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Brief History of History: Great Historians and the Epic Quest to Explain the
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Brief History of History: Great Historians and the Epic Quest to Explain the Past Hardcover - 2008

by Colin Wells

In this biography of history as a living idea, Colin Wells links together lively, evocative sketches of the great historians and summarizing their most important works. Readers learn how their ideas changed the understanding of history, how history itself moved forward over time, and why "history" is a startlingly fluid concept.

From the publisher

Includes bibliographical references and index.

From the rear cover

THE REMARKABLE EVOLUTION OF HISTORY THROUGH THE AGES What began as a minor literary genre in ancient Greece stands today as perhaps the most successful monument to the global spread of Western civilization, rivaling even science in its ubiquity. Yet it did not have to turn out that way. In A Brief History of History, the most accessible and lively biography ever of history as a living idea, Colin Wells moves forward through the ages to show how the great historians and their works have changed our understanding of history, and why "history" is a startingly fluid concept, with an evolutionary course--a story--all its own. An Excerpt from A BRIEF HISTORY OF HISTORYHere's a question: What if Thucydides had written smut? In the LatinWest, writers like Gregory and Bede may have abandoned secular history, but on its home turf in the Greek East, the tradition of Herodotus and Thucydides proved more, shall we say, robust . . .

Details

  • Title Brief History of History: Great Historians and the Epic Quest to Explain the Past
  • Author Colin Wells
  • Binding Hardcover
  • Edition First Edition Fi
  • Pages 352
  • Volumes 1
  • Language ENG
  • Publisher Lyons Press, Guilford, Connecticut
  • Date 2008-10
  • Features Bibliography, Dust Cover, Index, Price on Product - Canadian, Table of Contents
  • ISBN 9781599211220 / 159921122X
  • Weight 1.4 lbs (0.64 kg)
  • Dimensions 9.3 x 6.64 x 1.22 in (23.62 x 16.87 x 3.10 cm)
  • Library of Congress subjects Historiography, Intellectual life - History
  • Library of Congress Catalog Number 2008033751
  • Dewey Decimal Code 907.2

Media reviews

Citations

  • Choice, 10/01/2009, Page 0
  • Reference and Research Bk News, 02/01/2010, Page 35

About the author

Colin Wells is the author of Sailing from Byzantium: How a Lost Empire Shaped the World and The Complete Idiot's Guide to Understanding Saudi Arabia.

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Brief History of History: Great Historians and the Epic Quest to Explain the Past

Brief History of History: Great Historians and the Epic Quest to Explain the Past

by Colin Wells

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A Brief History of History : Great Historians and the Epic Quest to Explain the Past

A Brief History of History : Great Historians and the Epic Quest to Explain the Past

by Colin Wells

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A Brief History of History : Great Historians and the Epic Quest to Explain the Past

A Brief History of History : Great Historians and the Epic Quest to Explain the Past

by Colin Wells

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A Brief History of History : Great Historians and the Epic Quest to Explain the Past
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A Brief History of History : Great Historians and the Epic Quest to Explain the Past

by Wells, Colin

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Brief History of History: Great Historians And The Epic Quest To Explain The Past

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A Brief History of History: Great Historians and the Epic Quest to Explain the Past
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A Brief History of History: Great Historians and the Epic Quest to Explain the Past

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Brief History of History: Great Historians And The Epic Quest To Explain The Past

by Wells, Colin

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