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National Geographic Concise Atlas of the World
A collection of more than three hundred maps, charts, flags, and illustrations, packaged in a compact and accessible volume, includes indexed political and continental maps as well as new world thematic maps covering such elements as tectonics, climate, population, religion, and economy. Original.
128 pages, Paperback
First published November 1, 2003
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About the author
National Geographic Society
4,222 books1,120 followersThe National Geographic Society (NGS), headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States, is one of the largest nonprofit scientific and educational organizations in the world.
Founded in 1888, its interests include geography, archaeology, and natural science, the promotion of environmental and historical conservation, and the study of world culture and history. The National Geographic Society's logo is a yellow portrait frame—rectangular in shape—which appears on the margins surrounding the front covers of its magazines and as its television channel logo. Through National Geographic Partners (a joint venture with The Walt Disney Company), the Society operates the magazine, TV channels, a website, worldwide events, and other media operations.
Founded in 1888, its interests include geography, archaeology, and natural science, the promotion of environmental and historical conservation, and the study of world culture and history. The National Geographic Society's logo is a yellow portrait frame—rectangular in shape—which appears on the margins surrounding the front covers of its magazines and as its television channel logo. Through National Geographic Partners (a joint venture with The Walt Disney Company), the Society operates the magazine, TV channels, a website, worldwide events, and other media operations.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
January 11, 2023
National Geographic Concise Atlas of the World, 5th edition: Authoritative and complete, with more than 200 maps and illustrations, by The National Geographic Society, is exactly what it sounds like, an atlas. I haven't looked at one of these thoroughly since I was a kid, and decided to pick one up at the library to give a look over. I had quite a good time browsing through the maps, which examine the physical and political geography of the world's regions. There are also sections that look at various topics, from pollution and population, to GDP and so forth, as well as more meta-sections, looking at outer space, the ocean floors, and the like. This was an interesting read over a couple of nights, and I enjoyed reliving the experience of browsing through an atlas that is tactile, and does not exist in our cloud spaces. The introduction to this book is really interesting, as it discusses the relevance of a tactile map in the internet age. I am a firm believer that the medium something is used on changes how we use it, and sometimes the experiences we receive from its use. This is the case, in my opinion, with maps. It is great to be able to access maps so readily on the internet, and when I do so, I find myself looking at particular spaces zoomed in. Whether it be the shifting front lines of the Russo-Ukraine War, or a city or even larger continental maps, I find myself compelled to zoom in. In the process, I sometimes think I miss the whole, and this is where an atlas comes into play. A large, tactile map is something to behold, and I find myself looking at details differently. In this atlas, for example, I noticed the physical geography that oftentimes separates nation states in a different light. This things can lead to new ideas, or even paradigm shifts in how I conceive and view spaces. I really enjoyed it for that. Can I recommend you read an atlas? Sure, why not? It is fun to look at if you enjoy maps and geography, and makes an excellent resource for study.
May 4, 2024
Great concise atlas with a lot of information. Everything you need in an atlas. Will keep on hand.
FYI it is a physically large book, to those who purchased believing it was smaller (me).
FYI it is a physically large book, to those who purchased believing it was smaller (me).
July 15, 2024
I am a little disappointed in this atlas. There are many inhabited islands that are not covered at all.
September 12, 2022
This “National Geographic Concise Atlas of the World” contains many resources that I did not expect. It begins with a description of the Atlas, followed by maps of the physical and political worlds and the Ocean Floor. It then defines the limits of the oceans and seas and provides polar projections. It then goes into a series of articles and images introducing the structure of the earth, the forces that sculpt it, land types, the distribution of fresh water, climate, diversity of life and changes being observed.
Attention is then drawn to the people of the world; their distribution, languages, faiths, health, quality of life, commerce, agriculture, energy sources, borders and migration.
A series of maps by continents are supplemented by pages of “Flags and Facts” chronicling the flags, area, population, capitals, major religions, languages, literacy, life expectancy and economy. Photos of scenery enhance the text.
Not earthbound, this Atlas extends into space with sections on the Moon, Inner and Outer Solar Systems and the Milky Way.
This is an atlas that will provide hours of enjoyment and information far beyond that of any atlas that I have previously encountered. The one deficiency I find in it is the lack of detailed maps of countries and states. I look forward to sitting down and pursuing this at my leisure, more than picking up to find a specific spot.
I did receive a free copy of this book through the Amazon Vine Program.
Attention is then drawn to the people of the world; their distribution, languages, faiths, health, quality of life, commerce, agriculture, energy sources, borders and migration.
A series of maps by continents are supplemented by pages of “Flags and Facts” chronicling the flags, area, population, capitals, major religions, languages, literacy, life expectancy and economy. Photos of scenery enhance the text.
Not earthbound, this Atlas extends into space with sections on the Moon, Inner and Outer Solar Systems and the Milky Way.
This is an atlas that will provide hours of enjoyment and information far beyond that of any atlas that I have previously encountered. The one deficiency I find in it is the lack of detailed maps of countries and states. I look forward to sitting down and pursuing this at my leisure, more than picking up to find a specific spot.
I did receive a free copy of this book through the Amazon Vine Program.
September 24, 2022
I won this book as a Goodreads giveaway. If you are a geography or map geek, you'll really enjoy this revised atlas of the world. It provides some fascinating worldwide heat maps of various topics. These are followed by regional maps and county factoids and flags. This is a great coffee table reference which can help you connect the dots to the geographic reference on the daily news.
August 11, 2022
An excellent updated atlas - to my mind, apart from being a great reference book for information about the earth’s landmass, oceans and the continents (especially the finer details), it is also a good first-time ‘read’. The atlas also provides an overview of space, solar system and the universe.
August 26, 2022
Excellent book!!!
October 22, 2022
This is a beautiful edition. I love looking at the maps. A person can learn so much from what is on a map or a graph.
September 6, 2018
National Geographic is the atlas we all love to love, in full color. What’s not to like about it?!
Of course, there are positives and negatives to most atlases. Not even the legendary Atlas could carry the whole world on his shoulders forever. But, in need of a good new up-to-date atlas without too much expense I ended up settling on two good choices that each fill a different niche.
Having done some work in the late nineties with the National Geographic Society for certification with them as a Geography consultant, I was gifted a beautiful set of a variety of atlases, one that was huge and much loved. Those have long since been worn out in the classroom. One feature that I liked most about their atlases was the inclusion of charts, maps, and graphs that represent sociological, climate, and world trends, as well as some essays on features of the people of Earth and their distribution around the globe. They do this very well.
This particular atlas I chose because it includes a good selection of such data and graphs, along with excellent quality maps of each continent/ region. The maps sections for each continent are limited to a two page spread of the political map, and a two page spread of the physical map, and one overview map. The book itself is large enough that these maps are a good size, with the only exception being Europe. Europe has several microstates that are almost invisible in the European maps in this atlas. This atlas is actually a bit wider and longer than the New Concise World Atlas by Oxford University Press, which is the other atlas I chose. But the Oxford atlas is twice the thickness of this, with innumerable maps in multiple scales for each region and twice as many pages.
In a nutshell… you are getting a wide view of the Earth and its peoples in this work by the National Geographic Society. In the Oxford atlas you get a deep view of the Earth, and ignore the people. Both are almost indispensable and have their values. On the topic of value, I opted to scale back to the Third edition of this NGS atlas because it was on sale at Barnes & Noble for only $12.00. The comparable fourth edition was twice the price. The publication dates were 2012 and 2016, but the difference was negligible. In my opinion, with both being hardback copies, the value of the third edition made it a much better choice. The Oxford was $26.00 on Amazon. I am posting a review for the Oxford atlas as well for those who want to compare.
Some of the choicest maps show distribution of stats like, Refugees, Immigration Spread, World Debt, Global Disease Burden, Fragility of States, Trade Flow, Access to Improved Sanitation, Access to Education, and many more. Naturally, any map that includes information about the people of Earth is in its very nature political and subject to interpretation. For example, one map represents the locations of “politicides and genocides around the world.” That is a subject that is based on perspective, as it does not include the abortion counts. A large number of the peoples living on Earth would see abortion as genocide. It depends on your own perspective. This atlas also pictures flags from around the world.
My recommendation, based on quality and price for family use would be this as a first atlas. Then, when and if you or your children are looking for locations that are in smaller scale than these maps provide, add the Oxford atlas for further detailed views of the globe. Either way, there is much to see of the world around us in both of these map books.
Of course, there are positives and negatives to most atlases. Not even the legendary Atlas could carry the whole world on his shoulders forever. But, in need of a good new up-to-date atlas without too much expense I ended up settling on two good choices that each fill a different niche.
Having done some work in the late nineties with the National Geographic Society for certification with them as a Geography consultant, I was gifted a beautiful set of a variety of atlases, one that was huge and much loved. Those have long since been worn out in the classroom. One feature that I liked most about their atlases was the inclusion of charts, maps, and graphs that represent sociological, climate, and world trends, as well as some essays on features of the people of Earth and their distribution around the globe. They do this very well.
This particular atlas I chose because it includes a good selection of such data and graphs, along with excellent quality maps of each continent/ region. The maps sections for each continent are limited to a two page spread of the political map, and a two page spread of the physical map, and one overview map. The book itself is large enough that these maps are a good size, with the only exception being Europe. Europe has several microstates that are almost invisible in the European maps in this atlas. This atlas is actually a bit wider and longer than the New Concise World Atlas by Oxford University Press, which is the other atlas I chose. But the Oxford atlas is twice the thickness of this, with innumerable maps in multiple scales for each region and twice as many pages.
In a nutshell… you are getting a wide view of the Earth and its peoples in this work by the National Geographic Society. In the Oxford atlas you get a deep view of the Earth, and ignore the people. Both are almost indispensable and have their values. On the topic of value, I opted to scale back to the Third edition of this NGS atlas because it was on sale at Barnes & Noble for only $12.00. The comparable fourth edition was twice the price. The publication dates were 2012 and 2016, but the difference was negligible. In my opinion, with both being hardback copies, the value of the third edition made it a much better choice. The Oxford was $26.00 on Amazon. I am posting a review for the Oxford atlas as well for those who want to compare.
Some of the choicest maps show distribution of stats like, Refugees, Immigration Spread, World Debt, Global Disease Burden, Fragility of States, Trade Flow, Access to Improved Sanitation, Access to Education, and many more. Naturally, any map that includes information about the people of Earth is in its very nature political and subject to interpretation. For example, one map represents the locations of “politicides and genocides around the world.” That is a subject that is based on perspective, as it does not include the abortion counts. A large number of the peoples living on Earth would see abortion as genocide. It depends on your own perspective. This atlas also pictures flags from around the world.
My recommendation, based on quality and price for family use would be this as a first atlas. Then, when and if you or your children are looking for locations that are in smaller scale than these maps provide, add the Oxford atlas for further detailed views of the globe. Either way, there is much to see of the world around us in both of these map books.
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April 24, 2016Geographic, N. (2016). National geographic concise atlas of the world. Place of publication not identified: National Geographic Soc.
Citation by: Tonya Saylor
Type of Reference: Geographical (Atlas)
Call Number: Ref
Content/Scope: This book contains 470 maps and graphics.
Accuracy/Authority/Bias: National Geographic is a global publishing company known for its educational materials. Many schools turn to this company for reference materials.
Arrangement/Presentation: This book contains sections for each continent and the flags and country facts at the end of each continental section, it features stunning satellite images that portray unique physical geography and highlights the sprawling extent of major cities.
Relation to other works: There are many atlases available; this atlas meets requirements for libraries that need a comprehensive reference at an secondary level.
Accessibility/Diversity: The illustrations include diverse locations from around the world. This will be of specific interest to patrons who are visual learners.
Cost: $29.95
Professional Review: With more than 470 maps and graphics, this atlas delivers award-winning cartography with superbly designed and amazingly informative maps and graphics providing accurate coverage of the whole world. Including introductory sections for each continent and the flags and country facts at the end of each continental section, this atlas features stunning satellite images that portray unique physical geography and highlights the sprawling extent of major cities.
Published: December 2015
June 28, 2008
Light enough to fit into a suitcase traveling overseas, but with large, by continent, views, this is the atlas I decided on after pouring through half a map store a few US visits back. My only complaint - the perfect binding has split after one too many reviews.
October 14, 2014
I'm not an expert on atlases, but this one has a bevvy of information. You not only get the maps and such, but also facts ranging from population density to languages spoken throughout different continents.
October 12, 2008
National geographic's concise atlas featuring maps, illustrations, etc.
April 27, 2014
This atlas had really good maps, especially the largest physical and political ones of each continent, but I wish it went into greater detail.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews