📖 The Kingfisher Atlas of the Ancient World. This atlas introduces ancient civilizations through cartoony maps, timelines, and blurby text boxes. Alternatively, check out The Kingfisher Book of the Ancient World: From the Ice Age to the Fall of Rome, which provides more text-rich two-page spreads on prehistoric and ancient cultures around the world. A third option is Ancient Civilizations from DK Eyewitness Books. Any of these can be used as a reference guide for your ancient history studies. – All

📖 Historium: Welcome to the Museum by Jo Nelson. This title in the Welcome to the Museum series invites readers to examine historical artifacts from ancient times. The “Galleries” of the oversized volume are organized geographically–Africa, America, Asia, Europe, Middle East, Oceania–and each section focuses on a different civilization, from the Olmecs to the Roman Empire. A nice supplement to an in-depth Ancient History study. – Elementary • Middle

📖 The Story of the World, Volume 1: Ancient Times by Susan Wise Bauer. The first volume in the Story of the World series covers Ancient Times, from nomads to the last Roman emperor. The book mainly focuses on Western Civilization, though there are chapters on India, China, Africa, and the Americas. The series is written from a Christian perspective, and biblical stories are interspersed throughout the book. – Elementary

📖 The World in Ancient Times series from Oxford University Press. Here is a great series that can be used as a spine for Middle Grade Ancient History. Each heavily-illustrated book is about 150-200 pages in length and consists of about two dozen chapters that provide a good chronological history of the civilization. The books cover: Early Humans, Ancient Near East, Egypt, South Asia, China, Greece, Rome, and Americas. The Primary Sources & Reference Volume is a nice supplement for those who want to incorporate primary source readings. See the individual topic pages for more on each book. – Middle

📖 Human Odyssey, Volume 1: Prehistory through the Middle Ages. The Human Odyssey textbook series is a fine choice for a Middle School World History spine. The first volume spans the dawn of agriculture through the late Middle Ages, with an emphasis on Western Civilization. Ancient History topics include Mesopotamia, Egypt, China, India and the birth of Hinduism and Buddhism, Greece, Rome, and the rise and spread of Christianity. – Middle

📖 Cartoon History of the Universe I: From the Big Bang to Alexander the Great by Larry Gonick. This title in Gonick’s popular, irreverent Cartoon History series starts with the Big Bang and covers human evolution, prehistory, the dawn of agriculture and civilization, Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, Persia, and the history of the Israelites and Cannanites.  The content goes into some depth and can be a bit salty; best for older students. – Middle • High

📖 Cartoon History of the Universe II: From the Springtime of China to the Fall of Rome by Larry Gonick. Book II in the Cartoon History series covers the ancient civilizations of India, China, and Rome. – Middle High

📖 Augustus Caesar's World by Genevieve Foster. This 300-page classic, beloved by homeschoolers, takes a 'horizontal' approach to Ancient History, surveying civilizations around the world during the time of Caesar's rule. From the publisher: "In Augustus Caesar's World, Foster traces the seven major civilizations Rome, Greece, Israel, Egypt, China, India, and Persia from 4500 B.C. to the time of Augustus Caesar in 44 B.C. and culminating in 14 A.D." – Middle

📖 Seven Wonders of the Ancient World by Lynn Curlee. "With extraordinary paintings and a moving narrative, Mr. Curlee tells the story of some of man's greatest feats and explores the timeless desire of cultures to leave a permanent mark on the Earth." This is a lovely little introduction to the Wonders of the Ancient World. – Elementary • Middle

📖 Ox, House, Stick: The History of Our Alphabet by Don Robb. This fascinating book traces the origins of our letters, which were developed by the Sinaitic peoples and adapted by the Phoenicians, Greeks, and Romans. A great complement to your Language Arts or Ancient History studies.​ – Elementary • Middle