
Rise and Fall
Great empires that shaped the world
by Peter Allen
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Pub Date Apr 01 2025 | Archive Date May 19 2025
Publisher Spotlight | Cicada Books
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Description
Journey back in time to discover the fascinating histories of nine ancient civilizations, including lesser-known empires such as Ayutthaya and Benin.
You may know of the Vikings, the Aztecs and the Mongols - perhaps even Minoa, Mali and Benin. But what about Kamakura, Achaemenid and Ayutthaya? This captivating collection of histories uncovers the secrets behind nine of the world’s greatest empires.
With exciting stories to tell of power-hungry leaders, incredible riches and legendary battles, Rise and Fall reveals why each empire rose to power, what life was like, and what led to its eventual downfall. Not forgetting the legacies - and lessons - they left behind for us.
Detail-packed illustrations by Peter Allen (Atlas of Amazing Architecture, Cicada 2021) bring the stories to life, taking young readers on an immersive voyage of discovery to the ancient world.
Advance Praise
"This visually enticing work takes a boisterous romp through nine civilizations that made farreaching, lasting impacts, managing to pack in amazing amounts of information through judiciously selective text and minutely detailed illustrations. This title will spark energy on world history shelves and has multiple social studies and STEAM connections." - Booklist Starred Review
Featured Reviews

Rise and Fall is my favorite kind of nonfiction book, not overstuffed with narrative, and full of bright colors. The cartoon illustrations are a standout, both silly and fun, but also clearly demonstrating ideas from the text. Each empire is given a few pages from rise to fall, including basic information and simple explanations for their ultimate demise. Of course a history book on this educational level will need to simplify a number of things, but the information is all correct, and I think kids will enjoy the quick stories, and sometimes bloody events.

The illustrations were so detailed, you could just stare at the page and find all the little things happening. I liked that the author used the same criteria for each civilization. Very interesting!

Overview of Empires that shaped the world
This really fulfills its promise to cover the rise to the fall of each covered group. I appreciate that it centered around empires that shaped the world. It really drives home the domino effect that can be made to benefit or be a downfall for many beyond themselves. It also includes a great glossary for a convenient reference point
It opened my eyes up to civilizations I haven’t even heard of. Plenty of awareness to be had all around.
The illustrations were colorful, set the scene of each specific civilization without being overly graphic for the time period. It is such a visually appealing book.
This book would be a wonderful gift for the little history lover in your life or a history centered career person with a child/children. I could also see this incorporated into different Social Studies units in classrooms.
I received a copy of this book from Peter Allen. I am voluntarily leaving a review. All opinions are my own.

Such a wonderful introduction to 9 different kingdoms from around the world! I hadn't even heard of some of these, but I really enjoyed learning about them. There wasn't space for a lot of detail in such a short book, but there was information about history, religion, architecture, and other interesting aspects of their lives.
My favorite thing was the pictures. They were on a 2-page spread and there were separate action sets all the way around. What makes the pictures so great is that they're full of action, and I imagined every set telling a story.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me read this

Informative, bright, and engaging! Rise and Fall is a fascinating look at the many empires who have come to and fallen from power over the many centuries. The blend of historical information and fun accompanying art really sets the scene for a child's imagination; I can absolutely imagine a kid poring over this for hours.
Thank you to NetGalley and the author for providing me with a free eARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is a great nonfiction informative text for curious elementary school readers. It offers a lot visually to explore. The empires covered include places from around the world, ordered chronologically from when they began and chosen for their influence on the society. Empires in Europe, Africa, Asia and North America are included. Details about how they came to be, their rulers, their art, architecture, religion, and society are included. There were a few I was not previously familiar with, so it was nice to learn something new. There are some depictions and descriptions of brutality, including human sacrifice, war, colonization, and slavery. The images are not overly graphic and they are mentioned as delicately as possible considering the reality they depict.
I think inquisitive young readers will enjoy learning these facts and exploring the photos. The page layout doesn't lend itself to an easy read aloud and it was at times hard to read to myself. Some of the images felt repetitive despite the differences in the cultures represented.

"Rise and Fall" is about empires that shaped the world from the Minoan civilization to Kingdom of Ayatthva. The book spans from 2200 BC to 1767 AD. Multipage spreads about the civilization explain their history, society, art, religion, and decline. Full of illustrations with lots of details. For grades 6th - 8th
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