The ancient world : extraordinary people in extraordinary societies

This work combines new material with content from Salem Press's Encyclopedia of the Ancient World, edited by Thomas J. Sienkewicz (CH, May'02, 39-4957). Editor Shalley-Jensen ranges from prehistory through approximately 700 CE by region (all labeled ancient): the Near East, India, the Far East, Rome, Africa, Central Asia, Oceania, Europe and the British Isles, the Americas, Egypt and Alexandria, and Greece. Each section includes overviews (brief general essays) that focus on social history and short, A-Z entries on people, places, and events. Appendixes include a glossary, a time line, a chronology of people and events, and a general bibliography. Entries provide basic information but tend to gloss over complexities. Many oddities of arrangement and emphasis occur, some due to a rigid geographic arrangement that separates related topics. For example, the Etruscans and the Byzantine Empire are treated under ancient Europe and are thus widely separated from Rome and Greece; Alexandria, a largely Greek city, is grouped with Egypt. Overviews of Rome begin with the decline and fall; general accounts of the Republic and Principate can be found only in A-Z entries. Primary sources rarely appear: the entry on Adrianople makes no mention of Ammianus, that on Camillus none of Livy or Plutarch, and that for Marcus Aurelius neglects his correspondence with Fronto. Only overview articles include bibliographies; the contributors' signed entries surprisingly do not. Bibliographies are uneven; many refer primarily to encyclopedia articles and popular works, and some items are dated. The work's chief virtue is the range of ancient civilizations covered, although too little is done to compare them or address relations among them. There are numerous instances of words run together, occasional omissions of words or letters, and glaring typos (e.g., Aenid for Aeneid, Padmasamsha for Padmasambhava). The Ancient World ends up being an unsophisticated work that employs too rigid a schema and fails mainly in trying to do too many things and does none well. Summing Up: Optional. General readers. --Fred W. Jenkins, University of Dayton

Covering "the world from prehistory through 700 CE," this four-volume set from Shally-Jensen, who has edited many of Salem's "Careers" and "Defining Documents" series, examines historical people, places, and events. Accurate, enlightening, and well organized, it combines material from the Encyclopedia of the Ancient World (2002) with new articles for a total of 1,140 entries. A pronunciation guide and a list of the 23 maps are provided. The set's greatest strength is its wide scope, spanning the Near East, India, the Far East, Rome, Africa, Central Asia, Oceania, Europe and the British Isles, the Americas, Egypt and Alexandria, and Greece. Divided by location, the sections each begin with overviews of themes specific to the region, such as food, religion, government, architecture, art, literature and myth, and warfare. For each theme, there are "Interesting Facts," a bibliography, and works cited. Alphabetically listed entries follow. Subjects include Aesop, Alexander the Great, Confucius, Solomon, and Spartacus. Black-and-white images accompany several of the entries. The set concludes with a chronological listing of all entries and a time line of the most significant events along with calendrical systems information. VERDICT High school and undergraduate students of ancient world history will find this selection helpful.—Jason L. Steagall, Gateway Technical Coll. Lib., Elkhorn, WI