I just finished Jonthan Holslag’s ‘A Political History of the World: 3000 Years of War and Peace”, a book I thoroughly enjoyed. The book might not be the most cheerful read, given that the takeaway is that war is a constant feature of international relations, but it is certainly entertaining and well written. I found it to be a great way to learn more about regions of the world and periods of time I was unfamiliar with. Holslag focuses on four areas across Eurasia as most of the large empires across history have been located in Europe, the Middle East, the Indian subcontinent or China. Another excellent feature of the book is that it’s both a telling of history in broad strokes, and a comparative history as Holslag dedicates a section of each chapter to comparing the different areas of the world and discussing how things changed compared to previous periods, or more commonly didn’t change If, like me, you are not very familiar with Chinese, Indian and Middle Eastern history I’d recommend the book.
The book was published by Pelican Books in 2018, with a cover by Matthew Young and can be bought in paperback for £10.99.
Written by Karl Johansson
