HR Rotterdam en (waarschijnlijk) bij Erasmus heb gehad. Laat zien hoe goed het is. Middelbare school achtig boek (plaatjes, anecdotes, bronnen) met universitaire informatie

[Oliver · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is a fairly boring, extremely euro-centric text that over simplifies a number of ideas. It also contains some minor errors. Required reason for a class.

[Monica · Rating 2 out of 5]

This kind of textbook is not my cup of tea. Too many pictures, timelines, anecdotes and what have you, leave too little room for in-depth explanations.

[John Dis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this for the AP class. Never again.

Jk it actually was somewhat helpful but I wish it was slightly more detailed. Also would’ve been better if the text was articulated in a more clear and easier format without all the legalese and knotty wording.

[Lillian Hardbog · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book and I have been through thick and thin together. Through my entire AP European History course, this book has been guiding, boring and confusing me. There were some interesting bits however. For example, it called the sexual relationships between German soldiers and French women during WW2 “horizontal collaboration”.

[Jasmine · Rating 4 out of 5]

Finally fucking done with this book (until the re-exams that is) and it has been one of the most boring reads ever, but it's a good book if you need something specific (with exeptions) and as the title says, it covers the entire world. Although it has some crucial mistakes (like putting a Swedish town in Denmark and saying that the NEP was launched 1921 in the Soviet union when Soviet wasn't founded until 1922) it is a practical book.

[AskHistorians]

A good overview, picks up where The Human Past left off (with an overlap in antiquity) and provides the historical, rather than archaeological, perspective. Very readable, and though it's a textbook and thus most suitable for students (with plenty of 'summaries' and lists of important key words), I'd still recommend it to people who are interested in history without having access to the formal education (and to archaeologists who only study prehistory!).

[Alexander BM · Rating 4 out of 5]

A must have for any novice historian and for history teachers. Easily digested, well written and fairly balanced. Would have been a perfect 5 if its euro centrism was just a tad lesser. Warmly recommend it overall.

[Whiteeagle]

my text book for this semester

[Ela]

AP Euro

[Fredrick Danysh · Rating 3 out of 5]

Predominately a history of European development, this work covers a variety of events. There is little from pre-Greek and pre-Roman times.

[Danielle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very thorough, definitely get the newest addition as new things are being discovered all the time. Easy flow, good textbook.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

Used this for a course so only read from WWI and forward. It was very interesting, and well written, and I love how short and concise the chapters were.

[ChaoticallyNatasha]

Read it all again for the AP European test. :P

[Grant · Rating 5 out of 5]

A highly effective world history textbook.

[Stephen Wong · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read it front to back for my AP Euro class... It was grueling, but I learned a lot from it.

[Raphi · Rating 3 out of 5]

Pretty good textbook, but the writing is not very intriguing. The price I had to pay for a copy was ridiculous.

[Mer · Rating 4 out of 5]

https://hardcover.app/books/history-o...

[Mikael · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the few academic works I have read in its entirety. Although much can be said about its density of information the authors have a wonderful way to keep you engaged.