This brisk narrative history takes in the history, culture and politics of the region from 700 B.C. to the 1990s. King argues that, like the Mediterranean, the Black Sea unites diverse languages and cultures (Greek, Roman, Armenian, Persian, Scythian, Byzantine, Ottoman, Tatar and Mongol). The book opens with a chapter on Pontus Euxinus, an ancient Greek site along the shores of the Black Sea. Charles King is a professor in the Department of Government and School of Foreign Service at Georgetown. With four maps and 15 black-and-white photographs.  (EUR173, $29.95)