1 GENERAL HISTORIES
Two stimulating world histories are P. Johnson, Modern
Times: History of the World from 1920s to 1990s*, a
revised edition of a book first published in 1983
(Weidenfeld & Nicolson, 1997), and T. E. Vadney,
World since 1945: A Complete History of Global Change
from 1945 to the Present*, revised edn (Penguin, 1998),
Older but still useful, D. C. Watt, F. Spencer and N.
Brown, A History of the World in the Twentieth Century,
really three books in one, is a more detailed treat-
ment (Hodder & Stoughton, 1967). G. Barraclough
examines some underlying forces in An Introduction
to Contemporary History(Penguin, 1969). The New
Cambridge Modern Historyhad two shots at covering
the twentieth century, a volume edited by D. Thomson,
The Era of Violence 1898–1945(Cambridge, 1960),
which was incomplete for events after 1933, and C. L.
Mowat’s The Shifting Balance of World Forces,
1898–1945(Cambridge, 1968). Both volumes contain
good individual narrative chapters. Two French inter-
pretations are M. Crouzet, L’Epoque contemporaine:
á la recherche d’une civilisation nouvelle(5th edn,
Presses Universitaires, 1969); and a factual overview, J.
Bouillon, P. Sorlin and J. Rudel, Le Monde contempo-
raine(13th edn, Bordas, 1968). For a good introduc-
tion to the forces shaping culture and society, see
M. Biddiss, The Age of the Masses* (Penguin, 1977).
A. Best, J. M. Hanhimäki, J. A. Macolo, K. E. Schulze,
International History of the Twentieth Century
(Routledge, 2004). M. Howard and Wm. Roger Lewis
(eds), The Oxford History of the Twentieth Century*
(Oxford University Press, 1998). Judith M. Brown and
Wm. Roger Lewis (eds), The Oxford History of the
British Empire Vol. IV: The Twentieth Century(Oxford
University Press, 1999).
Europe
J. Joll, Europe since 1870* (Penguin, 1990) is outstand-
ing; also excellent is H. S. Hughes, Contemporary
Europe: A History(4th edn, Prentice-Hall, 1976). Three
volumes of the Rise of Modern Europe series cover the
first half-century: O. J. Hale, The Great Illusion,
1900–1914*, R. J. Sontag, A Broken World 1919–1939*;
and G. Wright, The Ordeal of Total War, 1939–1945*
(Harper & Row, 1971, 1971 and 1968), all well worth
reading.
Eastern Asia
J. K. Fairbank, E. O. Reischauer and A. M. Craig,
China: Transition and Transformation* (2nd edn,
Unwin & Hyman, 1989); H. Tinker, South Asia: A
Short History* (Praeger, 1966); D. G. E. Hall, A History
of South-east Asia(3rd edn, Macmillan, 1968); E. O.
Reischauer and A. M. Craig, Japan: Tradition and
Transformation* (2nd edn, Unwin & Hyman, 1989).
Africa
The best one-volume history from origins to inde-
pendence is J. D. Fage, A History of Africa* (2nd edn,
Unwin Hyman, 1993).
Latin America
B. Keen, A History of Latin America(vol. 2, 4th edn,
Houghton Mifflin, 1992) provides an excellent survey
of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.
The Middle East
Two good general surveys are P. Mansfield, The Middle
East* (Penguin, 1992) and W. R. Polk, The Arab World
Today* (4th edn, Harvard, 1991). A. H. Hourani, A
History of the Arab Peoples* (Faber & Faber, 1991) and
M. E. Yapp, The Near East since the First World War*
(Longman, 1990) are also useful.
The World Economy
For a one-volume survey, see H. van der Wee, Prosperity
and Upheaval: The World Economy 1945–1980*
(Penguin, 1991). In the same series the first half of the
century is covered in more detail by D. H. Aldcroft, The
European Economy, 1914–2000(new edn, Routledge,
2000). See also A. S. Milward, War, Economy and
Society, 1939–1945* (Methuen, 1987). An interesting
theory of modernisation and economic development is
propounded by W. W. Rostow, The World Economy:
History and Prospect(Macmillan, 1978). W. Ashworth,
A Short History of the International Economy since 1850*
(4th edn, Longman, 1987); W. M. Scammell, The
International Economy since 1945* (2nd edn,
Macmillan, 1983); and F. B. Tipton and R. Aldrich, An
Economic and Social History of Europe, 1890 to the
Present* (2 vols, Macmillan, 1983) are of value.
World International Relations
Two good textbooks are available in paperback: the
well-tried P. Calvocoressi, World Politics since 1945*
(7th edn, Longman, 1996) and W. R. Keylor, The
Twentieth Century World: An International History*
(3nd edn, Oxford, 1996). These can be supplemented
by J. A. S. Grenville, The Major International Treaties,
1914–1945: A History and Guide with Texts, and J. A. S.
Grenville and B. Wasserstein, The Major International
Treaties since 1945: A History and Guide with Texts
(Methuen, 1987). Contemporary problems and their
origins are set out in G. Segal, The World Affairs
Companion* (new edn, Simon & Schuster, 1991).
2 SOME GENERAL NATIONAL HISTORIES
France
From among the rich choice, A. Cobban, A History of
France, 1871–1961* (vol. 3, Penguin, 1961) remains
one of the best introductions. It may be supplemented
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