This was pleasant, informative, scholarly reading on the pre-Spanish cultures and peoples of the New World. There is no fluff in this great volume of ancient real-life adventure. But it flows with readable excitement as this skilled writer takes you back into the reconstructed life of these ancient peoples of the Americas before they became the "New World" of the Europeans in search of new treasures to plunder. I was surprised to find that this book is still available, though written in 1961. I happened upon my copy in a library sale of an excellent cultural library of a world mission agency that was updating its collection. I found that the remaining new copies of Von Hagen's 1961 Cultural history classic demand a retail price of $250, while used copies may be found for a cheap as $2.50 on Amazon.com. This was a thrilling and fascinating find! Von Hagen's believable analysis of all the ancient American peoples of North and South reads like an action thriller. As he reconstructs the military movements of warrior peoples, we see the waves of warriors pour into the local areas as ancient conquerors come in to take over the even more ancient residents of one area of the old continents or another, before they are in their turn overrun by newcomers in their turn. Von Hagen documents the internal struggles as one imperial faction overthrows another in the great Empires that long predated the European barbarians who had lately come to master the seas and discover the cultural challenges of a world that thrived without even knowing of Europe - from Amzon