This is the fourth Hourly History I have read, and while the others were excellent overviews of history one could read in an hour, this one pales in comparison. Beginning the book with modern-day political comments seemed out-of-place in a book with a focus on the Aztecs, and I was thankful that it only lasted a couple pages and then stopped. To successfully create a book of this nature, one must be orderly in the layout of topics. This worked in other HH books, but for some reason the same format was not followed in The Aztecs. The arrangement made little sense, resulting in a confusing and choppy read. Worse, the author would get started and present a sentence or two and then refer the reader to another book if more knowledge was desired. It would have been much better to simply write the book (like the other Hourly History books) and have an Appendix listed in the back. The author could have placed links in the text to jump to the appropriate book the an appendix if it was thought the reader would not be able to link the proper book with the text. Instead, assorted books and authors pepper the pages instead of simply writing the historical overview and allowing each reader to research whatever interested them. Basically, too many references in the text. Overall, confusing historical read lacking the usually great organization other Hourly History books possess. Two stars.

Obviously, this book is not meant to be an exhaustive study of the Aztecs--an impossible task given the limited page count. It is a brief overview, which is exactly what I want in this sort of a book. I'll start with the good: there is some decent information in this book and I'd (with perhaps some reservation) say it is worth the read if one is not all that familiar with Aztec history beyond the conquest by Cortez. It's a place to start. However (and now for the bad), there are some very distracting features in this book: first, the almost psycho-babble intro attempting to make a social connection to the present and to make excuses for or justify Aztec practices (they need none; they did not share our time, space, or value system) is a waste of time (at least if your intent is to read history). Luckily that only lasts a few pages. Secondly, the writing is pretty disjointed and does not flow well--although your brain will adapt after a few pages, it is hard at times to keep track with all the jumping around. To be fair, it is a short book and one would expect a "whirlwind" approach to get everything in there. Thirdly, and worst of all in my opinion, is the CONSTANT interruption of the narrative with the inclusion of references to other books. PLEASE!!! Footnotes or bibliography replacement of the adolescent "according to" in-line references would make reading this book a hundredfold more smooth, readable, and pleasant. It is not necessary to constantly insert "brain-stops" every other sentence. Anyway, there is some interesting material within if you can get past the above annoyances. It would also have been nice to keep the material in a more strict chronological order, although it is loosely ordered. The book does, however, introduce the topic and some talking points that can be further researched if it sparks your curiosity. One thing I did find interesting is the suggestion by some (referenced) historians that the Aztec originated as far north as the Kanab, Utah area before journeying south. That will likely result in some further research on my part... so something good DID come out of the book for me, even with the annoyances. :-)

In text citations are plentiful and beyond annoying. Another high school book report by a terrible author. Free is too steep a price for this trash. The author starts almost every paragraph by stating what you will learn in this book, followed by in text citations and then anecdotal "evidence" and some story that you know is conjecture. I'm so sad that I got all his free books because once I get a book I am committed to finishing it. 3 more trash "histories" to go.

There were more than a few things I didn't like about this book; which is too bad as they normally have a good product that I enjoy reading. The introduction seemed to last forever and turned into a rambling essay on not judging the Aztecs by todays standards with almost a 60's feel to the writing. I agree with that idea and have voiced the same sentiment in some of my reviews but this felt over the top. I thought I heard the song "Give Peace a Chance" in the background of my mind for the first 28% of the book. There is some good information in this book but there were too many distractions from the main subject, the writing did not flow and it all felt disjointed. I am going to chalk this one up as a "one off" lax moment as I have and do enjoy the bulk of the HH books. My suggestion-pass on this book and find one of the other short history books available for kindle.

Not my favorite of the otherwise exceptional 'hourly history' series. The first quarter is spent lecturing us on how to judge this culture of human sacrifice. I'd just completed The Mayans, so I found that completely unnecessary. Than came the endless references to sources. I got so distracted, I started & finished a complete novel in less time than it took to read what I had started. However when I picked it back up today, the pace was easier & the chronology was easy to follow. The Aztecs were an amazing culture - barbaric but pragmatic. I particular like the nugget you will find on the Mexican flag. Their "Military Religious Complex" may very well outlive our "Military Industrial Complex". Sorry, but this one was more work than pleasure to read, but the last third still makes this a good Aztec refresher worthwhile & increased the rating by a couple stars. Even though I have a fairly negative review of this particular book, I highly recommend these One Hour History series.. Get them. Read them when you can.

Simply amazing that this quantity of such a complex, relatively unknown and misunderstood history has been so expertly condensed! This certainly is your go-to overview of the Aztecs... To the potential reader: you are definitely going to need some experience in ancient/modern Mexican Language (Name/Place) pronunciations, and a basic awareness of the overlapping/intertwining of Mexican/Spanish/Native American History to sail through this one -- but it is well worth it. As someone who has studied the Mayans in light of this past century's invaluable discoveries, including the advances in interpreting the language of the stellae, leading to our much greater understanding of their history and culture (though admittedly at my temporary neglect of the Aztecs), I am extremely pleased to have chosen this book as my new "diving board"! I look forward to reading other books in this series, at the appropriate times for my studies, and definitely recommend others do likewise. Either as an introduction, a synopsis or a refresher: I don't think you can go wrong with Hourly History. As a footnote, I must personally add that I noticed less than a handful of minor editing needs (only pertaining to articles, conjunctions, complex sentence structure, and the like)... this in itself is also quite amazing for a free e-book. Buy Now: you have a lot to learn!

The book that I read was actually titled "Aztec Civilization: A History From Beginning to End," but from the cover, it looks as though it was the same book. The author presented the information in a way that held my interest for most of the book. However, it seems as though the vast majority of the book was spent on analysis and opinions of the Aztec philosophy on life and the concepts of their culture. I found myself getting just a bit bored with that part of it by the end of the book. As I said, the author's writing was good, but I expected to read a little more about their temples, other architectural accomplishments and excavated items that came from their guilds. I realize that the Spanish conquistadors caused a lot of the Aztecs' manuscripts to be destroyed and also a change to their culture, but I still expected to read a little bit more about the conquering and the changes that came about because of it. All of these things were barely touched upon.

This book gave a great overview of the Aztec civilization from beginning to end. It is however, an overview. The author has referenced many other authors with respect to their specific knowledge of Aztec history. If you want a deeper understanding of their culture you will need to read the books and papers the author recommends. With that in mind I found the book hard to put down. It is and easy read for such a complex topic. If you like this book you should check out the author's book on Mayan culture as well.

This one is not up to the usual Hourly History standard. The first 25% or so is purely an extended introduction. There is an annoying habit of 'speaking' to the reader. Then there's all those constant references to other works (usually with long titles!) - a glossary at the end would have been a better option. One can appreciate the depth of research to compile the information but the presentation lacks fluidity and even the chronology jumps around. STILL - there's some interesting info to glean....

This book wasn't my all time favorite Hourly History book but I still enjoyed reading about the Aztec Empire. I've always been very interested in the Aztecs. I just love their complexity as an empire and all the mystery that still surrounds them. Just like with the Mayan civilization a lot about the Aztecs has been lost to history, which is such a shame. Who knows what else we could've found out about them. This was a good and solid read but I just felt there was something more missing. I can't quite put my finger on it but that's how I felt. Aside from all that it was still interesting and enjoyable to me.

This is the fourth Hourly History I have read, and while the others were excellent overviews of history one could read in an hour, this one pales in comparison. Beginning the book with modern-day political comments seemed out-of-place in a book with a focus on the Aztecs, and I was thankful that it only lasted a couple pages and then stopped. To successfully create a book of this nature, one must be orderly in the layout of topics. This worked in other HH books, but for some reason the same format was not followed in The Aztecs. The arrangement made little sense, resulting in a confusing and choppy read. Worse, the author would get started and present a sentence or two and then refer the reader to another book if more knowledge was desired. It would have been much better to simply write the book (like the other Hourly History books) and have an Appendix listed in the back. The author could have placed links in the text to jump to the appropriate book the an appendix if it was thought the reader would not be able to link the proper book with the text. Instead, assorted books and authors pepper the pages instead of simply writing the historical overview and allowing each reader to research whatever interested them. Basically, too many references in the text. Overall, confusing historical read lacking the usually great organization other Hourly History books possess. Two stars.

Obviously, this book is not meant to be an exhaustive study of the Aztecs--an impossible task given the limited page count. It is a brief overview, which is exactly what I want in this sort of a book. I'll start with the good: there is some decent information in this book and I'd (with perhaps some reservation) say it is worth the read if one is not all that familiar with Aztec history beyond the conquest by Cortez. It's a place to start. However (and now for the bad), there are some very distracting features in this book: first, the almost psycho-babble intro attempting to make a social connection to the present and to make excuses for or justify Aztec practices (they need none; they did not share our time, space, or value system) is a waste of time (at least if your intent is to read history). Luckily that only lasts a few pages. Secondly, the writing is pretty disjointed and does not flow well--although your brain will adapt after a few pages, it is hard at times to keep track with all the jumping around. To be fair, it is a short book and one would expect a "whirlwind" approach to get everything in there. Thirdly, and worst of all in my opinion, is the CONSTANT interruption of the narrative with the inclusion of references to other books. PLEASE!!! Footnotes or bibliography replacement of the adolescent "according to" in-line references would make reading this book a hundredfold more smooth, readable, and pleasant. It is not necessary to constantly insert "brain-stops" every other sentence. Anyway, there is some interesting material within if you can get past the above annoyances. It would also have been nice to keep the material in a more strict chronological order, although it is loosely ordered. The book does, however, introduce the topic and some talking points that can be further researched if it sparks your curiosity. One thing I did find interesting is the suggestion by some (referenced) historians that the Aztec originated as far north as the Kanab, Utah area before journeying south. That will likely result in some further research on my part... so something good DID come out of the book for me, even with the annoyances. :-)

In text citations are plentiful and beyond annoying. Another high school book report by a terrible author. Free is too steep a price for this trash. The author starts almost every paragraph by stating what you will learn in this book, followed by in text citations and then anecdotal "evidence" and some story that you know is conjecture. I'm so sad that I got all his free books because once I get a book I am committed to finishing it. 3 more trash "histories" to go.

There were more than a few things I didn't like about this book; which is too bad as they normally have a good product that I enjoy reading. The introduction seemed to last forever and turned into a rambling essay on not judging the Aztecs by todays standards with almost a 60's feel to the writing. I agree with that idea and have voiced the same sentiment in some of my reviews but this felt over the top. I thought I heard the song "Give Peace a Chance" in the background of my mind for the first 28% of the book. There is some good information in this book but there were too many distractions from the main subject, the writing did not flow and it all felt disjointed. I am going to chalk this one up as a "one off" lax moment as I have and do enjoy the bulk of the HH books. My suggestion-pass on this book and find one of the other short history books available for kindle.

Not my favorite of the otherwise exceptional 'hourly history' series. The first quarter is spent lecturing us on how to judge this culture of human sacrifice. I'd just completed The Mayans, so I found that completely unnecessary. Than came the endless references to sources. I got so distracted, I started & finished a complete novel in less time than it took to read what I had started. However when I picked it back up today, the pace was easier & the chronology was easy to follow. The Aztecs were an amazing culture - barbaric but pragmatic. I particular like the nugget you will find on the Mexican flag. Their "Military Religious Complex" may very well outlive our "Military Industrial Complex". Sorry, but this one was more work than pleasure to read, but the last third still makes this a good Aztec refresher worthwhile & increased the rating by a couple stars. Even though I have a fairly negative review of this particular book, I highly recommend these One Hour History series.. Get them. Read them when you can.

Simply amazing that this quantity of such a complex, relatively unknown and misunderstood history has been so expertly condensed! This certainly is your go-to overview of the Aztecs... To the potential reader: you are definitely going to need some experience in ancient/modern Mexican Language (Name/Place) pronunciations, and a basic awareness of the overlapping/intertwining of Mexican/Spanish/Native American History to sail through this one -- but it is well worth it. As someone who has studied the Mayans in light of this past century's invaluable discoveries, including the advances in interpreting the language of the stellae, leading to our much greater understanding of their history and culture (though admittedly at my temporary neglect of the Aztecs), I am extremely pleased to have chosen this book as my new "diving board"! I look forward to reading other books in this series, at the appropriate times for my studies, and definitely recommend others do likewise. Either as an introduction, a synopsis or a refresher: I don't think you can go wrong with Hourly History. As a footnote, I must personally add that I noticed less than a handful of minor editing needs (only pertaining to articles, conjunctions, complex sentence structure, and the like)... this in itself is also quite amazing for a free e-book. Buy Now: you have a lot to learn!

The book that I read was actually titled "Aztec Civilization: A History From Beginning to End," but from the cover, it looks as though it was the same book. The author presented the information in a way that held my interest for most of the book. However, it seems as though the vast majority of the book was spent on analysis and opinions of the Aztec philosophy on life and the concepts of their culture. I found myself getting just a bit bored with that part of it by the end of the book. As I said, the author's writing was good, but I expected to read a little more about their temples, other architectural accomplishments and excavated items that came from their guilds. I realize that the Spanish conquistadors caused a lot of the Aztecs' manuscripts to be destroyed and also a change to their culture, but I still expected to read a little bit more about the conquering and the changes that came about because of it. All of these things were barely touched upon.

This book gave a great overview of the Aztec civilization from beginning to end. It is however, an overview. The author has referenced many other authors with respect to their specific knowledge of Aztec history. If you want a deeper understanding of their culture you will need to read the books and papers the author recommends. With that in mind I found the book hard to put down. It is and easy read for such a complex topic. If you like this book you should check out the author's book on Mayan culture as well.

This one is not up to the usual Hourly History standard. The first 25% or so is purely an extended introduction. There is an annoying habit of 'speaking' to the reader. Then there's all those constant references to other works (usually with long titles!) - a glossary at the end would have been a better option. One can appreciate the depth of research to compile the information but the presentation lacks fluidity and even the chronology jumps around. STILL - there's some interesting info to glean....

This book wasn't my all time favorite Hourly History book but I still enjoyed reading about the Aztec Empire. I've always been very interested in the Aztecs. I just love their complexity as an empire and all the mystery that still surrounds them. Just like with the Mayan civilization a lot about the Aztecs has been lost to history, which is such a shame. Who knows what else we could've found out about them. This was a good and solid read but I just felt there was something more missing. I can't quite put my finger on it but that's how I felt. Aside from all that it was still interesting and enjoyable to me.

We should not forget the tragic and terrible history of the Aztecs and we should realize that there is much we should learn from their history: how they lived, where their lives happy, what was their philosophy of life, did they have an advance civilization, what did they think of themselves, why did the Europeans destroy them, how did they do it., and more. Hourly History answers these and other questions about them, and does so very well.

it was a very quick read and as such did not tend to go into elaborate details. Grammar was readable and succinct. Overall, a decent introduction to the subject matter of The Inca.

Confusing. Sentences that make no sense. Little or no editing. Not actually a history. It is more an essay on the philosophical aspects of human sacrifice. Nearly unreadable in places.

The hourly series is a favorite. Aztecs is no exception. And yes, before someone sends in a negative, there is some information that I disagree with. However, overall, this volume is just what is supposed to be - a brief review or introduction to a part of history. The appetite is whetted, which it makes it a good book.

Written as a master's thesis or at the direction of some academic who wanted references within the body of the text. They extremely distracted from the narrative and prevented eloquence. The scattered modern subjective judgements towards gender behaviors are inappropriate to describe the past actions of a truly non western ancient society. They are rather contemporaneous attitudes that will also fall victim to eventual obsolesence.

I got this as a freebie. A large amount of information for only fifty pages. I have read several books on Aztec and Mayan culture. It is difficult to understand their complexities?

So much of man's history is tied up with religion, the Aztec no exception. Theirs was just a bit different than Europe's, but comparable killing went on.

I was interested in this topic, but the amateurish writing kept interrupting my reading pace. Furthermore, the sentences are often in a disorganized order which robs the paragraphs of their coherency. Finally, the author should have annotated the book so as to keep the numerous references to other books in a reference section. I wanted to read something informative, not a list of references to actual good books.

A collection of interesting facts perhaps, But not a history by any means

It was an enjoyable and brief read in the culture and history of the Aztecs. The author offers the sources for the information given, if one ever wants to discover more. I would recommend it for anyone that is curious about the Aztecs and their history, but that would want it in a short read.

This one of the books that you want to keep reading again and again

A tremendous amount of research material is referenced. I am continually shocked at how the history of this nation was disregarded by the Spanish. (Not covered in this book much).

Concise and precise in his narration. Before this reading I had some difficulties to spot the differences between Mayas and Aztecs so I am grateful to have read and at last understood which is which. And beyond that I got to knew much better to Aztecs as a culture. Very recommendable.

I’m not a fan of the author’s writing style. Content doesn’t seem to coincide with other texts that I’ve read. I’m not an Aztec scholar so that statement is probably mute. It would be wonderful if those works referenced in this work were readily available. Author seems authoritative so there’s that. Overall a good short book to read.

OK as Myths go but to much conjecture to be of scientific evidence. Human sacrifices was the evil part of this society!

so clumsily written as to be unreadable. i love the hourly histories and Aztec history warrants their time and efforts. i hope they give it another go, preferably with an author who knows how to organize a coherent story and construct a sentence this time.

I really enjoyed this book. Very informative and educational. I learned a few new things about Aztec life, physically and mentally. Like their sciences and religion merging into a day by day living. Constant worry about their lives in this fifth sun and thereafter. I would recommend this read for any one.

Not much depth, but a good starter.

Had some interesting facts but was constantly interrupted by James of books and authors. You Should have used footnotes. To broad on history.

Interesting

Recommended to all who like history, especially of Central America and the colonization of Western worlds.

In preparing for an upcoming trip to Mexico, I was seeking a short primer on the history of Mexico City. An excellent find, this book has been!! Salient points, easy to digest, culturally transferable correlates, and a great introduction to a broader world of knowledge we need to know about our neighbors....worth the read!!!!

I'm a history buff. Good to get the full picture

Very nice historical read,

very informative,.....interesting....good work....

Great book.

Great and easy to understand.

Interesting but now an easy to follow read.

Outstanding Book , Well Worth The Read

These history shorts are all pretty good, and are often free. Be aware that they are short overviews.

One of the worst books that I read. Not recommend to anyone and not worth the time spent.

Deep work!Good luck!Gallery! https://www.amazon.com/Crystal-Skull-Thirteen-Quetzalcoatl-archeology/dp/1539325423/ref=sr_1_11?ie=UTF8&qid=1484000740&sr=8-11&keywords=Iliyan+Yurukov https://www.amazon.com/Accidents-races-religions-accidents-architecture/dp/1523306181/ref=sr_1_44?ie=UTF8&qid=1484002589&sr=8-44&keywords=Iliyan+Yurukov https://www.amazon.com/idea-world-egg-characters-America/dp/1537089129/ref=sr_1_30?ie=UTF8&qid=1484000820&sr=8-30&keywords=Iliyan+Yurukov https://www.amazon.com/Philosophy-space-time-speed-information/dp/1542415985/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1484003608&sr=8-4&keywords=Iliyan+Yurukov

Starting with the good: I enjoyed chapter 3, which seemed to focus on the cultural aspects of the Aztec civilization, and the conclusion. Those were the parts that really piqued my interest. My favorite elements of history are culture and customs. The bad: the structure of this book was really confusing. It felt like the topics jumped around at random, and thus I struggled to follow much of the first couple of chapters. I think more than three chapters were necessary - not necessarily additional information, just a better organization of the information presented. Clearer, more focused sentences would've helped as well. All in all, I think a better editor was needed to polish the content up and improve upon the flow of information.

🇨🇮 It's a good short book to start the learning of the Aztec culture. This is not a huge and detailed work about the civilization that flourished in Central Mexico some centuries ago, but a nice appetizer for it. Anyway, the author mentions some books of the Mexican wise Miguel León-Portilla, the Spanish priest Bartolomé de las Casas, et al. to deepen the knowledge on this field.

ok

Again, I love this kind of book. I have an oportunit to learn abot something and improve my English skills. Thanks a lot.

I purchased and read many other books from Hourly History, and although I'm well conscious they're meant to be quick read on various historical topics, I'm afraid to say this one left me a bit disappointed. There's some content, mostly references to other publications, but all in all it feels a bit disjointed and doesn't live up to the promise of going in dept into the sacrifice-culture. Too bad.

This is an excellent outline to give a cursory understanding of the Astics. Explaining just why they needed to shed so much blood,. One can see hoe the Spaniards felt that they were right even though their main aim was plunder they were also a very religious peoples and might have felt that the ends justify the means.

Great whistle stop tour of the aztecs...origins, gods, sacrifice, alliance's etc. Mentions the Spanish genocide of the Mexica but doesn't focus on it like a lot of other books and programs so it was refreshing. I would recommend!

I originally thought this would be about the sacrifices at but is quiet in depth about the history of Aztec civilization, an interesting read non the less .Recommend

Really gives nothing of interest to the history of the Aztecs, continually making reference to other publications. Where's the history in that? And so short. I feel cheated in having actually purchased this "pamphlet" - I'd not call it a book.

Enjoyable and informative..

Quite an eye opener things you never really think of are inside worth a read

A nice short but still rich look at the aztecs. Its a break-neck tour of their timeline, but gives you plenty of other sources throughout to look up if you want to look in more detail.

Reads like someones dissertation

Brilliant book especially if one is interested in our ancient past

still resding

Love history, especially South American,very interesting and informative read

Excellent !

good

Good read

I've had bigger leaflets through the door!

A great read

Aztecs by Henry Freeman (The) 2 stars. I was disappointed in this book. It was well-written—just a few awkward/confusing sentences—and it seemed well researched. But it taught me next to nothing about the Aztecs. All it did was talk about how their religion impacted their lives. Three chapters, all about that. Barely anything about their daily lives, the conquest, anything. Really, I feel like it wasn’t worth the time & effort to read. I’m glad I got it for free. Also, why on earth is the title on the book cover different from the listing title?? Small detail, but super annoying IMO. A Favourite Quote: “With so many demands on our time, often we forget how precious it is until it's almost gone.”

🟢 Nos sumergimos en los echos y acontecimientos de la civilización más grande de México, te aclara la el día a día que tenía este pueblo mexicano, cabe aclarar que tienen pocas discrepancias pero si te da una primer ola para que conozcas el complejo mundo antiguo! 🟢 Es de resaltar que fue toda la vida, el desarrolló, logros y día a día de los aztecas, no se abarca temas de la invasión!

Elegí esta calificación porque empata con lo que leo y veo acerca de sus logros en los casi 250 años que ejercieron su gobierno. al visitar el templo Mayor en la ciudad de México, se confirman muchos de los comentarios que se vierten en el libro y aprecio mas la magnificencia de sus avances tecnológicos, culturales, comerciales y de conquista. Se lo recomendaría a las personas que visiten México para que lo tengan como una introducción y un acercamiento a la cultura Mexica antes de la llegada española.

Es waren einige Informationen im Buch, die für mich noch neu waren, aber in der Gesamtheit zu wenig. Außerdem hat mir die Struktur des Textes nicht gefallen. Der Text war insgesamt etwas konfus und teilweise langweilig.

O livro mantém um certo 'rigor' acadêmico ao destacar as obras de referência e autores e suas opiniões. Mas é isso que procuramos num 'livro' tão curto? Acho que não.

Easy to read a concise summary of the Aztec empire. This book provides a good general introduction to the Aztec civilisation and good tips for further, more in-depth reading. And it's free!

Excelente título pero está muy ambiguo en la información que contiene, no lo recomiendo al 100

O livro seria melhor se não tivesse colocado as referências das citações no corpo do texto.

Buen libro

No me gusto