[stygiansonic]

Related: For curated list of the 100 largest atrocities, ranked by largest loss of life, check out Matthew White's The Great Big Book of Horrible Things [0]

It grew out of his website, Historical Atlas of the Twentieth Century, and while he is not an historian by profession (I believe he's a librarian), the book is very well researched (lots of footnotes, citations, etc.) and IMO, "fun" to read. (Only because of his style of writing, obviously not about the content)

Each event is a relatively short read, with decent background provided, though the book is quite long overall.

Spoiler: One of the items on the list is Caesar's Gallic Wars, and there are many dedicated to various events that transpired the Roman {Republic, Empire}

0. http://www.bookofhorriblethings.com/

1. http://users.erols.com/mwhite28/20centry.htm