Short History of the World (Summarized Edition)
Enriched edition. From cosmic origins to modern upheavals: a lucid big history blending geology, evolution, archaeology, and a global perspectiveBy H. G. Wells
Length3h 22m
About this audiobook
H. G. Wells' Short History of The World compresses the human saga into a lucid arc from cosmic origins and the emergence of life to the upheavals of the twentieth century. A distillation of his Outline of History, it fuses geology, evolution, archaeology, and political narrative in brisk, didactic prose that alternates synoptic sweep with emblematic scenes. Composed in the shadow of the First World War, it urges a rational, global perspective against parochial chronicles. Though some claims reflect its early‑twentieth‑century horizon, the book remains a pioneering, accessible experiment in writing world history for general readers. Wells, trained in biology under T. H. Huxley and renowned as a novelist and public intellectual, brought scientific habits of synthesis to history. His Fabian internationalism and experience of war and rapid technological change fueled a didactic hope: that a shared, secular narrative could educate citizens and temper future conflict. Readers seeking a coherent, concise map of the past will value this survey. Read with awareness of period assumptions, it rewards with clarity and scope—an entry to world history and a touchstone in the history of ideas.
Quickie Classics summarizes timeless works with precision, preserving the author's voice and keeping the prose clear, fast, and readable—distilled, never diluted. Enriched Edition extras: Introduction · Synopsis · Historical Context · Author Biography · Brief Analysis · 4 Reflection Q&As · Editorial Footnotes.
Audiobook details
Rating★★★★ 4.0 (5.5K)
Includes Goodreads, Amazon, LibraryThing, StoryGraph
GenreHistory
Length3 hrs 22 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateJan 10, 2026
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1Introduction
2Introduction
3Synopsis
4Historical Context
5Author Biography
Show all chaptersShow less
6H. G. Wells' Short History of The World (pt. 1)
7H. G. Wells' Short History of The World (pt. 2)
8Analysis
9Reflection
Die Riesen kommen!H. G. Wells9h 48m3.6 (15.9K)$1 · $0.00
Der LuftkriegH. G. Wells12h 54m3.6 (9.4K)$1 · $0.00
INTERGALACTIC ENTERPRISE: 60+ Space Sci-Fi Novels in One EditionH. G. Wells, Percy Greg, Jules Verne, David Lindsay, Edward Everett Hale, H. Beam Piper, Philip K. Dick, E. E. Smith, Murray Leinster, Fritz Leiber, Richard Stockham, Irving E. Cox, Frederik Pohl, Edwin Lester Arnold, John Jacob Astor, Gustavus W. Pope310h 58m$0.99 · $0.00
The Greatest Science Fiction Classics of H. G. Wells (Unabridged) (Annotated)H. G. Wells98h 56m4.4 (139)$2 · $0.00
Greatest Science Fiction Classics of H. G. Wells (Annotated)H. G. Wells98h 56m$2 · $0.00
Men Like Gods (Annotated)H. G. Wells11h 7m4.3 (153)$2 · $0.00
Tono-Bungay (Annotated)H. G. Wells17h 8m3.9 (9.2K)$2 · $0.00
An Englishman Looks at the World (Annotated)H. G. Wells12h 43m$2 · $0.00
Die Insel des Dr. Moreau (Kommentiert)H. G. Wells, Felix Paul Greve6h 16m4.0 (175)$1 · $0.00
First and Last Things - A Confession of Faith and Rule of Life (Annotated)H. G. Wells7h 45m$2 · $0.00
Select Conversations With An Uncle & 2 Other Reminiscences (The original 1895 edition) (Annotated)H. G. Wells3h 22m3.3 (127)$2 · $0.00
The War of The Worlds - A Science Fiction Classic (Complete Edition) (Annotated)H. G. Wells8h 27m$2 · $0.00
The Wheels of Chance (Complete Edition) (Annotated)H. G. Wells8h 7m$2 · $0.00
The Door in the Wall and Other Stories (Annotated)H. G. Wells6h 7m$2 · $0.00
THE PORTAL OF TIME: Sci-Fi Time Travel Collection (Annotated)H. G. Wells, Ayn Rand, Mark Twain, H. Beam Piper, Philip K. Dick, Fritz Leiber, Andre Norton, Lester Del Rey, August Derleth, Frederik Pohl53h 17m$2 · $0.00
La guerra de los mundos (Anotado)H. G. Wells8h 9m4.3 (35)$1.99 · $0.00
Die Zeitmaschine (Kommentiert)H. G. Wells5h 40m$1.50 · $0.00
The Dream (Annotated)H. G. Wells10h 18m$2 · $0.00
H. G. Wells: Collected Works (Annotated)H. G. Wells427h 28m4.5 (1.3K)$2 · $0.00
Collected Novels, Short Stories, Essays and Articles (Annotated)H. G. Wells431h 30m4.6 (119)$2 · $0.00
The Gulag Archipelago Volume 3Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn21h 56m4.7 (8.9K)$46 · $0.00
Pearl of Great PriceJoseph Smith3h 8m4.7 (7.2K)$1.20 · $0.00
The Redeemer’s ReturnArthur W. Pink13h 18m4.7 (589)$20
The Happiest Man on EarthEddie Jaku3h 48m4.6 (178K)$7 · $0.00
MotherlandJulia Ioffe17h 52m4.7 (2.5K)$40 · $0.00
Where Cowards Go to DieBenjamin Sledge8h 42m4.7 (351)$20 · $0.00
The Bark Canoes and Skin Boats of North America (Annotated)Howard Irving Chapelle, Tappan Adney13h 9m4.8 (150)$0.99 · $0.00
RevolutionariesSanjeev Sanyal11h 23m4.6 (2.6K)$29 · $0.00
We Crossed a Bridge and It TrembledWendy Pearlman6h4.6 (5.2K)$24 · $0.00
Unbroken Bonds of BattleJohnny Joey Jones8h 31m4.6 (2.6K)$8 · $0.00
The Daughter of AuschwitzTova Friedman, Malcolm Brabant7h 54m4.6 (16.7K)$26 · $0.00
Lily's PromiseLily Ebert, Dov Forman8h 54m4.6 (16.1K)$29 · $0.00
Saving My EnemyBob Welch9h 11m4.6 (2.3K)$20
On Democracies and Death CultsDouglas Murray10h 38m4.6 (6.5K)$29 · $0.00
Across the RiverKent Babb11h 40m4.6 (927)$29 · $0.00
The Red Record (Annotated)Ida B. Wells-Barnett5h 19m4.8 (102)$0.99 · $0.00
Balcony Over Jerusalem: A Middle East Memoir - Israel, Palestine and BeyondJohn Lyons12h 37m4.6 (1.4K)$33 · $0.00
The Fire Next TimeJames Baldwin2h 25m4.6 (159.1K)$15
EnduranceAlfred Lansing6h 1m4.6 (40.8K)$20
BeyondStephen Walker15h 39m4.6 (3.2K)$33 · $0.00
You may also like
The Weather MachineAndrew Blum4h 50m3.8 (1.8K)$20 · $0.00
A Short History of the WorldH. G. Wells13h 50m3.9 (7.2K)$1.20 · $0.00
A Walk Around the BlockSpike Carlsen9h 12m3.9 (1.7K)$29 · $0.00
Experiments with Alternate Currents of High Potential and High Frequency (Annotated)Nikola Tesla6h 4m4.3 (641)$2 · $0.00
The Rational OptimistMatt Ridley13h 38m4.0 (31.5K)$8 · $0.00
A Season on the WindKenn Kaufman8h 40m4.2 (963)$20
The Sediments Of TimeMeave Leakey, Samira Leakey14h 35m4.2 (838)$33 · $0.00
An Appeal to the WorldDalai Lama, Franz Alt1h 24m4.3 (1.4K)$9 · $0.00
Experiments and Observations on Electricity Made at Philadelphia in AmericaBenjamin Franklin3h 29m4.2 (25)$1 · $0.00
Path to ZeroTucker Perkins4h 33m3.5 (13)$20
You Are HereThomas M. Kostigen5h 31m3.8 (255)$24 · $0.00
Russia in 1916Stephen Graham3h 7m$2 · $0.00
The Seat of EmpireCharles Carleton Coffin5h 1m4.3 (11)$2 · $0.00
The Ghost of the MountainsKulbhushansingh Suryawanshi10h 9m$30
Canada: The Foundations of Its FutureStephen Butler Leacock5h 34m$1 · $0.00
Taiwan Art & CivilisationHsiu-Huei Wang2h 7m$18 · $0.00
Wild FictionsAmitav Ghosh19h4.1 (21)$35
Spanish America (Vol. 1&2)C. Reginald Enock15h 55m$1 · $0.00
Winslow HomerWilliam R. Cross14h 49m4.3 (203)$23 · $0.00
Englisch lernen Audio - Königliches EnglischSpotlight Verlag1h 2m4.6 (18)$12