A review by brianam
The Story of Mankind by Hendrik Willem van Loon

2.0

It’s a 100-year-old history book, so it’s out of date, both in the sense of not knowing recent discoveries and in the sense of including some language and judgements that range from cringy to offensive. It’s also written as if speaking to his grandchildren, which is a tone some people apparently find charming but seems to me just condescending and annoying.

If it were accurate, you’d at least learn something, and if it were a fun read, you’d forgive its age, but it’s neither.