Story of the World, Vol. 4 (Second Edition, Revised): History for the Classical Child: The Modern Age

Story of the World, Vol. 4 (Second Edition, Revised): History for the Classical Child: The Modern Age by Susan Wise Bauer

This starts with a disclaimer that it is for older kids and covers more violent material. It is a fairly broad, succinct history of modern times. The subtitle is "Victoria's empire to the fall of the USSR". It covers all of it. There were plenty of parts that I was not familiar with, especially the coverage of Asia before the World Wars. This is a great introduction to history without a strong ideology.

Story of the World, Vol. 3: History for the Classical Child: Early Modern Times (Revised Edition):

History for the Classical Child: Early Modern Times (Revised Edition): Story of the World, Vol. 3 by Susan Wise Bauer

The third story of the world covers the period from about 1600-1850. We are starting to get more detailed history, and thus more editing and broad stories are needed. The story starts with the Holy Roman Empire and ends with the Gold Rush and the city of unrest. The disparate experiences of the European powers play a significant role in this era, especially as they launch exploration and colonization missions throughout the world. However, other parts of the world are covered too. Japan kicked out most Europeans and went to a period of isolation. The African, Persian and Chinese experiences are also covered. There were many wars, including many that were in the end pointless. Various revolutions, including political and "industrial" helped to transform the society into one closer to what we have today.

Story of the World, Vol. 2: History for the Classical Child: The Middle Ages (Second Edition, Revised)

Story of the World, Vol. 2: History for the Classical Child: The Middle Ages (Second Edition, Revised) by Susan Wise Bauer

The second story of the world book covers the middle ages. It starts with a disclaimer that it attempts to be balanced in its coverage of various religions. The protestant reformation is covered. The church of England rose out of a need for divorce. (But alas, the founder couldn't keep a wife after many tries.) There is also coverage of the founding of Islam and the rise of the Ottoman empire. Early exploration of the vikings is covered as is the turning inward of the Chinese. Rome turned Eastward to Constantinople and then fell. There are many lessons for us today. What would be the end result of isolationist tendencies and nationalism? How would a plague such as the black death impact today's society?

Story of the World, Vol. 1: History for the Classical Child: Ancient Times (Second Edition, Revised)

Story of the World, Vol. 1: History for the Classical Child: Ancient Times (Second Edition, Revised) by Susan Wise Bauer

This is a succinct introduction to ancient history for children. The narration is rather slow, so it is easily understandable and 4x speed up. The book provides a broad history of the world leading up to 400 AD. 

Coverage includes the "big" areas, such as Rome, China, Israel and Babylon. There are also various discussions on some of the lesser known ancient civilizations in Africa and Asia. There is even a little bit from the Americas.

The history takes a roughly chronological approach, though there are a few jumps to provide coherent narrative. Most are told as narratives from the point of view of the actors, usually the key characters, but occasionally a fictionalized "common person".

It is a great introduction to history that is at a child's level, but not dumbed down.