The Story of Mankind (Liveright Classics)

Anyone who can chronicle world history from 500,000 B.C. to present times--and do so in a lively, entertaining style--deserves a medal. Luckily, the bestowers of the very first Newbery Medal in 1922 thought so, too. The warm, personable tone of Hendrik Willem van Loon's writing lends itself to true learning in a way that stern, dry textbooks never do. In the introduction, he describes climbing a tower in Rotterdam in his youth. Years later, the perspective at the top inspired the author to develop a metaphor of history as a "mighty Tower of Experience, which Time has built amidst the endless fields of bygone ages."

This genuinely enjoyable charmer, for history buffs and the historically challenged alike, covers human history from prehistoric times, when our earliest ancestors were learning to communicate with grunts, right through to the issues of the latter 20th century: gay rights, Arab-Israeli conflicts, and health and fitness. Revised and updated several times since 1921, van Loon's inviting classic is filled with stories (and witty parenthetical asides) that bring history alive. His pen-and-ink illustrations, maps, and animated chronology contribute to the cozy, round the fireplace aspect of the book. (Ages 12 and older) --Emilie Coulter

• Albert Einstein and the Theory of Relativity (Solutions Series)
• The Mystery of the Periodic Table (Living History Library)
• The Kingfisher History Encyclopedia (Kingfisher Encyclopedias)
• The Sea Around Us, Special Edition
• Never Give In: The Extraordinary Character of Winston Churchill (Leaders in Action Series)
• It Couldn't Just Happen: Knowing the Truth About God's Awesome Creation
• The Story of the World: History for the Classical Child, Volume 4: The Modern Age: From Victoria's Empire to the End of the USSR
• Augustus Caesar's World
• Elements: A Visual Exploration of Every Known Atom in the Universe
• Know and Tell: The Art of Narration