An attractively illustrated account of the history of Mesopotamia from the prehistoric times to the rise of Babylon, up to 1500 B.C. Drawing on archaeology and ancient texts, [Julian Reade] describes the central position of Mesopotamia in early Western civilization. It was one of the leading centers of literacy in the world, and the development of agriculture, mathematics, and cities is often traced to this Fertile Crescent. Different cultures lived and clashed in the region, in cycles of 'alternating consolidation and disintegration.'
-- Paula F. Rohrlick Kliatt