A History of the World in 100 Objects

A History of the World in 100 ObjectsBy Neil MacGregor
Viking, 2011. 707 pgs. Nonfiction

Neil MacGregor is the Director of the British Museum. He and his colleagues identified 100 artifacts from their collection that represent the history of civilizations throughout the world. From simple carving tools to elaborate funeral relics, from the famous Rosetta Stone to a common credit card, each item is given a five to six page essay with lovely color photographs and details.

With over 700 pages, this is a hefty tome. But the pages fly by quickly because of the short chapters and illustrations. Since MacGregor is British and is writing for a British audience, it is interesting to read of world history from their perspective instead of from the more familiar American perspective. A great book for armchair archeologists!

CZ