A Little History of Art

"Brief informed surveys of complicated subjects are always helpful so I was pleased to see a new book in the Yale University Press Little Histories series: art critic Charlotte Mullins taking on 100,000 years of art history in A Little History of Art . Theoretically aimed at young adults, these books are great for older adults too. Along similar lines, Australian historian and 20th century Russia specialist Sheila Fitzpatrick has published The Shortest History of the Soviet Union, covering its seven-decade, complex history in just 230 pages (with comfortable spacing and quite a few illustrations). It’s part of ‘The Shortest History of…’series, which also had a highly recommended short history of China by Linda Jaivin last year."