Rating: 
Summary: Great for young children, good for older students too!
Review: I bought the Story of the World so I could teach history to my kids--fourth grade, second grade, and kindergarten. It has been a great success. The book is wonderfully well written for reading aloud, and never assumes that young children can't learn details. It never "talks down" to its audience, and it provides plenty of great historical information. Even my kindergarten student is learning history that I never learned! Although the book is designed primarily for young students and for reading aloud (it is conversational in style), my fourth grader also reads it and then reads other library books to supplement it. He loves it. Much better than Hillyer (which is dated and fragmentary, IMHO) or any textbook I have seen, and I've looked at most of the history resources out there. Hands down, the best.
Rating:
Summary: WE LOVE THESE BOOKS!
Review: I hate to admit this, but when I was a kid, I never liked studying history. I homeschool my second grader, and since August, we have read Story of the World, Vol. I, II and are now half way through the third volume. HISTORY IS MY SONS FAVORITE SUBJECT! He loves listening to the stories every day and I am catching up on things I should have learned years ago. The activity guides that you buy separately are wonderful. Each chapter has questions for discussion, maps and coloring pages, plus tons of projects to do. They even have lists of books you can find at the library in case you want to read more about a subject. I just can not say enough good things about the Story of the World series. We are anxious for the fourth volume to arrive.
Rating: 
Summary: I am returning my copy of this book
Review: I have been assisting homeschoolers for over 20 years. I was looking forward to seeing a copy of this book. However, the more I read through it - the more I do not like it. This book is simply the author's "view" of history - not a complete history for children. The stories throughout the book are a bit much and unrealistic. The book needs much more factual information for me to use it with my children, so I will be returning my copy and staying with the time-tested classics.
Rating:
Summary: What a horrible book!
Review: I just received my copy of 'The Story of the World...' Vol. 1. I bought it based on the raving reviews I read here. Now, I'm left wondering: Who did Susan Wise Bauer pay to write these ecstatic reviews?While the book covers a wide range of topics, from ancient China to ancient Sumer, the actual information related is sparse. There is no depth to it, as one would expect from a person who claims to champion substantive learning. It is more trivia than trivium. One of the most disappointing things was the author's 'history' of the Jews (and Christianity), which is not a history, but a modern-day Christian midrash (fanciful interpretive retelling). Did you know, for example, that Terah, the father of Abraham, left Ur because he was afraid that it was going to be attacked? It doesn't say that in my copy of the Bible. Maybe the author was reading a copy of the Samaritan Torah. Did you know that the Romans killed Jesus because he was so popular they were afraid the Jews were going to make him their king? Perhaps this was gleaned from one of the Gnostic Gospels. Or, perhaps the author misread John 11:48--which, in its own anti-Semitic way, claims that the Jewish leadership arranged for Jesus to be killed because they were afraid Jesus would take away their power. Confusing the Jewish leadership with the Romans is a big mistake, all historicity of this claim asside. Finally, some important æsthetic notes: the typesetting of the book is rotten--so bad, it's difficult to read. It was obviously put together by someone who had no idea how to make a book. Try reading a poorly typeset book for more than a few minutes, and you'll see what I mean. To add to this, the book reads like you're listening to a patronising adult speaking to a child, which makes it just that much more difficult to bear. The language is stilted and forced, and every third sentence ends with an exclamation point! This is a far cry from a classical history for a classical child. If you want a good classical history to homeschool your child, help them through Livy, or Josephus. Don't waste your money on this book!!!
Rating:
Summary: Worth the money
Review: I purchased this book to read to my speech delayed 4 year old hoping only to expose her to something more educational than childrens picture books evey once and a while. I figured I would have to force her to listen to Story of the World, and then reward her with a Sesame Street after, but that is not he case. SHE brings ME the book and is eager to talk about what we read afterward, which is helping her expressive language skills (something we have been working on for two years). There are few pictures, so there is not much for her to look at, so she just cuddles with me on the couch - its wonderful time spent together. Don't underestimate how much your young child car understand - I think she is learning a lot.
Rating:
Summary: Shes did it again! Another winner!
Review: I review curriculum all the time, sometimes for schooling other times for co-op's and group activities. For many of us on the adventure in home schooling we use her "Well Trained Mind" as a bible in the instruction of our daily life. This is a keeper! When we started we used "A World of Learning Adventure" because too many of use needed a more scripted aproach to be able and do "The Well Trained Mind". She heard our pleas and the result was a wonderful story! Don't pass up the activity book that goes with this brilliant master piece, your child will live for the activities. Even if your not a home schooler, what a bedtime story book this could be for you and your child to share the learning together! I'd say 4 year olds to teens could enjoy this as an out loud read together. Want to "KNOW" that your child is getting a good education even if "YOU" can't afford to home school or pay for private! Here's a good start! On with the Adventure!
Rating: 
Summary: Sorely disappointed
Review: I simply wanted to agree with Mr. Griffin's review below. The emphasis is also way too much on Biblical, canonical history with only minimal multicultural links. Does not follow her other books' philosophical principles. Editing indifferent. Looks like an attempt (successful) to get a product out there for a seller's market. Better books exist, even in single volume.
Rating:
Summary: A wonderful starting point
Review: I used this book for my daughter in 1st and part of 2nd grade and we both learned so much from it. It took us more than a school year to get through the book because we used it as a starting point as recommended. We didn't stop at reading the chapter in the book, but read additional books to gain more knowledge, understanding, and viewpoints. I don't think this book was written to tell you everything you need to know about history, but to introduce topics in an interesting way so that you want to learn more. The book did this for both my daughter and me. I'm looking forward to using it with my son in a couple of years.
Rating: 
Summary: Interesting and engaging!
Review: I was unsure at first how I would like the audiobooks since the cornerstone of our education at home is reading aloud. I was pleasantly surprised, however, at how entranced my oldest child, the fidgety one, became as she listened. I didn't even ask her to listen, she joined me in the kitchen as I was reviewing the audiobooks, and this speaks mountains about the product. The audio CDs are individually stored in plastic slide-in sleeves, which are packed in a durable plastic binder-type case. The discs are well-labeled with the chapter number and title. The track listing on the CDs don't match with the chapter numbers, which can be confusing; for example, chapter 1 is covered on tracks 4, 5 and 6 of disc 1. The insert, however, has a complete listing of the chapters and track numbers to facilitate programming. The insert also contains two indexes which are extrememly helpful. The first lists the exact location you can find the chapters about individuals (example: the lesson on Alexander the Great is on CD 4, tracks 8-10.) The second index is a quick reference of stories (example: the story of Romulus and Remus is found on CD 4, track 14.) The audiobooks feature an engaging and energizing musical score as a break between chapters. Listening to the narrator is like having a professional storyteller in your home. The narrator speaks with a natural, even tone. The audiobook version of SOTW is pleasant enough for daily use and is interesting enough not to drive you crazy on a long drive.
Rating:
Summary: The absolute BEST History of the World for Kids
Review: I went through another very popular world history book for history last year, and I just wasn't satisfied. I was about ready to write my own when this book came along. There was now no need for me to write my own book. The best book has already been written. It is readable, engaging, and stimulates your kids to want to know more. They will end up loving history, and YOU will learn it too! I especially like how she will tell a story about a hypothetical child in the culture of that time. My kids could really relate to it. She also tells fictional stories that were popular during this time like Anansi the Spider or Gilgamesh. This spurred us on to go to the library to find more literature on these stories. It went very nicely with the Usborne Internet Linked Encyclopedia of World History. We would read Story of the World. Then, we would go to the corresponding pages in the Usborne book. SOTW was my "spine" that led to other books! Excellent in every way. It deserves more than 5 stars, and I can't wait until Volume 2 comes out!
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