Like the other two books, this is an economic history, so it presumes the reader already has some knowledge of the major historical events of the period. For a more conventional European history, I'd refer the reader to "Europe: 1815-1914" by Gordon Craig.
One hears so much about "Imperialism" -- always in a negative sense -- that's it's interesting to read about a period in which Europeans were unabashedly imperialistic. I had read elsewhere that the main reason imperialism failed was that it was uneconomical, but this is the only serious treatment of it I've read.
One big surprise for me was that the European Imperial period was so short. The Imperial posessions were relatively few and unimportant before this period, and were essentially snuffed out by World War I (taking until World War II to entirely disappear).
Although I have enjoyed Hobsbawm's books, there are two warnings for the would-be reader. First, Hobsbawm is an unapologetic Marxist, so his economics all come from a Marxist angle. That's actually not as much of a problem as it might seem, and it helps shed a lot of light on what the earlier followers of communism were thinking. Second, this is not an easy read. The material is difficult to begin with, and Hobsbawm's writing style makes it more so.
Still, I found it worthwhile, I learned a lot, and I'm glad I read it. If the combination of history and economics interests you, just take it slowly and it will reward your efforts.