Looking for a writing book.

I'm looking for a book, not necessarily a writing book, but one on different time periods and their characteristics. Something I can use to start my research with, so it doesn't have to be too in depth, but one with enough information to get me going. I'm looking to write my fantasy in the real historical past and have an idea on the time period I'd like to set it in. I was hoping someone could direct me to some writing books, or general reference books that would be helpful. Thanks!

The 'Brief History' books are good, covering a time period or subject succinctly. They're a good jumping off point to know what you need to research (it's funny what people get wrong sometimes, like underwear) and usually give info about other good resources.

Wow! There are a lot of history books out there! You need to narrow your field a bit. What country and historical period are you thinking of? It would have to be an enormous book to give you an outline of the history of every country in the world.

There are a series of books known as the "Every Day Life" series, usually found in the writing section, that gives basic details. I've found them as excellent jumping off points.

everyday life in the middle ages might be a starting point, depending on where in history you hope to begin.

I'm really looking for an overview on historical time periods, which is why I hoped there would be a writing book for it, as history books are very specific. I guess the time period is around the 1700 or 1800s, but beyond that I can't be more specific. I want my book to be set in that adventure time, like with Lord Byron and other romantics. When people didn't know as much about the world, but they were setting out to travel and learn about new and exotic places. Thanks again!

Timelines of history can be useful is you want to see what event occurred simultaneously, which can give you lines of inquiry.

I'm guessing from the mention of Byron you want UK history. It wasn't 'brief history' I was thinking of, it was the "A Very Short Introduction to" series. They're great for a run down on major political economic and social changes, significant inventions, famous people and so on. I got a couple when I was at university to get my head around the periods I was studying before I got into the literature. 18th Century and 19th century on Amazon.com (and Romanticism). If you're looking at exploration, you need to bear in mind that the British Empire was well underway at this point; all of the major continents had been discovered and explored, and we were well on the way to conquering most of them.

You could try The Timetables of History, which gives pretty broad overviews and linkages across disciplines. It's huge, but I've found it pretty useful.

-MinaKelly-

Byron was the best example of what I could come up with. Sadly I'm ancient history, so I'm poor at anything past the Renaissance. I'm looking for that period of time where the world was really opening up to people. They were visiting these exotic places for themselves, and not just reading about them. I feel like it's close to the Romantic period, where young wealthy men were snatching up a copy of Pausanius and following his footsteps through Greece. Just looking for my time period to really capture a sense of adventure. Sorry everyone, I feel as if I'm being terribly confusing. I really appreciate all the help and recommendations!

I think you might be talking about the 'Enlightenment' period - a bit before Byron, but without which we would never have had the Romantics and their ilk. I'm attaching a link to the 'Enlightenment' page of Wiki (I know, I know!) so that you can check whether this is the period you're after - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Age_of_Enlightenment. Once that's confirmed, it should be easy enough to find relevant books. Hope it helps. (Incidentally, it's a period that was covered (rather deliciously, I thought) in Neal Stephenson's Quicksilver.)