Reviews

Blainey, who published A Shorter History of Australia in 1994, now extends his efforts to the world. Another work about Australia, The Tyranny of Distance (1966), betrays his intellectual approach, namely, organizing his explanations around a single factor in this case, the effect of distance and technology upon society. Blainey discusses the various journeys humans have taken over the last four million years, the cultural contact that has resulted, and the factors that might have delayed or speeded up contact. For example, he explores the role of the Sahara Desert in the interplay among the various cultures surrounding that enormous barrier and shows that groups like the Mongols crossed huge spaces and barriers to influence peoples far from their homeland. Blainey also discusses the distances traveled by Islam, Christianity, and secular capitalism and the manner in which cultures located on different continents were and are influenced by such forces. Readers may complain that Blainey treats Africa only in light of its contact with the West, and that is true, but he does this for all cultures. He does pay more attention to Southeast Asia and Oceania than many historians, doubtless because of his Australian roots. Recommended. Clay Williams, Hunter Coll., CUNY Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.