History

Follow the fascinating threads of human history in this monumental volume, amply illustrated with maps, archival imagery, and revealing photographs. History comes to life in this comprehensive overview of humankind, from earliest times to the present day. From the Babylonian Empire to the Persian Gulf War, from the Xia and Shang Dynasties of Bronze Age China to the new space race, from Egyptian hieroglyphics to the digital age--here, in vivid color and crisp narrative, is the sweeping story of the history of civilization.

Known for its lively, clear prose as well as its scholarly research, A People's History of the United States is the only volume to tell America's story from the point of view of -- and in the words of -- America's women, factory workers, African-Americans, Native Americans, working poor, and immigrant laborers. *Also available as an ebook.

A true classic of American history, Bury My Heart at Wounded Knee is Dee Brown’s eloquent, meticulously documented account of the systematic destruction of the American Indian during the second half of the nineteenth century. *Also available as an ebook and a video.

In this "artful, informative, and delightful (book)" ("New York Review of Books"), Jared Diamond offers a convincing explanation of the way the modern world came to be and stunningly dismantles racially based theories of human history. Also available online.

Nelson Mandela was born Rolihlahla Mandela on July 18, 1918 in Mvezo, South Africa. His teacher later named him Nelson as part of a custom to give all schoolchildren Christian names. He briefly attended University College of Fort Hare but was expelled after taking part in a protest with Oliver Tambo, with whom he later operated the nation's first black law firm. He eventually completed a bachelor's degree through correspondence courses and studied law at the University of Witwatersrand in Johannesburg. He left without graduating in 1948.