The World

Ranging from Manhattan to Venice, and Oxford to the Middle East, this portrait of the 20th-century contains Jan Morris's eyewitness accounts of such seminal moments as the first successful ascent of Everest, the fall of the Berlin Wall and the historic Eichmann trial.

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The World is a magnum opus by the finest travel writer in the world. Ranging from Manhattan to Venice, Oxford to the Middle East, and Paris to South Africa, the book provides Jan Morris's eyewitness accounts of such seminal moments as the first successful ascent of Everest, the historic Eichmann trial, the fall of the Berlin Wall, and the handover of Hong Kong. Dividing the volume into five decades, Morris presents history with an unparalleled dramatic flair, creating a riveting portrait of the twentieth century, from the political idealism of the postwar years to its more recent tensions and excesses. As much a celebratory book as a swan song that puts Morris's extraordinary career in a unique historical perspective, The World promises to create an entirely new generation of Jan Morris readers.