|
|
118 of 119 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best World Atlas But Rather Pricey, 8 Dec 2001
By A Customer
As an atlas craze, I recently bought 3 World Atlases to join my small library. They are 1) Hammond World Atlas : Mapmakers for the 21st Century 3rd Edition 2) Oxford Atlas of the World 9th Edition and 3) The Times Comprehensive Atlas of the World 10th Edition. I already own Rand McNally's Today World (1992), which I think it is a terrible world atlas. First, I received the Hammond and the Oxford Atlases. They were both oversized book and quite heavy. The Oxford weighs more than 3Kg. I was quite impressed by both atlases' fine introductory section and map details. When I received the Times Comprehensive Atlas of the World, I was quite shocked with its size and weight. The Times weighs more than 5.5 Kg and bigger than both Hammond and Oxford. In fact, the Times makes both Oxford and Hammond like a regular book. Upon browsing through all three atlases, I found that all three have their own characteristics. I like the Hammond uses of signs, fonts, and colors. In my opinion, Hammond atlas is very easy to read and very simple to recognize places. The vivid color is the best among three atlases. But the international borders are more difficult to read (in my opinion). The Oxford has probably the best introductory section on World Geography, statistics, satellite images, solar systems, etc. The details are similar to that of Hammond's. Oxford is printed on different type of paper than Hammond's and the Time's (a bit more glossy). I just happen to like Hammond's and Time's paper (matte) paper more. The size of the cities and the signs of places are not as easily recognizable as the Hammond's but still very good. The Times Atlas doesn't have an extensive introductory section like the Oxford's or Hammond's nor does it have large city maps found in Oxford's and Hammond's. It just have the most balanced, most detailed atlas of the world. It has 123 dual-page of mapping, more than the former twos. The Times give more details and attention to small islands and countries outside N.A. and Europe than the former twos. It has more maps of small islands than the former twos. Although I think the colors are not as vivid as the Hammond, the signs and fonts are easy to read and understand and the detail of each map is just incredible. Arguedly, probably the best atlas today. (I haven't seen National Geographic Atlas of the World though) The Times Comprehensive Atlas of the World is not cheap. It is the most expensive among the three but if you want the best world atlas irregardless of price, the Times Comprehensive Atlas of the World is definitely the one to get.
Help other customers find the most helpful reviews
Was this review helpful to you?
 
|
|
|
|
by Richard Overy
by Sir Patrick Moore
by Oxford Dictionaries
by Times Books
