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Big Ideas Simply Explained
The Literature Book: Big Ideas Simply Explained
A global look at the greatest works of Eastern and Western literature and the themes that unite them, for students and lovers of literature and reading.
The Literature Book is a fascinating journey through the greatest works of world literature, from the Iliad to Don Quixote to The Great Gatsby. Around 100 crystal-clear articles explore landmark novels, short stories, plays, and poetry that reinvented the art of writing in their time, whether Ancient Greece, post-classical Europe, or modern-day Korea.
As part of DK's award-winning Big Ideas Simply Explained series, The Literature Book uses infographics and images to explain key ideas and themes. Biographies of important authors offer insight into their lives and other writings, and a section on Further Reading details more than 150 additional works to explore.
Discover masterpieces from the world's greatest authors, and explore the context, creative history, and literary traditions that influenced each major work of fiction with The Literature Book.
Series Overview: Big Ideas Simply Explained series uses creative design and innovative graphics, along with straightforward and engaging writing, to make complex subjects easier to understand. These award-winning books provide just the information needed for students, families, or anyone interested in concise, thought-provoking refreshers on a single subject.
The Literature Book is a fascinating journey through the greatest works of world literature, from the Iliad to Don Quixote to The Great Gatsby. Around 100 crystal-clear articles explore landmark novels, short stories, plays, and poetry that reinvented the art of writing in their time, whether Ancient Greece, post-classical Europe, or modern-day Korea.
As part of DK's award-winning Big Ideas Simply Explained series, The Literature Book uses infographics and images to explain key ideas and themes. Biographies of important authors offer insight into their lives and other writings, and a section on Further Reading details more than 150 additional works to explore.
Discover masterpieces from the world's greatest authors, and explore the context, creative history, and literary traditions that influenced each major work of fiction with The Literature Book.
Series Overview: Big Ideas Simply Explained series uses creative design and innovative graphics, along with straightforward and engaging writing, to make complex subjects easier to understand. These award-winning books provide just the information needed for students, families, or anyone interested in concise, thought-provoking refreshers on a single subject.
352 pages, Hardcover
First published March 1, 2016
1494 people are currently reading
8966 people want to read
About the author
James Canton
19 books82 followersJames Canton teaches the Wild Writing MA course at the University of Essex, exploring the fascinating ties between literature and the landscape of East Anglia. He has run workshops to encourage writing on nature and landscape and is the author of Out of Essex: Re-Imagining a Literary Landscape, which was inspired by rural wanderings in the county.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 223 reviews
April 1, 2018
What a delightful collection of literary history - a treasure chest for book lovers!
During the past couple of weeks, I have read one or two chapters in this book each night, following the history of literature from the earliest epics and legends to modern movements in novel, drama and poetry. Since university, the impossible question of establishing a sense of what "world literature" means has been of great interest to me, and I have read various reference books on literary developments over time and space. Obviously, it is easy to criticise the choice of literature presented in a limited overview, and the context of the presentation as well, considering the sheer amount of content the volume is supposed to cover.
However, this introduction solves the issue brilliantly, and offers valuable background information, timelines, context, quotes and detailed analysis of important works of fiction in modern, objective language. It is carefully balanced to counter the most common euro-centric, white, male, Anglo-Saxon bias without ignoring the canonical status of European writers and thinkers of the past centuries. But as opposed to other literary guides, we encounter Gilgamesh, Mahabharata and Genji next to the Iliad, Odyssey and Aeneid, and China's four great classical novels next to Dante, Chaucer, Rabelais, Cervantes and Goethe, we meet Japanese Haikus next to Romantic poetry, and Morrison and Atwood next to Chinua Achebe and other global representatives of contemporary fiction.
It follows a systematic chronological and thematic approach, drawing the big lines in the development of storytelling, adding reference points, memorable quotes, short biographical information boxes and meaningful illustrations.
For whom is the book written? To whom would I recommend it?
I use the whole DK series to teach middle school and high school level Humanities, but I am convinced that anyone interested in the context of literature will spend delightful hours in the company of this book. If you are new to world literature, the book will offer a perfect compilation of interesting reading materials spanning the history of (written) storytelling. If you are a well-read and enthusiastic fan of world literature, it will be a a sweet reminder of past reading pleasure, put into a wider context and with plenty of suggestions for further reading.
It is open-minded, non-judgmental and straight forward without being shallow, and reading it from beginning to end gave me a feeling of renewed love of literature.
As a contrast, I would say it did everything right that some so-called literary "rankings" do wrong: it showed a comprehensive approach to the diversity of world literature without putting some authors "above" others, - a common phenomenon when scholars try to establish a canon, rather than a history of world literature!
A negative example of this could be the ridiculous The Literary 100: A Ranking Of The Most Influential Novelists, Playwrights, And Poets Of All Time, which subjectively lists the "best writers" in their order of "influence", numbering them according to their importance: Shakespeare being number 1, Sappho number 88, Jean Racine number 62, followed by number 63 - Hemingway, and so on, in a bizarre system of listing their status, according the the author's random taste!
If you are looking for an inspirational overview of literature, this is a great place to start. Not completely unbiased, as that would be an impossible task, but stimulating and enjoyable and worthwhile for both novices and longtime bookworms!
During the past couple of weeks, I have read one or two chapters in this book each night, following the history of literature from the earliest epics and legends to modern movements in novel, drama and poetry. Since university, the impossible question of establishing a sense of what "world literature" means has been of great interest to me, and I have read various reference books on literary developments over time and space. Obviously, it is easy to criticise the choice of literature presented in a limited overview, and the context of the presentation as well, considering the sheer amount of content the volume is supposed to cover.
However, this introduction solves the issue brilliantly, and offers valuable background information, timelines, context, quotes and detailed analysis of important works of fiction in modern, objective language. It is carefully balanced to counter the most common euro-centric, white, male, Anglo-Saxon bias without ignoring the canonical status of European writers and thinkers of the past centuries. But as opposed to other literary guides, we encounter Gilgamesh, Mahabharata and Genji next to the Iliad, Odyssey and Aeneid, and China's four great classical novels next to Dante, Chaucer, Rabelais, Cervantes and Goethe, we meet Japanese Haikus next to Romantic poetry, and Morrison and Atwood next to Chinua Achebe and other global representatives of contemporary fiction.
It follows a systematic chronological and thematic approach, drawing the big lines in the development of storytelling, adding reference points, memorable quotes, short biographical information boxes and meaningful illustrations.
For whom is the book written? To whom would I recommend it?
I use the whole DK series to teach middle school and high school level Humanities, but I am convinced that anyone interested in the context of literature will spend delightful hours in the company of this book. If you are new to world literature, the book will offer a perfect compilation of interesting reading materials spanning the history of (written) storytelling. If you are a well-read and enthusiastic fan of world literature, it will be a a sweet reminder of past reading pleasure, put into a wider context and with plenty of suggestions for further reading.
It is open-minded, non-judgmental and straight forward without being shallow, and reading it from beginning to end gave me a feeling of renewed love of literature.
As a contrast, I would say it did everything right that some so-called literary "rankings" do wrong: it showed a comprehensive approach to the diversity of world literature without putting some authors "above" others, - a common phenomenon when scholars try to establish a canon, rather than a history of world literature!
A negative example of this could be the ridiculous The Literary 100: A Ranking Of The Most Influential Novelists, Playwrights, And Poets Of All Time, which subjectively lists the "best writers" in their order of "influence", numbering them according to their importance: Shakespeare being number 1, Sappho number 88, Jean Racine number 62, followed by number 63 - Hemingway, and so on, in a bizarre system of listing their status, according the the author's random taste!
If you are looking for an inspirational overview of literature, this is a great place to start. Not completely unbiased, as that would be an impossible task, but stimulating and enjoyable and worthwhile for both novices and longtime bookworms!
December 23, 2020
I’ve started reading this book almost two years ago and it was a slow process. I’ve been reading one or two pages every few days and I still haven’t finished because I read only about the books that I already went through or do not plan to read at all(mainly poetry). Some entries contain spoilers so I will get to them later.
The Literature Book is a chronological and thematic introduction to the history of global literature. The best European classics stand together with the biggest literature pieces from China, India and Japan. I thought that the selection of books was not biased towards the Anglo-Saxon origin but tried to select what is representative for world literature. It covers prose, theatre, poetry and I discovered works that I did not think of reading before. I finally read Dante and tried to conquer The Iliad. I discovered that I like Chinese classic poetry and that haiku can be combined with travel journals to create a satisfying result.
There are a few longer entries for the major literature works of each period which contains a detailed analysis of the author, historical context and literary themes. At the end of each chapter there are 4 to 6 pages of further reading, containing a short summary of more works of value for that period.
The Literature Book is a chronological and thematic introduction to the history of global literature. The best European classics stand together with the biggest literature pieces from China, India and Japan. I thought that the selection of books was not biased towards the Anglo-Saxon origin but tried to select what is representative for world literature. It covers prose, theatre, poetry and I discovered works that I did not think of reading before. I finally read Dante and tried to conquer The Iliad. I discovered that I like Chinese classic poetry and that haiku can be combined with travel journals to create a satisfying result.
There are a few longer entries for the major literature works of each period which contains a detailed analysis of the author, historical context and literary themes. At the end of each chapter there are 4 to 6 pages of further reading, containing a short summary of more works of value for that period.
July 24, 2024
A valuable piece for book enthusiasts with a captivating compilation of literary heritage, covering the best literary masterpieces in the world through ages, starting from oral story telling 🗣 to modern day written literatures 📚.
It's Well written, versatility at its best and very informative. It boosts reading comprehension, offers ideal exposure to variety of genres through different eras, including books that i 've never heard of with bigger influence in the history of literature. Great book!
It's Well written, versatility at its best and very informative. It boosts reading comprehension, offers ideal exposure to variety of genres through different eras, including books that i 've never heard of with bigger influence in the history of literature. Great book!
December 12, 2018
Educational reading! / Lectura educadora!
This review is bilingual. First on English and later you can find the Spanish version.
This book is a guide to many of the best books of all time, but as you must suppose, in every book that tries to gather the best about something, the experience was both illustrating and outrageous.
Illustrating, because I definitely learned a lot about authors and their books that I honestly did not know existed; as well as to better understand several books that I knew existed but that I was not clear about what they were about.
Outrageous, because several authors that I consider relevant were totally ignored (Arthur C. Clarke, Isaac Asimov, Ursula K. Le Guin, Stephen King, Michael Chrichton, Paulo Coelho) or relegated to the "Other Works" section (JRR Tolkien, Edgar Allan Poe) as if they were less important, or even worse only mentioned as side notes (JK Rowling, Dan Brown, Isabel Allende). Also, in some cases they chose a book that I do not consider to be the best one to represent the author. And although they covered most literary geographical areas, they left out a relevant one like contemporary Scandinavian literature. And they ignored a genre like "Graphic Novel" where they could easily mention at least "Watchmen", "Maus" or "Persepolis".
But, in general, about the books and authors that they do appear, I learned a lot, so definitely, it is the best reference book I have read this year (2018).
Obviously recommended for all lovers of reading.
--0--
Este libro es una guía de muchos de los mejores libros de todos los tiempos, pero como deben suponer, en todo libro que trata de reunir lo mejor sobre algo, la experiencia fue tanto ilustradora como indignante.
Ilustradora, porque definitivamente aprendí mucho sobre autores y sus libros que honestamente no sabía que existían; así como entender mejor varios libros que sabía que existían pero que no tenía claro de qué trataban.
Indignante, porque varios autores que considero relevantes fueron totalmente ignorados (Arthur C. Clarke, Isaac Asimov, Ursula K. Le Guin, Stephen King, Michael Chrichton, Paulo Coelho) o relegados a la sección “Otras Obras” (JRR Tolkien, Edgar Allan Poe) como si fueran menos importantes, o incluso peor solo mencionados como notas al lado (JK Rowling, Dan Brown, Isabel Allende). También, en algunos casos eligieron un libro que no considero que fuera el más indicado para representar al autor. Y aunque cubrieron la mayoría de las zonas geográficas literarias, dejaron por fuera una relevante como la literatura escandinava contemporánea. Y obviaron un género como “Novela Gráfica” donde pudieron fácilmente mencionar al menos “Watchmen”, “Maus” ó “Persepolis”.
Pero, en general, de los libros y autores que sí aparecen, aprendí mucho, por lo que definitivamente, es el mejor libro de referencia que he leído este año (2018).
Obviamente recomendado para todo amante de la lectura.
This review is bilingual. First on English and later you can find the Spanish version.
This book is a guide to many of the best books of all time, but as you must suppose, in every book that tries to gather the best about something, the experience was both illustrating and outrageous.
Illustrating, because I definitely learned a lot about authors and their books that I honestly did not know existed; as well as to better understand several books that I knew existed but that I was not clear about what they were about.
Outrageous, because several authors that I consider relevant were totally ignored (Arthur C. Clarke, Isaac Asimov, Ursula K. Le Guin, Stephen King, Michael Chrichton, Paulo Coelho) or relegated to the "Other Works" section (JRR Tolkien, Edgar Allan Poe) as if they were less important, or even worse only mentioned as side notes (JK Rowling, Dan Brown, Isabel Allende). Also, in some cases they chose a book that I do not consider to be the best one to represent the author. And although they covered most literary geographical areas, they left out a relevant one like contemporary Scandinavian literature. And they ignored a genre like "Graphic Novel" where they could easily mention at least "Watchmen", "Maus" or "Persepolis".
But, in general, about the books and authors that they do appear, I learned a lot, so definitely, it is the best reference book I have read this year (2018).
Obviously recommended for all lovers of reading.
--0--
Este libro es una guía de muchos de los mejores libros de todos los tiempos, pero como deben suponer, en todo libro que trata de reunir lo mejor sobre algo, la experiencia fue tanto ilustradora como indignante.
Ilustradora, porque definitivamente aprendí mucho sobre autores y sus libros que honestamente no sabía que existían; así como entender mejor varios libros que sabía que existían pero que no tenía claro de qué trataban.
Indignante, porque varios autores que considero relevantes fueron totalmente ignorados (Arthur C. Clarke, Isaac Asimov, Ursula K. Le Guin, Stephen King, Michael Chrichton, Paulo Coelho) o relegados a la sección “Otras Obras” (JRR Tolkien, Edgar Allan Poe) como si fueran menos importantes, o incluso peor solo mencionados como notas al lado (JK Rowling, Dan Brown, Isabel Allende). También, en algunos casos eligieron un libro que no considero que fuera el más indicado para representar al autor. Y aunque cubrieron la mayoría de las zonas geográficas literarias, dejaron por fuera una relevante como la literatura escandinava contemporánea. Y obviaron un género como “Novela Gráfica” donde pudieron fácilmente mencionar al menos “Watchmen”, “Maus” ó “Persepolis”.
Pero, en general, de los libros y autores que sí aparecen, aprendí mucho, por lo que definitivamente, es el mejor libro de referencia que he leído este año (2018).
Obviamente recomendado para todo amante de la lectura.
May 18, 2019
Have you ever wondered about the earliest form of storytelling, the kind that endured because it was somehow recorded? Or when the transition from oral stories to written ones was? Or what the difference between the evolution of "literature" is from Europe to Asia to India to other places? Have you ever wondered how many truly ancient words or expressions have endured until today and how they permeated societies they didn't originate from? And did you want examples / recommendations for all the different styles and genres, examples for the different eras?
Well, then this book might be for you.
Such examinations can often be quite dry so I was delighted to find out that this book had a wonderful and fresh writing style and combined it with great photographs (of stone tablets, tapestries and more) as well as tables and infographics.
I had the distinct feeling that the author is a passionate bookworm but also is very much interested in the evolutionary stages of what we nowadays call literature (which encompasses all, from fiction to poetry).
Through the ages, mankind always needed stories. In caves, tents, under the open sky, in huts and houses, castles or apartment complexes - we always wanted stories because they tell us how to live, that we're not alone, and they entertain us. They are also a great unifier.
Be it fables of gods, comedies, tragedies, poems in all their various forms (haikus for instance), or the myriad forms of fiction (from romance to fantasy) ... we pressed characters into clay tablets to record them, scribbled on papyrus, drew images on cave walls, invented the printing press and now have e-readers. Thus, there is a direct link between humanity, the different culturs on Earth and one of the most important art forms we've ever created.
This book is a nice way of getting an overview, both historically and analytically. Many of the things mentioned here I already knew about but some (especially about India/sanskrit and other Asian facts) I learnt about through this book.
Another cool thing is that you can use it to look up specific topics, as a reference guide, or you can get recommendations as to what to read, or you can read it like a course book or history book the way I did.
Naturally, the references given are mostly very famous examples (there is a reason certain works have become what we call "classics") but there were some I had never heard of as well. The summaries of the books presented are good but not spoilery while still showing why any given book represents a certain genre or era.
No boring slog through analytical data but a comprehensive look at literature, presented in an approachable way that makes you itch to start reading some books. :D
P.S.: Some very attentive readers might be able to see that it took me a looong time to finish this book. That's my fault. I started it after finding it in the bookstore, all excited and stuff, then I got swamped with BRs, put the book on my physical shelf and eventually forgot about it. When I remembered, I couldn't really fit it in anywhere until now. But like I said: that's not a problem since the chapters are self-contained and finding your way back into the respective topic is fast and easy.
Well, then this book might be for you.
Such examinations can often be quite dry so I was delighted to find out that this book had a wonderful and fresh writing style and combined it with great photographs (of stone tablets, tapestries and more) as well as tables and infographics.
I had the distinct feeling that the author is a passionate bookworm but also is very much interested in the evolutionary stages of what we nowadays call literature (which encompasses all, from fiction to poetry).
Through the ages, mankind always needed stories. In caves, tents, under the open sky, in huts and houses, castles or apartment complexes - we always wanted stories because they tell us how to live, that we're not alone, and they entertain us. They are also a great unifier.
Be it fables of gods, comedies, tragedies, poems in all their various forms (haikus for instance), or the myriad forms of fiction (from romance to fantasy) ... we pressed characters into clay tablets to record them, scribbled on papyrus, drew images on cave walls, invented the printing press and now have e-readers. Thus, there is a direct link between humanity, the different culturs on Earth and one of the most important art forms we've ever created.
This book is a nice way of getting an overview, both historically and analytically. Many of the things mentioned here I already knew about but some (especially about India/sanskrit and other Asian facts) I learnt about through this book.
Another cool thing is that you can use it to look up specific topics, as a reference guide, or you can get recommendations as to what to read, or you can read it like a course book or history book the way I did.
Naturally, the references given are mostly very famous examples (there is a reason certain works have become what we call "classics") but there were some I had never heard of as well. The summaries of the books presented are good but not spoilery while still showing why any given book represents a certain genre or era.
No boring slog through analytical data but a comprehensive look at literature, presented in an approachable way that makes you itch to start reading some books. :D
P.S.: Some very attentive readers might be able to see that it took me a looong time to finish this book. That's my fault. I started it after finding it in the bookstore, all excited and stuff, then I got swamped with BRs, put the book on my physical shelf and eventually forgot about it. When I remembered, I couldn't really fit it in anywhere until now. But like I said: that's not a problem since the chapters are self-contained and finding your way back into the respective topic is fast and easy.
February 2, 2017
I've skimmed and flicked my way through this book for six months. Getting inspiration for books to read, or learning more about past favourites. I'm not always a fan of these sort of compilations, but I think these DK publishing books are done very well.
February 14, 2016
Outstanding book!
I love how this book pieces together the most epic stories in literature. So much so, it prompted me to start reading the books inside. The first book recorded in history happened more than two thousand years before Christ. It's called; The Epic of Gilgamesh. I found an online copy and read it since it's pretty small.
Between you and me, I would have never known about its' existence had I not read this book.
This book is like an encyclopedia of books, but put together in a more exciting way for the reader. Book lovers are going to be pretty enthusiastic reading this, seeing what you have and have not read.
It is a fantastic book and I can't wait to keep going through the list and reading more.
I love how this book pieces together the most epic stories in literature. So much so, it prompted me to start reading the books inside. The first book recorded in history happened more than two thousand years before Christ. It's called; The Epic of Gilgamesh. I found an online copy and read it since it's pretty small.
Between you and me, I would have never known about its' existence had I not read this book.
This book is like an encyclopedia of books, but put together in a more exciting way for the reader. Book lovers are going to be pretty enthusiastic reading this, seeing what you have and have not read.
It is a fantastic book and I can't wait to keep going through the list and reading more.
December 5, 2017
This is a non fiction book with a brief history of .. the entirety of literature and it's pretty interesting! I did really enjoy reading about the books and the authors, I especially enjoyed the sections on romanticism and modernism.
I read this cover to cover but you can definitely jump around and read a little bit here and there if you wanted to. It's not /super/ in depth, but it does pretty well for a three hundred page book. I just wish more diverse writers had been included prior to the contemporary literature section. This book has a foreword about how including more "non white male" authors in the canon was important but I don't know how much they actually incorporated that
However, for such a short book I think this was really interesting and I liked reading about some books I hadn't heard of before, or had heard the name of but didn't really know what it was about
There is another book in this series about history so I will probably read that one too
I read this cover to cover but you can definitely jump around and read a little bit here and there if you wanted to. It's not /super/ in depth, but it does pretty well for a three hundred page book. I just wish more diverse writers had been included prior to the contemporary literature section. This book has a foreword about how including more "non white male" authors in the canon was important but I don't know how much they actually incorporated that
However, for such a short book I think this was really interesting and I liked reading about some books I hadn't heard of before, or had heard the name of but didn't really know what it was about
There is another book in this series about history so I will probably read that one too
May 24, 2016
This book is a book lovers dream. It divides literature into categories, like Depicting Real Life 1855-1900, and offers books that best represent the ideas of the category. Each category opens with a timeline of the important works before moving on to the descriptions of the books. Initially, highlighting one of the most prominent books and it's author over four or five pages. Then, moving on to shorter sketches of other titles. My "to read" list is going to explode after reading this book.
July 30, 2019
Ενα σπουδαίο βιβλίο απαραίτητο εργαλείο για κάθε λάτρη της λογοτεχνίας.
June 17, 2020
Originally reviewed for YA Books Central: http://www.yabookscentral.com/yanonfi...
Pace yourself! Reading this primer is a bit like taking a college-level literature class. Or perhaps an entire semester worth of literature classes…
Acknowledging that storytelling is as old as humanity itself, The Literature Book takes on the daunting challenge of giving readers a historical and functional overview of literary works and their progression through the ages. The book starts with 4,600-year-old Sumerian texts and carries all the way up to select contemporary works as recent as 2013—encompassing novels, plays, and poetry. Its presentation style is sometimes dry, but orderly in format and highly informative.
--------
What I Liked:
There was a solid effort made to present a diverse array of works outside of the classical European variety—inclusive of cultural sub-genres such as Sanskrit Epics, Imperial Chinese Poetry, Early Arabic Lit, Slave Narratives, Inianismo, Baihua Lit, The Harlem Renaissance, The Latin American Boom, Caribbean, and Indian English.
Personal Note: Page 93 conveyed an excellent, concise explanation of early Japanese theater forms. This reader didn't previously grasp the difference between Kabuki(theatrical song/dance/mime) and Bunraku(musical puppet theater) until it was so clearly laid out in this book.
The Literature Book claims it “cuts through the literary jargon” and is “packed with witty illustrations.” I don’t know about cutting through, but it does explain literary terms with textbook thoroughness. And although there is certainly an abundance of illustrations to break up the sometimes dense visual field, I wouldn’t personally refer to said imagery as “witty.” The diagrams, visual-aid images, excised quotes, and timelines are simplistic—mono and duo-chromatic. Effectively breaking up dense swaths of text and enhancing to the overall comprehension potential without becoming a distraction. Full-color pictures and artwork appear more sporadically and offer a stronger sense of place and/or ambiance to the subjects they pertain to.
What Didn’t Work For Me:
Chosen works may receive only a sentence of passing mention, or as much as 6 analytical pages (i.e. Moby-Dick). The authors receive anything from cursory reference, to a mini-bio, to a full biography including a picture. How it was decided which authors, genres, and works were worthy of how much recognition remains a point of confusion for this reader. Sci-fi and Fantasy seemed to receive disproportionately minimal attention, and the Romance genre—along with its representative authors—received no address at all.
Unfortunately, a number of prolific and influential authors were all but passed over. I was personally disappointed the book didn't offer a bio for either C.S. Lewis or J.R.R. Tolkien. Their works seemed mentioned only in passing when the fantasy genre is touched on. Lewis is only referred to once very briefly, and there's no allusion to his sci-fi works at all. Jules Verne receives the most mention of any sci-fi author (page 184), but no bio. And H.G. Wells is allotted only a single sentence—though he could arguably be considered one of the pioneering fathers of science fiction.
Conversely, TWO of the three Bronte sisters (Emily and Charlotte) have full bios with pictures included, though Emily wrote just one novel. That’s not to say I don’t approve of their inclusion and highlighted significance—only to point out the disparity in emphasis.
-----
While I wouldn’t call this book an exhaustive authority, it certainly has the potential to be a valuable and semi-encyclopedic tool in the pursuit of a more advanced literary education. Studious readers are likely to come away with both factual knowledge, as well as a fresh list of works they may be interested in experiencing at length.
College-bound Young Adults perusing a major in literature might consider this book a preparatory framework for their degree, and perhaps a leg-up on their future.
Pace yourself! Reading this primer is a bit like taking a college-level literature class. Or perhaps an entire semester worth of literature classes…
Acknowledging that storytelling is as old as humanity itself, The Literature Book takes on the daunting challenge of giving readers a historical and functional overview of literary works and their progression through the ages. The book starts with 4,600-year-old Sumerian texts and carries all the way up to select contemporary works as recent as 2013—encompassing novels, plays, and poetry. Its presentation style is sometimes dry, but orderly in format and highly informative.
--------
What I Liked:
There was a solid effort made to present a diverse array of works outside of the classical European variety—inclusive of cultural sub-genres such as Sanskrit Epics, Imperial Chinese Poetry, Early Arabic Lit, Slave Narratives, Inianismo, Baihua Lit, The Harlem Renaissance, The Latin American Boom, Caribbean, and Indian English.
Personal Note: Page 93 conveyed an excellent, concise explanation of early Japanese theater forms. This reader didn't previously grasp the difference between Kabuki(theatrical song/dance/mime) and Bunraku(musical puppet theater) until it was so clearly laid out in this book.
The Literature Book claims it “cuts through the literary jargon” and is “packed with witty illustrations.” I don’t know about cutting through, but it does explain literary terms with textbook thoroughness. And although there is certainly an abundance of illustrations to break up the sometimes dense visual field, I wouldn’t personally refer to said imagery as “witty.” The diagrams, visual-aid images, excised quotes, and timelines are simplistic—mono and duo-chromatic. Effectively breaking up dense swaths of text and enhancing to the overall comprehension potential without becoming a distraction. Full-color pictures and artwork appear more sporadically and offer a stronger sense of place and/or ambiance to the subjects they pertain to.
What Didn’t Work For Me:
Chosen works may receive only a sentence of passing mention, or as much as 6 analytical pages (i.e. Moby-Dick). The authors receive anything from cursory reference, to a mini-bio, to a full biography including a picture. How it was decided which authors, genres, and works were worthy of how much recognition remains a point of confusion for this reader. Sci-fi and Fantasy seemed to receive disproportionately minimal attention, and the Romance genre—along with its representative authors—received no address at all.
Unfortunately, a number of prolific and influential authors were all but passed over. I was personally disappointed the book didn't offer a bio for either C.S. Lewis or J.R.R. Tolkien. Their works seemed mentioned only in passing when the fantasy genre is touched on. Lewis is only referred to once very briefly, and there's no allusion to his sci-fi works at all. Jules Verne receives the most mention of any sci-fi author (page 184), but no bio. And H.G. Wells is allotted only a single sentence—though he could arguably be considered one of the pioneering fathers of science fiction.
Conversely, TWO of the three Bronte sisters (Emily and Charlotte) have full bios with pictures included, though Emily wrote just one novel. That’s not to say I don’t approve of their inclusion and highlighted significance—only to point out the disparity in emphasis.
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While I wouldn’t call this book an exhaustive authority, it certainly has the potential to be a valuable and semi-encyclopedic tool in the pursuit of a more advanced literary education. Studious readers are likely to come away with both factual knowledge, as well as a fresh list of works they may be interested in experiencing at length.
College-bound Young Adults perusing a major in literature might consider this book a preparatory framework for their degree, and perhaps a leg-up on their future.
November 12, 2017
Just what I expected - in the course of reading this book I came across many examples of books I either wanted to read for ages or books I've never heard of. Anyway, my tbr is now much longer.
This should keep me occupied for the next couple of years.
This should keep me occupied for the next couple of years.
July 21, 2025
"If you want a picture of the future, imagine a boot stamping on a human face—forever."
Nineteen Eighty-Four
I’d like to congratulate myself on finishing this book. I thought I’d be stuck reading it until the end of July. Phew... .
What I liked about this book:
1- Like the previous Big Ideas, Simply Explained (BISE) books I've read, it was informative.
2- Unlike the previous BISE books, there was less repetition of information; which I truly appreciated.
What I didn’t like about this book:
1- Holy moly... I thought it was boring.
2- I found the book a bit annoying because it mainly focused on English, French, and German literature. There was a bit of Japanese and Indian content, but the majority centered on Western literature. I have nothing against that, of course—but James Canton should have clarified in the introduction that this book is about Western literature, with occasional references to literature from the rest of the world. Transparency matters in this case, because, I’m sorry to say, "world literature" is not the same as "Western literature".
3- The context on page 319 is “Writing for the World,” and yet the same page includes these sentences:
- “The hero in Murakami’s Norwegian Wood, a tale of love, loss, and friendship, is a former college student interested in American literature.”
- “Kitchen tells a wistful story of a young Japanese woman, for whom the consumer opulence of Western-style cooking provides an emotional refuge.”
- “In the Miso Soup is a crime story set among the hostess bars of Tokyo, with conversational references to real-life Americans such as Whitney Houston and Robert De Niro.”
I might be overreacting, but “World” is NOT equivalent to “America.” -_-
4- I felt that many of the books presented in this book had little literary value and were mainly included because of their political relevance. While that gives them political significance, it doesn’t necessarily mean they hold literary value.
5- There was a strong focus on poetry in the beginning of the book, and yet no mention of The Book of Kings (Shahnameh) by Ferdowsi. I found this shocking—considering that The Book of Kings was so influential, it helped preserve an entire language. Personally, I found this immensely disappointing.
6- Only one paragraph was dedicated to The Lord of the Rings, and just a few sentences to Agatha Christie! Another shock. Meanwhile, some obscure book about sex and drugs gets two to three full pages.
3/5 stars
July has been rough for me so far—I hope my next pick is better. ToT
Nineteen Eighty-Four
I’d like to congratulate myself on finishing this book. I thought I’d be stuck reading it until the end of July. Phew... .
What I liked about this book:
1- Like the previous Big Ideas, Simply Explained (BISE) books I've read, it was informative.
2- Unlike the previous BISE books, there was less repetition of information; which I truly appreciated.
What I didn’t like about this book:
1- Holy moly... I thought it was boring.
2- I found the book a bit annoying because it mainly focused on English, French, and German literature. There was a bit of Japanese and Indian content, but the majority centered on Western literature. I have nothing against that, of course—but James Canton should have clarified in the introduction that this book is about Western literature, with occasional references to literature from the rest of the world. Transparency matters in this case, because, I’m sorry to say, "world literature" is not the same as "Western literature".
3- The context on page 319 is “Writing for the World,” and yet the same page includes these sentences:
- “The hero in Murakami’s Norwegian Wood, a tale of love, loss, and friendship, is a former college student interested in American literature.”
- “Kitchen tells a wistful story of a young Japanese woman, for whom the consumer opulence of Western-style cooking provides an emotional refuge.”
- “In the Miso Soup is a crime story set among the hostess bars of Tokyo, with conversational references to real-life Americans such as Whitney Houston and Robert De Niro.”
I might be overreacting, but “World” is NOT equivalent to “America.” -_-
4- I felt that many of the books presented in this book had little literary value and were mainly included because of their political relevance. While that gives them political significance, it doesn’t necessarily mean they hold literary value.
5- There was a strong focus on poetry in the beginning of the book, and yet no mention of The Book of Kings (Shahnameh) by Ferdowsi. I found this shocking—considering that The Book of Kings was so influential, it helped preserve an entire language. Personally, I found this immensely disappointing.
6- Only one paragraph was dedicated to The Lord of the Rings, and just a few sentences to Agatha Christie! Another shock. Meanwhile, some obscure book about sex and drugs gets two to three full pages.
3/5 stars
July has been rough for me so far—I hope my next pick is better. ToT
February 23, 2022
Cho cuốn này 2 sao rưỡi. So với các cuốn Triết và Chính trị trong bộ thì cuốn Văn rời rạc hơn hẳn. Có một số bài hay (tập trung vào các bài trọng tâm 6 trang), nhưng nhiều bài rất vụn, dĩ nhiên là do không có chỗ viết và làm sách dạng này thì cắt xén cho vừa trang là điều không tránh được. Càng về phần văn hiện đại thì số bài hay càng tăng. Điển hình như là Hoàng tử bé, 1984, Nếu một đêm đông có người lữ khách, Cái trống thiếc, vân vân. Bài Cái trống thiếc còn làm nguyên một cái sơ đồ Venn về các tác phẩm văn chương với người dẫn chuyện không đáng tin.
Cuốn này vẫn tập trung rất nhiều vào các tác phẩm Anh ngữ, điểm xuyết văn chương châu Âu và Mỹ Latin. Các bài về văn chương châu Á và châu Phi viết rất vụn vặt (trừ các bài về tác phẩm của tác giả châu Á hay châu Phi nhưng viết bằng Anh ngữ như Salman Rushdie chẳng hạn thì viết ngon lành). Toàn Đường thi lẫn Lỗ Tấn được viết cực kì chán. Văn Nhật thì được ưu ái hơn vì ở cái vùng Á Đông này thì ngoài văn Nhật ra dân Anh ngữ (weeb) phần lớn chả biết cái gì khác. Bài về Kim Các tự là một bài hay. Nhưng bài về Chim văn dây cót thì lại là một bài vô thưởng vô phạt.
Nhưng túm lại, vẫn là một quyển đáng đọc.
Cuốn này vẫn tập trung rất nhiều vào các tác phẩm Anh ngữ, điểm xuyết văn chương châu Âu và Mỹ Latin. Các bài về văn chương châu Á và châu Phi viết rất vụn vặt (trừ các bài về tác phẩm của tác giả châu Á hay châu Phi nhưng viết bằng Anh ngữ như Salman Rushdie chẳng hạn thì viết ngon lành). Toàn Đường thi lẫn Lỗ Tấn được viết cực kì chán. Văn Nhật thì được ưu ái hơn vì ở cái vùng Á Đông này thì ngoài văn Nhật ra dân Anh ngữ (weeb) phần lớn chả biết cái gì khác. Bài về Kim Các tự là một bài hay. Nhưng bài về Chim văn dây cót thì lại là một bài vô thưởng vô phạt.
Nhưng túm lại, vẫn là một quyển đáng đọc.
December 7, 2018
Phenomenal guide to the literature.
November 14, 2022
mình đọc bản tiếng Việt - dịch sai nhiều cái quote nổi tiếng lúm :(( có thể là do người dịch chưa đọc một số quyển nói đến trong này nên mới hiểu sai ý tác giả ở mấy đoạn trích quote đó
bữa đó tự nhiên ngẫu hứng mua quyển này, nội dung cũng khá hay theo kiểu cố gắng tóm tắt một cách đầy đủ, ngắn gọn và hấp dẫn nhất về lịch sử (?) của văn học và phong cách của các nhà văn/tác phẩm lơn, hình thức siêu đẹp, đương nhiên là giá cao, mà do mình lười nên đoạn nào nói về mấy tác giả mình thích, mấy tác phẩm mình quan tâm mình mới đọc kĩ, còn ko mình ko care lắm
bữa đó tự nhiên ngẫu hứng mua quyển này, nội dung cũng khá hay theo kiểu cố gắng tóm tắt một cách đầy đủ, ngắn gọn và hấp dẫn nhất về lịch sử (?) của văn học và phong cách của các nhà văn/tác phẩm lơn, hình thức siêu đẹp, đương nhiên là giá cao, mà do mình lười nên đoạn nào nói về mấy tác giả mình thích, mấy tác phẩm mình quan tâm mình mới đọc kĩ, còn ko mình ko care lắm
February 8, 2021
And I just add 50 more books in the tbr list.
September 29, 2019
Es una guía maravillosa a través de las diferentes épocas de la literatura. Muchas de las novelas son contextualizadas históricamente y esto hace que uno quiera o no quería leer alguna obra. Es un libro para poner a la vista de todos en casa.
December 11, 2019
این کتاب به دلیل غنی بودن از مطالب مفید، تصویرسازیهای بینظیر و منسجم کردن و نظم بخشیدن به بخش بزرگی از ادبیات جهان لایق چهار ستاره هست. کتاب به شکلی تدوین شده که شما از ابتدای تاریخ با آن همراه میشوید و آثار مهم هر دوره با توجه به طبقهبندی زمانی انجام شده ارائه میشود. ارائهی آثار به این صورت شکل گرفته که در عنوان مقاله، نه نام کتاب یا نویسنده، که جملهی زیبایی از کتاب انتخاب شده ک�� بسیار جذاب و گیراست و شما را ترغیب به ادامهی خواندن میکند. در زیر این جمله نام کتاب، نویسنده و سال انتشار آورده شده.
در حاشیهی هر مقاله بخشی وجود دارد که به دو قسمت قبل و بعد تقسیم شده. در قسمت «قبل» شما میتوانید تمامی آثاری را که به لحاظ محتوا، سبک، ساختار و... مشابه اثر هستند و قبل از کتاب مذکور چاپ شده و به همین منوال در قسمت «بعد» تمامی آثاری را که بعد از آن چاپ شده ببینید. همچنین کتاب ماهیتی شبیه به دایرةالمعارف دارد و شما ارجاع به دیگر صفحات هم مشاهده میکنید. در طول مقاله شما با زندگی نویسنده، چکیدهای از داستان و نقاط مهم آن به لحاظ ادبی یا اثری که بر ادبیات جهان گذاشتهاند آشنا میشوید و ایدههای مهم و نمادهای قابل بحث در مجموعه آثار نویسنده برایتان شکافته میشود. همچنین طراحیهای گرافیکی و جداول جالبی برای بیشتر مقالات قرار داده شده که به فهم سریعتر و بصری مطالب کمک میکنند.
تنها ایراد اساسی این کتاب که در حین خواندنش هم کمی ذهنم را مشغول کرده بود این است که تعداد قابل توجهی از آثار ادبی مهم و شناخته شده در این کتاب وجود ندارد. من جمله آثار ادبی ایران که هیچ نامی از آنها برده نشده.
وقتی برخی نظرات را در مورد این کتاب خواندم متوجه شدم به آثار و فرهنگهای بسیاری بیتوجهی شده و گویا کتاب بیشتر محوریتش بر اساس نوشتههای انگلیسی و برخی فرهنگهای خاص است. با این حال همچنان به نظرم کلیت کتاب بسیار مفید است و ارزش خواندن را دارد. دید کلی خوبی نسبت به ادبیات اقصی نقاط جهان عرضه میکند.
در حاشیهی هر مقاله بخشی وجود دارد که به دو قسمت قبل و بعد تقسیم شده. در قسمت «قبل» شما میتوانید تمامی آثاری را که به لحاظ محتوا، سبک، ساختار و... مشابه اثر هستند و قبل از کتاب مذکور چاپ شده و به همین منوال در قسمت «بعد» تمامی آثاری را که بعد از آن چاپ شده ببینید. همچنین کتاب ماهیتی شبیه به دایرةالمعارف دارد و شما ارجاع به دیگر صفحات هم مشاهده میکنید. در طول مقاله شما با زندگی نویسنده، چکیدهای از داستان و نقاط مهم آن به لحاظ ادبی یا اثری که بر ادبیات جهان گذاشتهاند آشنا میشوید و ایدههای مهم و نمادهای قابل بحث در مجموعه آثار نویسنده برایتان شکافته میشود. همچنین طراحیهای گرافیکی و جداول جالبی برای بیشتر مقالات قرار داده شده که به فهم سریعتر و بصری مطالب کمک میکنند.
تنها ایراد اساسی این کتاب که در حین خواندنش هم کمی ذهنم را مشغول کرده بود این است که تعداد قابل توجهی از آثار ادبی مهم و شناخته شده در این کتاب وجود ندارد. من جمله آثار ادبی ایران که هیچ نامی از آنها برده نشده.
وقتی برخی نظرات را در مورد این کتاب خواندم متوجه شدم به آثار و فرهنگهای بسیاری بیتوجهی شده و گویا کتاب بیشتر محوریتش بر اساس نوشتههای انگلیسی و برخی فرهنگهای خاص است. با این حال همچنان به نظرم کلیت کتاب بسیار مفید است و ارزش خواندن را دارد. دید کلی خوبی نسبت به ادبیات اقصی نقاط جهان عرضه میکند.
February 14, 2017
It took me a month fo finish this book and it was worth it. It takes the reader on a travel from the first written texts like The epic of Ghilgamesh to contemporary literature . You are able to see the big picture.The book is well structured and the concepts are well explained. You also become interested in further reading.
December 20, 2017
Wow. Ganz cool gemacht. Ich muss gestehen ich hab nicht alles gelesen, werde aber immer wieder ein wenig durchschmökern. Super Aufbau, tolle und für mich absolut stimmige Wahl der Werke. Nur zu empfehlen!
November 14, 2017
This is a reference book and it is quite good. Its graphs, illustrations, and succinct summaries and analyses are interesting and informative. It gives an overview of the big literary movements through history, and then examines/explains the editors’ choices for the most important literary works of each of those movements or time periods. In addition to plot summaries (without spoilers), the editors point out stylistic or thematic significances. As always, reading about a book is no substitute for actually reading the book itself, but I enjoyed revisiting many books I’ve read and taught for years in World Lit (Oedipus the King, The Inferno, Crime and Punishment, Heart of Darkness, Metamorphosis, One Hundred Years of Solitude) along with many other titles I’ve read and/or taught over the years. I also spent some time getting a better feel for some important works of literature I have always heard about but never read. I also appreciated the Further Reading sections at the end of each chapter, which gave shorter analyses of many other books appropriate to that movement or time period, and also included a few short author details. (Another World Lit staple, The Sound and the Fury, was relegated to the Further Reading section of the Breaking With Tradition chapter.)
October 13, 2017
DK Publishing's The Literature Book, which I recieved through Goodreads.com, takes on the enormous task of creating an overview of the history of literature. It does so in a concise manner that keeps the subject matter fresh. It is filled with photographs, charts, biographies, and side notes that illustrate links throughout history. For example how some of the earliest writing such as Greek drama influenced writers as recently as the twentieth century. I feel like I would have learned so much more if my textbooks in school had been like this book. If I have one complaint about this fascinating reference book, it would be that I wish it could have covered even more great literary works and maybe a few more influential popular works.
December 5, 2016
Bu tarz bol görselli DK kitaplarını genelde çok beğenip alır, bir kaç sayfasına bakıp kitaplığıma koyarım. Ama bu kitap çok farklıydı benim için. Gerek okuyup gerekse okumadığım onlarca kitabın detaylı incelemesini okuyarak edebiyatın tarih içerisinde ilerleyişini görmek gayet keyifliydi. Ayrıca okuma listeme ekleyecek bir çok kitap adı daha keşfettim.
December 2, 2025
Finally, the wonderful book has come to an end. I found it engrossing, interesting, amazing in so many ways.
Absolutely, true to its epigraph, Big Ideas Simply Explained. The famous, great classics which might be difficult to grasp in its own writing, are easily, simply explained and arise the interest in the reader to have read them. My sort of a reader, who find classics bit too dark or unfamiliar.
There is a vast selections of books from all over the globe, from every age, from every genre, right almost from the beginning of literature.
The synopses are well explained to hold and give the right amount of details of the books to intrigue and interest the readers.
To me, I've got to learn about so many new perspectives. Learn about religions, beliefs, legends, myths and so many actual realities.
Got to learn about the history of us Humans through so many ideologies and perspectives of all the books, time and age. And how we have evolved throughout all these hundreds of years.
Its like I've read hundred of books in the span of almost 30 days, which is quiet impossible for me. The book never gets boring or tedious, it sparks my interest throughout reading it as every other reference of the book engages in a new way.
Non fiction but contains lots of fiction gets the reader immersed completely.
Absolutely, true to its epigraph, Big Ideas Simply Explained. The famous, great classics which might be difficult to grasp in its own writing, are easily, simply explained and arise the interest in the reader to have read them. My sort of a reader, who find classics bit too dark or unfamiliar.
There is a vast selections of books from all over the globe, from every age, from every genre, right almost from the beginning of literature.
The synopses are well explained to hold and give the right amount of details of the books to intrigue and interest the readers.
To me, I've got to learn about so many new perspectives. Learn about religions, beliefs, legends, myths and so many actual realities.
Got to learn about the history of us Humans through so many ideologies and perspectives of all the books, time and age. And how we have evolved throughout all these hundreds of years.
Its like I've read hundred of books in the span of almost 30 days, which is quiet impossible for me. The book never gets boring or tedious, it sparks my interest throughout reading it as every other reference of the book engages in a new way.
Non fiction but contains lots of fiction gets the reader immersed completely.
April 21, 2022
I absolutely loved this one.
It took me too long to read in my laziness though.
This book tries to give you a general yet also comprehensive idea of human literature since its inception in history to our contemporary era.
The division is done first based on the time period, dividing human history into 7. Next, a few literary works are selected as representatives of each period, usually they tend to vary in both location, genre, and themes, in order to give as complete a picture of the literature of each time period.
The only negative to be said is that the selection still comes out as too western in the end. but maybe that is for a good reason? And if it isn't, we cannot expect too much in this area due to the complexity of the task at hand.
This book made me want to take a chronological approach to reading literature and try to do it in a similar fashion to how this book selects literary works, if not go through the exact same selection.
I recommend this to absolutely everyone. There is nothing like getting an idea about the literary products of humanity as a species over 4000 years and more.
It took me too long to read in my laziness though.
This book tries to give you a general yet also comprehensive idea of human literature since its inception in history to our contemporary era.
The division is done first based on the time period, dividing human history into 7. Next, a few literary works are selected as representatives of each period, usually they tend to vary in both location, genre, and themes, in order to give as complete a picture of the literature of each time period.
The only negative to be said is that the selection still comes out as too western in the end. but maybe that is for a good reason? And if it isn't, we cannot expect too much in this area due to the complexity of the task at hand.
This book made me want to take a chronological approach to reading literature and try to do it in a similar fashion to how this book selects literary works, if not go through the exact same selection.
I recommend this to absolutely everyone. There is nothing like getting an idea about the literary products of humanity as a species over 4000 years and more.
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October 25, 2022Estou lendo esporadicamente e ainda não o terminei, mas, é putaria que esse livro aqui seja menos popular que aquele “1001 para ler antes de morrer”; a meia dúzia de colaboradores daqui fazem as centenas daquele outro ficarem parecendo alunos do ensino médio. A escolha (tanto de livros quanto do que mostrar deles) é extremamente interessante e útil, e eu duvido que você não se surpreenda (no bom sentido) com algumas dessas escolhas; é sucinto e sintético, e dependendo da importância do livro os (poucos) parágrafos oscilam, mas não passam de cinco (BOAS) páginas, diferente da outra lista, que faz o mesmo resumo basicão e chato para todo livro; sem falar no projeto gráfico muito bonito, que torna ainda mais deleitoso lê-lo; enfim, tenho, inclusive, que ficar me segurando para não ficar lendo ele e postergar todas as minhas outras leituras; é fácil cair nessa de ficar lendo sobre livros e não, de fato, ler os livros, todo mundo que gosta de literatura sabe bem isso. Então, cuidado! E, fica a recomendação.
(Até o momento que estou, a literatura a partir de 1900s, não tenho o que reclamar da escolha de livros; é claro que muita coisa fica de fora, mas isso é inato a listas assim. Se ao longo do livro isso se tornar um problema, eu retorno aqui e comento, mas por enquanto está bem bom, na dose certa: Ocidente, Oriente, Contos, Teatro, Romance, Europa, Brasil, Etc.)
(Até o momento que estou, a literatura a partir de 1900s, não tenho o que reclamar da escolha de livros; é claro que muita coisa fica de fora, mas isso é inato a listas assim. Se ao longo do livro isso se tornar um problema, eu retorno aqui e comento, mas por enquanto está bem bom, na dose certa: Ocidente, Oriente, Contos, Teatro, Romance, Europa, Brasil, Etc.)
January 19, 2021
Wunderbare Sammlung verschiedenster literarischer Werke über die Jahrhunderte hinweg. Deckt viele Genres und Zeiten ab und stellt dabei viele Autoren/-innen vor, die ich selbst nicht kannte. Inspiriert für viele neue Bücher.
Ein Stern Abzug für das Fehlen von sämtlichen Graphic Novels (dass man nicht jeden Schriftsteller drin haben kann, den man persönlich wichtig findet, ist eh klar) und die dauerhaft auftauchenden Rechtschreib- und Grammatikfehler. Für ein Buch über Literatur so viele Fehler reinzuhauen, ist übel. Anscheinend hat keiner im deutschen DK-Verlag die Übersetzung richtig Korrektur gelesen, so offensichtlich waren die meisten davon.
Ein Stern Abzug für das Fehlen von sämtlichen Graphic Novels (dass man nicht jeden Schriftsteller drin haben kann, den man persönlich wichtig findet, ist eh klar) und die dauerhaft auftauchenden Rechtschreib- und Grammatikfehler. Für ein Buch über Literatur so viele Fehler reinzuhauen, ist übel. Anscheinend hat keiner im deutschen DK-Verlag die Übersetzung richtig Korrektur gelesen, so offensichtlich waren die meisten davon.
March 11, 2025
خوندن این کتاب شبیه همزیستی با یه آدم برای دو سال متوالی بود. اون هم چه آدمی؟ کسی که تمام کتابهای جالبی که به نظرش اومده بود رو برام توضیح میداد و در بافتار اجتماعی تاریخی بررسیاش میکرد؛ از اولین کتاب تاریخ، افسانهی گیلگمش، تا ادبیات مدرن خودمون.
پ.ن: تموم کردنش باعث شد احساس افتخارآمیز به سرانجام رسوندن رو یادم بیاد.
پ.ن: تموم کردنش باعث شد احساس افتخارآمیز به سرانجام رسوندن رو یادم بیاد.
May 7, 2023
An excellent overview of the history of literature. It contains concise summaries of many pivotal works and doesn't just cover American and European work. It left me wanting to read much more.
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