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The Kingfisher Atlas of Exploration and Empires

Simon Adams

Illustrated by Mark Bergin

Non-Fiction (Series)

Ages 8 to 12

Kingfisher, 2007, 978-0-7534-6033-7

 The story of human endeavor and discovery is a complicated one, and it requires that people who have an interest in this subject read histories of many kinds for countries all over the world. Most readers would find such a task rather daunting. Instead readers can now peruse the pages of this excellent atlas. For this title the author looks at events that took place around the world during the years between 1450 and 1800 – a time when great changes impacted peoples around the globe. He uses both articles and heavily annotated maps to give his readers a sense of how important travels of exploration and empire building activities were. 

  The author begins by looking at “What we know about the past.” This article sets the scene for what is to follow, describing the way in which travel brought new inventions to Europe, how the idea of democratic government spread through Europe and the United States, and how voyages of exploration opened the door for European colonies to grow.

  He then goes on to look at “Voyages of discovery” on a world map. Reader will be able to see how Ferdinand Magellan, John Cabot, Willem Barents, and others changed the way people saw the world.

  The next page shows readers how the Inca and Aztec empires controlled what took place in much of Central and South America. Readers will be able to see on the map where the principal cities were, and how Europeans invaded and took over the lands of these two civilizations.

  In addition to looking at these areas the author looks at the history of China and Japan, the expansion of Russia, voyages of exploration in the Pacific Ocean, and much more.

  On every map page the author includes a timeline so that readers can better see what took place when during the 1450-1800 time frame.

  All in all this is a beautifully presented and engagingly written book. The author has found an entertaining way to tell a complicated story. In addition, this is the prefect title for readers who are intimidated by long sections of text because so much of the information contained in the book is in illustrated form. Even the article pages contain numerous annotated photographs.

  This is one in a series of atlases that explore the history of the world. Other titles in the collection look at the ancient world, the medieval world, and the modern world.

 

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