the personal journal of Brent Stewart
I subscribe to a list that shoots out free books on Amazon and several of the Enthralling History books have popped up on it. Recently, I’ve been trying to sort out timelines for understanding the Middle East of two thousand years ago. I’m embarrassed to say that I could put, say, Plato, Jesus, and Nero in order, but I was strongest on the Greek/Roman side and got fuzzy on how the empires of Egypt, Syria, Babylon,and Persia interacted in that timeframe.
These aren’t bad. They tend to present a text-book style recitation of a particular subject. The Enthralling History books don’t seem to have a particular style or angle, they just kind of throw stuff out and let it sit there like a dead fish. The lack of attribution is concerning, but I’ve never had reason to doubt the veracity and i’ve learned several interesting nuggets.
These books are great for “coffee table” material. They’re easy to pick up and put down and give a little bit of an overview of a subject. The series, and this book in particular, can be a little disorganized and have rough transitions, but I appreciated the info and the price was right!