Sociology began as a discipline concerned with epochal social transformations, says Lachmann (sociology, State U. of New York-Albany), but has become increasingly focused on trying to explain individual behavior in the present day. He shows how sociological analysis of historical change can clarify both the origins of the contemporary world and the scope and consequences of current transformations. His topics are the sense of a beginning, the origins of capitalism, revolutions and social movements, empires, states, inequality, gender and the family, culture, and predicting the future. Distributed in the US by Wiley. Annotation ©2013 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)