Susan Wise Bauer’s acclaimed History of the World series takes you from Sumer to Sri Lanka, from Hammurabi to Henry V, telling the story of civilizations around the world. Bring history to life with this compelling narrative approach. Dozens of custom-created maps accompany each volume so that you won’t get lost on your journey.
Ideal as a spine for advanced high school history studies, this book also makes compelling reading for adults interested in the grand sweep of history. Each volume in this series can be a full year of history study by adding our Study & Teaching Guides. These guides provide review questions, essay topics, map exercises, and grading rubrics to minimize prep time and maximize understanding.
What grade level is recommended to start this series?
- It’s a challenging course and the book is written at a college level. We recommend it as an advanced high school history study. That said, it can be a good fit for many motivated students with an interest in history. Take a look at Chapter 1 in the Sample on this page to see reading level and content, and then the Study & Teaching Guide will also have a sample to give you a good idea of the assignments.
Are these Volumes available as audiobooks?
- Yes, they are available almost anywhere audiobooks are sold.
Is there a list of literature suggestions to correspond with History of the World?
- For literature that would accompany the texts, see “Great Books: History and Reading” book lists in chapter 27 of The Well-Trained Mind 4th edition.
- For a small subscription fee, you can access all of the “Great Books: History and Reading” titles in the Curricula Recommendations Portal on our website.
Will there be another book in the History of the World series?
- WW Norton & Company, Inc. is the publisher of The History of the World series. While there are general plans for future volumes to complete the series, consumer interest may speed up the process. Contact WW Norton directly to ask when they plan to publish the next volume of HOTW.
For schools and co-ops:
How should I use History of the World in my classroom?
- Go Broad to Get the Sweep of History: This is what the Well-Trained Mind Academy does. WTMA students read three chapters of the book per week, completing each book to get the sweep of the history in one year. They read all the chapters, but are not assigned all of the questions or assignments from every chapter of the Study and Teaching Guide. The teachers generally select the questions from each chapter they feel are most important, and assign them as an open-book or open-notes quiz. Every few weeks there is a short writing assignment using one of the essay questions that are at the end of each chapter in the Study and Teaching Guide.
- Go Deep: Read Great Books at the same time you study the corresponding history from the History of the World texts. In this scenario, the teacher assigns the history reading that matches up with the selected Great Book, focusing on both the literature and the history at the same time. This doesn't get the sweep of history, but it does provide deeper understanding of both history and literature. Students learn how to read a book in its historical context, and they learn the history of different parts of the world at the same time and about the interconnections. Teachers generally assign one Great Book per quarter, with accompanying assignments from the Study Guide.
- Go Broad, then Go Deep: Spend the first semester reading the History of the World book. Then, in the second semester, choose two great books to read and study the relevant time periods in depth using the Study Guides.
- Use a timeline to create a visual picture of history.
Do the History of the World Study Guides include midterm and final exams?
- No, they do not include midterm or final exams. Many parents/teachers make a midterm or a final by using some of the important questions from various chapters and adding an essay question. Others create their own essay question covering some overarching theme of the book; for example: "How do rulers use religious belief or ritual to influence their people?"
Do you license maps for History of the World Study Guides?
- We license the maps for all books in this series. How to purchase a license to reproduce Well-Trained Mind Press student materials.
- If you license the right to distribute the Study Guides in a classroom setting, the maps are included in that license. Or, you can license the maps on their own.
- In The History of the Ancient World, the instructions for map activities are found in the student portion of The History of the Ancient World Study Guide. In The History of the Medieval World and The History of the Renaissance World, we included the student instructions in both the teacher and student portions of the Study Guides.