Big History
- Description
- Books about a wide swathe of history from the creation of spacetime until now, even extending into what we can see of the future, plus the associated science/mathematics. Could cover smaller bits (e.g. evolution of multicellularity, or the history of Asia) but has to be wide-ranging in time or space or both. Popular books mostly.
1
644 members
9 reviews
½ 4.3
Score 4
Added 2021-12-30, 10:34 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: To give us an idea of the scale of the universe.
2
29 members
1 review
5
Score 3.36
Added 2021-12-30, 10:37 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: To give us an idea of the scale of time.
3
by Bill Bryson
23,283 members
398 reviews
4.2
Score 3.04
Added 2021-12-28, 06:10 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Should be a good overview.
7
588 members
15 reviews
3.9
Score 2.46
Added 2021-12-28, 06:11 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: David Christian is the originator of "Big History" and this is his latest book, which I presume to be the most up-to-date and best-written, which may not be true.
8
by Brian Greene
5,393 members
40 reviews
4.1
Score 2.38
Added 2021-12-29, 08:54 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Just what is spacetime, anyway?
10
111 members
5 reviews
3.8
Score 2.25
Added 2021-12-28, 06:26 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Not 100% sure this belongs, but understanding the Earth is necessary for understanding history.
11
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: A textbook but supposedly very well-written. On here for the same reason as the previous book.
12
346 members
12 reviews
3.8
Score 2.15
Added 2021-12-28, 08:59 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: The evolution of earth itself from rock to living planet.
13
by Addy Pross
121 members
7 reviews
3.8
Score 2.11
Added 2021-12-28, 06:31 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: The origin of life is one of the big phase transitions in history.
14
by Nick Lane
661 members
14 reviews
4.2
Score 2.07
Added 2021-12-29, 09:19 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Should be a good overview of the big phase transitions in evolution on earth, and give us some hooks to hang our hats on as we move through the next few books.
16
2,582 members
73 reviews
4.2
Score 2
Added 2021-12-28, 08:52 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Not sure this belongs on the list yet.
18
308 members
3 reviews
3.8
Score 1.94
Added 2021-12-28, 08:52 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Gotta understand microbes before we understand more complex organisms.
19
218 members
3 reviews
4
Score 1.92
Added 2021-12-28, 06:27 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: I feel that a good understanding of ecology is necessary to understand history. I'm hoping this fills in the "plant life" gap. We'll see.
20
1,925 members
62 reviews
4
Score 1.89
Added 2021-12-28, 06:17 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Supposedly an excellent book, and I feel an understanding of the dinosaur age and how it came to an end is important in history.
21
12,458 members
379 reviews
4.2
Score 1.87
Added 2021-12-28, 06:11 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Not surprising that this is on here. I hope it lives up to the hype.
22
by David Reich
760 members
22 reviews
4
Score 1.85
Added 2021-12-29, 08:42 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: DNA has been a major source of recent insight into human origins. I hope this gives a good oversight into what we've learned.
24
141 members
2 reviews
½ 3.5
Score 1.81
Added 2021-12-29, 07:23 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: The evolution of consciousness is another big bottleneck in world history. I'm not sure there are any good books about it but this seems like it may fit the bill.
25
362 members
2 reviews
4
Score 1.79
Added 2021-12-29, 08:42 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: I wanted something about cave art. That this also delves into consciousness is helpful.
26
4,786 members
33 reviews
3.9
Score 1.77
Added 2021-12-30, 10:30 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Stories are probably the crucial thing that differentiates us from animals (language more generally, but some species do approximate language - stories are clearer). What forms do our oldest stories take?
27
by Carl Sagan
3,670 members
33 reviews
4.1
Score 1.76
Added 2021-12-28, 06:33 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: A classic from Carl Sagan about yet another bottleneck, the evolution of intelligence. I'm not sure if human intelligence is too narrow. We'll see.
28
by James Gleick
3,341 members
114 reviews
3.9
Score 1.74
Added 2021-12-28, 06:29 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Goes from ancient history through technology etc, but I think this would be a good book in conversation with Dragons of Eden, since intelligence plays a big part in information.
29
374 members
13 reviews
3.8
Score 1.72
Added 2021-12-28, 09:03 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: I think this is probably the best book going about how geography drives history.
30
2,124 members
43 reviews
4.2
Score 1.71
Added 2021-12-28, 06:18 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Added here in conversation with "Origins", because as I understand it, Graeber's thesis is that individuals make a big difference in the sweep of world history rather than just things like geography. I suspect it's a "por que no los dos" situation.
31
77 members
4 reviews
½ 3.7
Score 1.7
Added 2021-12-29, 09:20 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: I know little about this book but I do know it tries to pry as much as we can possibly know about prehistory from a mixture of fields, so this probably belongs. I'll make a decision on it after I've read it.
32
160 members
4 reviews
3.8
Score 1.68
Added 2022-01-02, 08:59 AM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Societies among other animals, displaying altruism etc, probably show how our own societies began.
33
82 members
4.2
Score 1.67
Added 2021-12-28, 08:54 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: So humans have evolved...how do they band together?
34
331 members
3 reviews
4.2
Score 1.66
Added 2021-12-29, 06:47 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Added this in conversation with the previous book. Understanding another kind of complex society - insect societies - is important in understanding our own. Not sure if this or E.O. Wilson's original "Insect Societies" is better, but this is certainly more up-to-date.
36
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: A classic in anthropology. Hoping the patterns will be sweeping enough to make this book belong.
37
102 members
½ 3.3
Score 1.62
Added 2021-12-28, 08:59 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Something about the history of sexuality seemed apropos for this list.
38
by Robin Fox
146 members
3
Score 1.61
Added 2021-12-28, 08:51 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Another anthro classic about basic human relations. Not sure if it belongs though. We'll see.
39
4,226 members
164 reviews
½ 4.4
Score 1.6
Added 2021-12-30, 10:33 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: May be a little modern in coverage, but I think social stratification is an important topic in history.
40
2,809 members
71 reviews
4.2
Score 1.59
Added 2021-12-28, 06:18 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: First of the economic history books on here.
41
2,030 members
36 reviews
3.9
Score 1.58
Added 2021-12-28, 06:19 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Religion is incredibly important in human history, but how did it arise? Not sure yet if this is the best book on the topic.
42
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Hoping this will give some insight into comparative religion without getting bogged down by details.
44
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Should be a good overview of world history in cartographic form. Helps to see where things are taking place.
45
by Ben Wilson
299 members
4 reviews
4.2
Score 1.54
Added 2021-12-28, 06:17 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Urbanism was another big turning point in human history, and understanding it seems important.
46
by Spiro Kostof
362 members
4 reviews
3.8
Score 1.54
Added 2021-12-30, 06:39 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: For understanding how cities evolve to meet the needs of citizens.
47
by John Haywood
321 members
1 review
4.1
Score 1.53
Added 2021-12-29, 09:34 AM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Overview of ancient civilizations.
48
264 members
3 reviews
3.9
Score 1.52
Added 2021-12-30, 06:46 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Overview of medieval civilizations.
49
1,391 members
10 reviews
3.8
Score 1.51
Added 2021-12-30, 06:44 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Book on medieval civilizations, focusing more on medieval thought, to bridge with the Braudel book later, which is mostly focused on the modern era.
51
779 members
22 reviews
4
Score 1.5
Added 2021-12-29, 07:20 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Second economic history book. I know little of it other than it seems to have good reviews.
52
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Seems useful to have historical trade illustrated in map form.
53
by Tom Standage
966 members
43 reviews
½ 3.5
Score 1.48
Added 2021-12-29, 09:39 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: "There are only nine meals behind mankind and anarchy," said Alfred Henry Lewis in 1906. Understanding the history of food and farming seems important. There don't seem to a lot of good books on the topic but hopefully this will fill in the gap.
54
25,047 members
376 reviews
4.1
Score 1.48
Added 2021-12-29, 09:19 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Probably the most prominent example of Big History, and one that historians aren't big fans of, but I figure you need to know what it says in order to criticise it.
55
121 members
2 reviews
½ 3.5
Score 1.47
Added 2021-12-30, 11:00 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Materials science in history
56
4,392 members
42 reviews
4.1
Score 1.46
Added 2022-01-02, 09:00 AM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: The scientific impulse
57
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Human beings are technology-using animals, so a history of technology seems apropos. Hopefully will correct anything Diamond got wrong about technology's effect on history.
58
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Technology and warfare are tightly connected, so I put this in conversation with the previous book.
59
160 members
3 reviews
½ 3.5
Score 1.44
Added 2021-12-28, 06:27 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Disease is, as we are all painfully aware, a big component in history. Hopefully will fix some of the deficiencies of Diamond on the germs part of Guns, Germs and Steel.
60
901 members
9 reviews
½ 3.5
Score 1.44
Added 2021-12-29, 09:24 AM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: A French view of the major civilizations of today.
61
246 members
6 reviews
½ 3.5
Score 1.43
Added 2021-12-28, 06:34 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: An overview of world history from the Treaty of Westphalia until now. Hope it's good.
62
by Jane Burbank
170 members
1 review
3.8
Score 1.43
Added 2021-12-29, 07:09 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: The empires of history and how they brought together different peoples are an important topic.
63
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Actually a series of four volumes covering a large swathe of human history and how power dynamics played a part in their rise and fall. I know little about this series otherwise. May be removed.
64
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Short book on the lessons of war from history. Not entirely sure it belongs here, I'll decide after reading.
65
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: A more general "Lessons of History" which looks quite insightful. The Durants wrote a series of books about the history of civilization but they look a bit West-centric.
66
556 members
11 reviews
4.1
Score 1.4
Added 2021-12-30, 11:30 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Not about history per se but the recurring laws that we see at all levels of organism and superorganism.
68
96 members
1 review
4.1
Score 1.39
Added 2021-12-29, 09:21 AM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Should be an interesting read about the broad patterns behind history.
69
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Another book by Turchin about cycles in human history. Not sure if this or War and Peace and War (or both) belong better here.
70
by Ian Morris
1,163 members
19 reviews
4
Score 1.38
Added 2021-12-29, 07:26 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Hoping this will be a good read about the potential future of international dynamics.
71
1,508 members
58 reviews
3.9
Score 1.38
Added 2021-12-29, 07:27 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: Unless of course climate change ends us first. The first of forward-looking books about where history will take us if we're not careful...or even if we are.
72
by Katie Mack
614 members
25 reviews
4.1
Score 1.37
Added 2021-12-29, 07:27 PM
- Member
- michelleqcy
- Explanations
- michelleqcy: History will come to an end when the universe does.