“World History for Dummies” by Peter Haugen

Available on Amazon and at your local book store.

I wasn’t planning to write anything on this book but I read it as part of my Goodreads 2013 reading challenge and since I blogged about every other book thus far I thought, why the hell not. This one was a re-read. I loved World History for Dummies the first time I read it and enjoyed my re-read too.

Now, the popular question: WHY read a book called World History for Dummies??

The answer: I was craving history. I wanted a quick run-down of history. I wanted to know what happened without it being boring and stuffy. I wanted it all to be fun. (Textbooks tend not to be fun.)

It’s not because I am unfamiliar with world history that I decided to read this book. It’s because I wanted a refresher without being bogged down. I wanted to read a book that would leave me wanting to know more, not turn me off the subject. World History for Dummies did that. It is written for the everyday girl who has a passing interest in history. Like, she woke up one morning and said to herself, “I want to learn world history today. What should I read?”

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“The Dragon Reborn” by Robert Jordan

Paperback edition cover of The Dragon Reborn (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The first thing that jumped out at me in this installment of the Wheel of Times series is that Rand is no longer the leading voice. He is still the protagonist of the story, however, the story is told from the perspective of other characters—mainly Perrin, Egwene, and Mat. Though this book begins with the original group split up and at different parts of the land, they are all pulled to the same place; similar to book two, The Great Hunt.

Quick summary:

In one spot—a valley in the Mountains of Mist—is Moiraine, Lan, Perrin, Loial, Min, and Rand. Feeling a bit trapped and thinking that he is a threat to his friends, Rand runs off. When she learns of this, Moiraine sends Min to Tar Valon to inform the Amyrlin Seat. The Shienaran army she sends to Jehannah to await her instructions (I think Jordan did this to get them out the way, for now). Meanwhile she, Lan, Perrin, and Loial pursue Rand, who is heading for Tear. Rand is such a strong ta’veren, a person who is strongly connected to the Wheel of Time, that he leaves evidence of his presence in his wake. There are villages where nearly everyone gets married and others that are destroyed. Along the way, Perrin learns that he can enter Tel’aran’rhiod, the dream world, and he meets a pretty but annoying girl called Faile (which means falcon), who attaches herself to the group.