Through its lively and accessible narrative, The World Transformed: 1945 to Present provides students with an account of the political, socio-economic, and cultural developments that have shaped global events since 1945. The book's focus on three central and profoundly interconnected stories - the unfolding of the Cold War, the growth of the international economy, and the developing world's quest for political and economic independence - offers students a framework for understanding the past and making sense of the present. Attentive to overarching themes, individual historical figures, and diverse nations - and now substantially revised with a new Part 4 that examines world events since 1990 - The World Transformed, Second Edition, is ideal for courses on post-1945 world history, international relations, or global topics.