Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies
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- Author：Jared Diamond
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Summary
Why did Eurasians conquer， displace， or decimate Native Americans， Australians， and Africans， instead of the reverse？ In this “artful， informative， and delightful” （William H。 McNeill， New York Review of Books） book， a classic of our time， evolutionary biologist Jared Diamond dismantles racist theories of human history by revealing the environmental factors actually responsible for its broadest patterns。
The story begins 13，000 years ago， when Stone Age hunter-gatherers constituted the entire human population。 Around that time， the developmental paths of human societies on different continents began to diverge greatly。 Early domestication of wild plants and animals in the Fertile Crescent， China， Mesoamerica， the Andes， and other areas gave peoples of those regions a head start at a new way of life。 But the localized origins of farming and herding proved to be only part of the explanation for their differing fates。 The unequal rates at which food production spread from those initial centers were influenced by other features of climate and geography， including the disparate sizes， locations， and even shapes of the continents。 Only societies that moved away from the hunter-gatherer stage went on to develop writing， technology， government， and organized religions as well as deadly germs and potent weapons of war。 It was those societies， adventuring on sea and land， that invaded others， decimating native inhabitants through slaughter and the spread of disease。
A major landmark in our understanding of human societies， Guns， Germs， and Steel chronicles the way in which the modern world， and its inequalities， came to be。
The story begins 13，000 years ago， when Stone Age hunter-gatherers constituted the entire human population。 Around that time， the developmental paths of human societies on different continents began to diverge greatly。 Early domestication of wild plants and animals in the Fertile Crescent， China， Mesoamerica， the Andes， and other areas gave peoples of those regions a head start at a new way of life。 But the localized origins of farming and herding proved to be only part of the explanation for their differing fates。 The unequal rates at which food production spread from those initial centers were influenced by other features of climate and geography， including the disparate sizes， locations， and even shapes of the continents。 Only societies that moved away from the hunter-gatherer stage went on to develop writing， technology， government， and organized religions as well as deadly germs and potent weapons of war。 It was those societies， adventuring on sea and land， that invaded others， decimating native inhabitants through slaughter and the spread of disease。
A major landmark in our understanding of human societies， Guns， Germs， and Steel chronicles the way in which the modern world， and its inequalities， came to be。
Reviews
Vinay Mehta
，
Good topic。 Seemingly deep research。 Poor in execution and story-writing。 I gave up trying to put my mind and attention to this after multiple sittings。 This book is great research and award worthy， but， not interesting or enlightening enough for general reader
Theodore Decker
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Terribly boring
Maddy Brown
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I think it was educational， and didn't blame Eurasia's lead on intelligence differences， however it also didn't comment on how Eurasia has done nothing to help third-world countries when we can。 I think it was educational， and didn't blame Eurasia's lead on intelligence differences， however it also didn't comment on how Eurasia has done nothing to help third-world countries when we can。 。。。more
Sylvia Snowe
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A profoundly well educated scholar from an elite， urban background spends a decade or more studying the lives of the forest hunters of New Guinea。 When a hunter asks him to explain why white man have guns and metal， or whatever， and the people of New Guinea do not， the scholar attempts to answer the question--except， of course， to the rest of us。Despite the meticulous scholarly work， Diamond makes some glaring oversights。 He never seems to talk to any women， apparently leaving that unpleasant ta A profoundly well educated scholar from an elite， urban background spends a decade or more studying the lives of the forest hunters of New Guinea。 When a hunter asks him to explain why white man have guns and metal， or whatever， and the people of New Guinea do not， the scholar attempts to answer the question--except， of course， to the rest of us。Despite the meticulous scholarly work， Diamond makes some glaring oversights。 He never seems to talk to any women， apparently leaving that unpleasant task to women anthropologists。 Had he done so， he might have discovered that women are the farmers of the hunter-gatherer world， and that women， in fact， pretty much invented farming。 After hours of listening to this on audio， I did not once see where Diamond traced the development of farming from herding--that is， the lifestyle of people who herd sheep， cattle， horses， reindeer， goats， etc。， to sedentary husbandry we associate with modern and medieval farming。 He barely touches on the farmers of the Eastern Woodland culture of North America， where women cultivated corn， squash， and beans--and these were considered the life of these people， not the game brought in by the male hunters。 If we really want to understand where farming originated， we need to look at migrating herders like the Lapps and the Central Asian peoples， as well as the Native Americans。Diamond belabors on the reasons why hippos weren't domesticate， or why native Americans didn't develop fruit orchards。 He doesn't discuss how animals that are herded can be manhandled by men， and that the forests of North America are filled with tree nuts and even fruits。 That Eastern Woodland native Americans knew how to exploit a wide variety of wild foods， to the extent that they were so well nourished that they needed little else。 Diamond and Daniel Lieberman， both of them urban intellectuals who never grew up farming， wonder at why hunters gave up hunting in order to become farmers。 As if hearty men just suddenly said， fuck this， I think I'll just sit around and grow wheat。 Diamond does examine in detail much of this slow transition， but he does so without recognizing that women were the primary foragers， then became gardeners， and then became the farmers。 It probably wasn't until advances in the plow， the yoke， and even the breeding of war horses， did men become plowmen and the farmers as we think of them today。 But Diamond just breezes past that。 While he acknowledges that game had disappeared as farming expanded， and the landscape changed， he also doesn't acknowledge soon enough the deep entanglements of religion and the aristocracy， of crop payments and labor owed to the princes and priests。 He talks about them， but obsesses over why we didn't tame zebras， or why the Sioux or the Cherokee didn't domesticate fruit trees。 The whys are obvious， and the first farmers were the women。 Diamond writes as if men were sitting around， choosing wheat and corn and barley grains for their special characters。 No， bud， didn't happen like that。 Even in the middle ages， fields of wheat contained many varieties at the same time。 And it was always the women who chose the seeds。 They did it for thousands of years。 Diamond never lived on a family farm， like my grandparents' dairy farm。 Even in the fifties and sixties， my grandfather did the heavy work of manhandling cattle， equipment， shoveling shit， building and equipment maintenance。 My grandmother did what every woman has ever done on a farm--she had a garden of vegetables， she raised the chickens， she cooked food and preserved it， and washed and sewed clothing。 Yes， my grandfather planted corn and soybeans， and harvested hay， but that was because he used a tractor and other equipment。 His father used horses to plow the fields。 Farming is about gender roles， and Diamond never speaks to that。 If he did， he'd have a much better and more sensible book。 But no， he's way too cerebral， and apparently sexist， to think that way。 Any real farmer， a traditional farmer today， weather in India or Alabama， can't do much without a wife。 A factory farm is different， but a family farm is just that。 Man， woman， children， multi-generations， living in villages or remote farms。 Even in recent centuries， Norwegian farming was often left to the women， while the men fished and hunted seasonally， or simply went out to trade their wares at distant ports。 All this information is available， and Diamond ignores it， to tell his own story。 And get a Pulitzer prize for getting it wrong。 。。。more
Riello Leone
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 bellissimo
Stefano Menchetti
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Un libro da leggere per aumentare la consapevolezza del mondo che ci circonda。 Tutto inizia da una chiacchierata in spiaggia tra il Prof。 Diamond e un uomo politico della Nuova Guinea， Yali， durante la quale Yali chiede: "come mai voi bianchi avete tutto questo cargo e lo portate qui in Nuova Guinea， mentre noi neri ne abbiamo così poco？"Il termine "cargo" viene utilizzato per indicare i beni materiali che vengono commercializzati。Questa semplice domanda， elaborata nel tempo， si trasforma in "co Un libro da leggere per aumentare la consapevolezza del mondo che ci circonda。 Tutto inizia da una chiacchierata in spiaggia tra il Prof。 Diamond e un uomo politico della Nuova Guinea， Yali， durante la quale Yali chiede: "come mai voi bianchi avete tutto questo cargo e lo portate qui in Nuova Guinea， mentre noi neri ne abbiamo così poco？"Il termine "cargo" viene utilizzato per indicare i beni materiali che vengono commercializzati。Questa semplice domanda， elaborata nel tempo， si trasforma in "come mai la ricchezza e il potere sono così distribuiti nel mondo？"; da qui parte l'analisi delle diverse civiltà emerse nel mondo dall'ultima glaciazione e delle risorse rese disponibili dal territorio che occupavano。Risorse in termini di piante e animali domesticabili， minerali， ampiezza del territorio， possibilità di scambi culturali con altre civiltà vicine e cosi via。Un libro non semplice da leggere， alcune volte anche troppo scientifico， ma sicuramente interessante。Un percorso di conoscenze che aiutano a capire perché gli europei， gli asiatici， e parte delle Americhe hanno dominato il pianeta。 。。。more
Eva Konič
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Overly ambitious， although interesting， makes you see that one person/author cannot properly combine anthropology， history， geography and other subjects without making assumptions and drawing conclusions out of somewhat correlated points。 Too wide， too shallow。
Thomas Morris
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The ultimate history book
Jess
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I wasn't sure if it was my ADHD or the book itself that made this one so hard to start。 I read both fiction and nonfiction， but I thought this would be a good way to crack into reading a genre I've somewhat neglected， which is history。 I'm a white American raised in a Christian household， so to say I needed to relearn what I've been taught is an understatement。 Grade school spoon fed me a very milquetoast version of U。S。 history。 I knew about other countries， but my education barely touched most I wasn't sure if it was my ADHD or the book itself that made this one so hard to start。 I read both fiction and nonfiction， but I thought this would be a good way to crack into reading a genre I've somewhat neglected， which is history。 I'm a white American raised in a Christian household， so to say I needed to relearn what I've been taught is an understatement。 Grade school spoon fed me a very milquetoast version of U。S。 history。 I knew about other countries， but my education barely touched most of the massive and diverse histories that comprise them。 As I grew and expanded my knowledge about civilization in high school， I learned how pervasive American exceptionalism was in my education。 We were taught so much about America's involvement in World War II and the Cold War， but my presentation on the My Lai massacre was the catalyst that got me involved in world history。 That's when I knew that my education was truly Orwellian。When I made diverse friend in college （and actually read 1984） I learned more about how I wasn't the only person dealing with such a narrow view of millions of years of world history。 Patriarchal systems of colonization and capitalism clove such deep cuts into world cultures that its conquest became truth。 When I realized that， Orwell's wisdom and my friend's experiences compelled me to learn as much as I can。 People have only become more racist and ignorant to the marginalized since I began that journey。 I'm looking to become a better person through reading history。 As a reader and a writer with a weird attention span， I'm tasked to find books that cover as much history as possible in a short span of pages。Jared Diamond wrote this book with similarly anti-racist aspirations。 For the most part he does it well。 All of his passages about travel and anecdotes from being a white foreigner living in New Guinea were especially engaging。 However， those parts are few and far between。 This book is undoubtedly well-researched， but the endless chatter about seed pods， domestication， crop trends and resources became a slog to read through。 Don't get me wrong， it was important for me to learn about how all that worked， but with my experiences as a salt-of-the-earth kind of writer， I found it to be overly academic and repetitious。 I loved the story of the Aztecs and conquistadors， New Guineans learning about poisonous mushrooms， and how QWERTY became adopted。 The expansion of civilization through waterways and the fall of civilizations through microbes were really profound and interesting to learn about。That being said， I did not enjoy the dense majority of this book because it wasn't very engaging。 The information is all there， its just like a shot that drips into you like an IV。 My enjoyment of this book was so sparse because of all the information dumping。 If you read passages of this in the context of a class I can see how it would be interesting， but Diamond reached his points at the pace of a glacial crawl。 On top of that， most points were the same。 Colonization is awful and you shouldn't be racist， but this isn't the book you should read to tell you such a simple point。 I'm continuing to read history， but I'm hoping to find more compact and engaging reads。 。。。more
Kyle Dennis
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You know what I learned from this book？Don’t cheat on your wife with a sheep。Don’t eat too many raw almonds。Too long， too boring， too tedious。1/5
Michèle Marchand
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Loved this book。 I can't believe I went my whole life without knowing this information。 I wish I could retain everything I read。 I would definitely recommend this book。 Loved this book。 I can't believe I went my whole life without knowing this information。 I wish I could retain everything I read。 I would definitely recommend this book。 。。。more
Riccardo Savoldo
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Questo libro permette una nuova e migliore comprensione del mondo。
Nicolas Pinzon
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Seis estrellas。 De los mejores libros que he leído。
吕晓晓 Chinese
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At the beginning of the 15th century， European countries began to colonize Africa。 When Columbus arrived in the Americas in 1492， the Europeans launched a large-scale and unstoppable invasion of the Americas。 In the 17th century， in search of spices， the Spaniards， Portuguese， Dutch and French went to Oceania one after another。 Why are the Eurasians conquering， driving away or mass killing Africans， Indians and Australians， and not the other way around？ Why do humans develop at such different sp At the beginning of the 15th century， European countries began to colonize Africa。 When Columbus arrived in the Americas in 1492， the Europeans launched a large-scale and unstoppable invasion of the Americas。 In the 17th century， in search of spices， the Spaniards， Portuguese， Dutch and French went to Oceania one after another。 Why are the Eurasians conquering， driving away or mass killing Africans， Indians and Australians， and not the other way around？ Why do humans develop at such different speeds on different continents？ This is the question that the book "Guns， Germs， and Steel" will answer。 The book "Guns， Germs and Steel" was first published in 1997 and won the Pulitzer Prize and the British Science Book Prize。 The author Jared Diamond is a professor of physiology at the University of California， Los Angeles School of Medicine。 He first studied biology and later turned to study evolutionary biology and biogeography。 This book is his masterpiece。 In 1972， he studied the evolution of birds in New Guinea in northern Oceania。 This issue in this book was raised by a local politician named Yali。 Direct cause: guns， germs and steel This question is very classic in global history research。 The most common answer is that there are significant biological differences between humans on these continents。 Of course， modern anthropology has already strongly refuted this concept of racism， so it is by no means the answer that science wants。 In fact， there is no evidence that intellectual differences are related to technical differences。 On the contrary， due to genetic advantages and poor recreational activities， the technically backward indigenous Australians may be intellectually higher than European whites。 Another popular answer is climate。 Many people believe that the cold climate in the Nordic region will stimulate creativity and energy， while the hot and humid climate will inhibit it。 This is also taken for granted。 In fact， the various ethnic groups in the Nordic region did not make outstanding contributions to the civilization of Eurasia。 Agriculture， wheels， and metallurgy were all introduced to Northern Europe from other places。 The same counterexample is easy to find elsewhere。 The last explanation is at the artifact level， which is the title of the book: guns， germs， and steel。 Those who hold this view believe that Europeans have mastered guns， steel and industrial products， and brought infectious diseases from the local area。 This is the reason why they can slaughter and conquer other peoples。 This explanation is completely correct， but it is not the ultimate reason that this book wants to explore。 We can further ask: Why did the Europeans invent guns and steel and bring evil bacteria instead of Africans and Indians？ The ultimate reason: food production Jared Diamond believes that the real reason is food production， including planting plants and domesticating animals。 Food production is a prerequisite for guns， germs， and steel。 People who have not mastered food production cannot master guns and other technologies。 Food production can bring many direct benefits。 The most obvious is that people can get more calories。 Compared with hunting and gathering， food production can feed 10 times to 100 times more people。 When the population increases and the food is abundant， people can settle down without having to move around。 This greatly shortens the birth interval and the population will continue to increase。 In addition， people can also store excess food to deal with possible disasters。 In this process， specialized talents will inevitably be formed。 They are not engaged in production， but are responsible for taking care of food。 We can think of it as the early division of labor and cooperation， or we can think of it as the embryonic form of modern politics。 Since food production has so many benefits， why did food production only appear in Europe and Asia at first， and not independently in America and Africa？ We can answer this question from two aspects。 First， food production may not occur in all places。 According to common sense， food production requires fertile land， but the earliest food production did not appear in the fertile land of North America， Oceania， and northern Africa， but in the Fertile Crescent of the Mediterranean Sea in Europe。 The reason is that the environment of the Fertile Crescent is more complex， with a wide variety of wild animals and plants， diverse climate changes， and topography also endows changes， and there are more possibilities for environmental combinations。 Compared with all the plants in the world， there are very few plants that humans can use。 If these plants are not adapted to the environment of Africa or America， they will not survive; but if they are in the Fertile Crescent， because of the diverse environment， they will encounter suitable The probability of the environment is much higher。 The principle of domesticating animals is similar。 Humans can only domesticate a few animals， and these animals are mainly distributed in Eurasia。 Animals have greater value than plants。 They can provide meat， dairy products， fertilizers and leather， and can be used for transportation and farming， and sometimes even for warfare。 This greatly improves the combat effectiveness of the Eurasian nations。 Planting plants and domesticating animals are complementary。 Plants provide feed for animals， and animals provide fertilizer and labor for plants。 For these reasons， it is not surprising that food production appears in Europe and Asia。 Second， not all places need food production。 Humans’ strategy for finding food is always to spend the least time， make the least effort， have the greatest assurance， and get the most rewards。 According to this strategy， if people in a region can easily catch wild animals， they will not choose food production; people in these areas do not know that food production has so many benefits due to poor information exchange。 In addition， food production also requires corresponding methods， tools and equipment as well as a larger population， which also increases the difficulty of food production。 It just so happens that for primitive people in Africa， America， and Oceania， food production is more troublesome than hunting and gathering。 In addition to the above reasons， there is another geographical reason that is very important。 When you open the world map， you can see that the main axis of Eurasia is east-west， and the latitude is relatively close; while the main axis of Africa and the Americas are north-south， and the latitude is quite different。 Latitude mainly affects the climate， so the same species can survive in all parts of Eurasia， but it can only grow in specific places in Africa and America。 This is a fatal blow。 How does food production lead to guns， germs， and steel？ At this point， Jared Diamond has explained to us that Europe and Asia have obvious advantages in food production。 They conquered Africa and the Americas because they mastered guns， germs and steel。 Logically speaking， as long as the relationship between the two is explained， it is sufficient to answer the questions raised at the beginning of this article。 Among the many advantages of Eurasia， germs are closely related to food production。 The vast majority of human pathogens come from animals。 Anthrax is transmitted by herbivores such as cattle and sheep。 Trichinella spiralis is mainly from undercooked pork。 Mosquitoes， fleas and lice can transmit these bacteria。 Because people in Eurasia have domesticated and lived with animals， they are immune to some bacteria。 When they brought these germs to Africa and America， they created a hell on earth。 A few centuries ago， the victors of wars were not always those with well-equipped armies， but those who carried the most terrible germs。 In the colonial war， more people died of germs than guns and swords。 In addition to germs， words are also a tool of conquest。 If people can use words to convey information， they can easily and accurately record the enemy’s weaknesses and quickly communicate commands， which is vital to the victory or defeat of war。 The reason why words are produced is that people need words to store food， and words are probably invented by those who take care of food all the time。 The hunter-gatherer society does not need words， so they did not invent and use words。 The invention and use of words have objectively created a unified political organization， the population of the tribe is larger， and the actions are more orderly and consistent。 If there is no text， it is impossible to accommodate hundreds of thousands of people in the tribe， because strangers without kinship will have conflicts， and text is the most reliable arbitration and mediation mechanism。 To sum up， the different topography and climate of each continent determines the food production lifestyle in Europe and Asia， which greatly increases the population density of these places， and the people in the tribe have a division of labor， which in turn causes them to carry germs and possess Well-developed writing and technology， as well as a unified government and religion。 This is why Europe and Asia can conquer America and Africa。 Final revelation In this kind of global history narrative， we can get a lot of enlightenment。 First of all， it is geographical differences that determine the differences in the development of various continents， rather than the differences in the biology of the nations themselves。 The place of origin and ancestors of human beings are the same。 At first， all people stood on the same line。 Later， human beings migrated to different continents。 Due to differences in flora and fauna， geography and climate， the development speed was different。 This can also serve as a strong evidence against racism in anthropology。 In addition， in this book， Jared Diamond also discusses some differences within Eurasia。 Fertile Crescent， Chinese and Indian societies developed agriculture independently， but lost out to the Americas and other parts of Europe in the subsequent competition。 Diamond believes that this is a deeper institutional factor above geographic reasons。 Europe has been in a state of division for a long time， while China has been in a state of unity for a long time。 The division has catalyzed the competition， and the unification has stifled the competition。 An open society has huge advantages。 Some advantages are brought about by the geographical environment， and some advantages are brought about by the system and culture。 How to use and create this advantage is the lifeblood of national development。 。。。more
Gregory Jones
，
It's easy to see why this was a Pulitzer winner。 I read this to see if it would be a good fit for a world geography course。 While I appreciate the depth and breadth of the book， I think I'll put it on my "suggested reading" list， but will not require it。 For folks curious about the various people groups around the world， there's a lot to learn about human geography from this fascinating book。 It is a bit history， a bit anthropology， and certainly geography。 There is a lot to learn about who peop It's easy to see why this was a Pulitzer winner。 I read this to see if it would be a good fit for a world geography course。 While I appreciate the depth and breadth of the book， I think I'll put it on my "suggested reading" list， but will not require it。 For folks curious about the various people groups around the world， there's a lot to learn about human geography from this fascinating book。 It is a bit history， a bit anthropology， and certainly geography。 There is a lot to learn about who people are， how they ended up where they did， why they look and speak the way they do。 This book answers a lot of questions you didn't know you were asking。 。。。more
Peter Sandwall
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Solid。 "Geographic determinism，" may be an oversimplification， but it's an interesting and insightful perspective。 Solid。 "Geographic determinism，" may be an oversimplification， but it's an interesting and insightful perspective。 。。。more
Ryan
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Its a good and insightful book， but very heavy read。 I think this could benefit from a cliff notes edition with casual readers in mind。I forgot that I had read passages from it in AP World history in HS and it included one of my favorite quotes， to paraphrase， "The zebra was never domesticated because it had the nasty habit of biting people and not letting go。" Its a good and insightful book， but very heavy read。 I think this could benefit from a cliff notes edition with casual readers in mind。I forgot that I had read passages from it in AP World history in HS and it included one of my favorite quotes， to paraphrase， "The zebra was never domesticated because it had the nasty habit of biting people and not letting go。" 。。。more
torin m
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Summed up in one sentence: Different geographical situations allowed different groups of people to adapt and advance quicker or slower。
Kate Esten
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Rather than seeing this as a book of anthropology， I felt like the study of humans in this book made much more sense in what Diamond called “history science。” I thought it was fascinating to take a slow stroll through the entirety of human history with constant modern references to keep the material relevant to the reader （ie。 Talking about medieval disease and modern vaccines in the same chapter rather than moving exclusively via time）。
Elizabeth
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Better review coming later， but for now: some sections I found very fascinating， while others were quite dry。
Ravi Teja
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The name of this book should have been 'Agriculture， Geography: The Fate of Human Societies'。 The book is more about agriculture and geographical determinism and how it lead to primacy few nations/races。 Author claims that the introduction of agricultural （and domestication of animals） has lead to sedentary lifestyle which in turn lead to military sophistication and formation of complex political structures。 This book is overtly detailed which was not necessary。 It also also largely ignored one The name of this book should have been 'Agriculture， Geography: The Fate of Human Societies'。 The book is more about agriculture and geographical determinism and how it lead to primacy few nations/races。 Author claims that the introduction of agricultural （and domestication of animals） has lead to sedentary lifestyle which in turn lead to military sophistication and formation of complex political structures。 This book is overtly detailed which was not necessary。 It also also largely ignored one of the oldest civilization- Indus valley civilization。 。。。more
Craig Wanderer
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I have been told for years to read this book and while well meaning， for some reason I never did until now。 Glad I did。 This sums up what I thought the book would be about。 Pizzaro and his part in the Conquest of the Incas。 "The prudence， fortitude， military discipline， labors， perilous naviga tions， and battles of the Spaniards-vassals of the most invincible Emperor of the Roman Catholic Empire， our natural King and Lord-will cause joy"Then onto the Author on Chapter 4 The rise and spread of f I have been told for years to read this book and while well meaning， for some reason I never did until now。 Glad I did。 This sums up what I thought the book would be about。 Pizzaro and his part in the Conquest of the Incas。 "The prudence， fortitude， military discipline， labors， perilous naviga tions， and battles of the Spaniards-vassals of the most invincible Emperor of the Roman Catholic Empire， our natural King and Lord-will cause joy"Then onto the Author on Chapter 4 The rise and spread of food production， farmer power。 This is where the Author stayed for a Summer on a Ranch in Montana， without being more specific on the Ranch I am fairly certain I have done business with the family when we had our cattle， that is kind of cool。 Chapter 7 "You prefer large berries because it's not worth your time to get sun burnt and mosquito Bitten for some little berries" Obviously he never worked for my employer。 Chapter 14 "Since Tribes lack economic Specialists they also lack slaves， because there are no specialized menial tribes for the slaves to perform" Interesting。 This chapter also covers wealth distribution and the difference between kleptocrats and statesmenWe Consider Mubuto of Zaire a Kleptocrat because he keeps too much tribute the equivalent of billions of dollars and redistributes to little tribute， no functional telephone system in Zaire。 We consider Washington a statesmen because he spent tax money on widely admired programs and did not enrich himself as President"Someone needs to tell the progressives， the difference。 The Conservatives also need to be told why Kelptocracy is a problemChapter 18 interestingly covers the appearance of important technologies in ancient history。 Chapter 19 debunks racism and the superiority of "White" Europeans。 I can go on， but as I have shown， this book is probably not what you think it is。Overall it is well put together and has some minor discrepancies I take issue with; However as the Author stated， this is an abstract book that is impossible to put together all of human history and in this regard， he did amazingly well。 This is one of those books that if you want to read only one of the rise of Humanity and why we are having problems， this would be the book for you。 。。。more
Phoebe Phuong
，
Apparently one of the better ones in the shelf of history book collection， which examined so greatly in details of what shaped the humans we are seeing in the world now。 It contains a more elaborate answer for a classical question on the apparent foolishness of racism or white-supremacists。*A tip if you don't have time for such a thick book: shift to chapter 18 for the summary of all the complexities attributing to the distribution of human and knowledge across the continents。 The epilogue is a Apparently one of the better ones in the shelf of history book collection， which examined so greatly in details of what shaped the humans we are seeing in the world now。 It contains a more elaborate answer for a classical question on the apparent foolishness of racism or white-supremacists。*A tip if you don't have time for such a thick book: shift to chapter 18 for the summary of all the complexities attributing to the distribution of human and knowledge across the continents。 The epilogue is a handful of explanations on why the historical sciences is slightly more than "one fact after another" but less than a formative one。 。。。more
Zak Essa
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This book is so dense。 Like really dense。 There is so much information that I feel like I absorbed so little。 I struggled through it and had re-read so many pages。 Despite this， this is definitely interesting and a worthwhile read if you seriously concentrate and go slowly。
James Lees
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In short， I found sections of this book thoroughly enjoyable （all of Part 2 for example） and others tedious and didn’t hold my attention （most of Part 1 and some of 3）。 The thesis itself seems valid and I enjoyed the points made on the whole， it was very good at times but just a tedious journey at others。
Hariharan Ragunathan
，
Interesting read about the reasons behind European Domination in History - was it a chance occurrence or where they superior race？ But its a bit too detailed like a research paper sometimes， that makes it hard to be a easy page turner。 Learnt about the role of diseases in shaping history especially in today's context of COVID pandemic - changes your perspective。 This new panedmic is not something new for humanity in the long history。 Interesting read about the reasons behind European Domination in History - was it a chance occurrence or where they superior race？ But its a bit too detailed like a research paper sometimes， that makes it hard to be a easy page turner。 Learnt about the role of diseases in shaping history especially in today's context of COVID pandemic - changes your perspective。 This new panedmic is not something new for humanity in the long history。 。。。more
Lee Harrington
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Rarely have I read a book that left me at a loss in terms of writing a review。 This is one of those books。 A quick look at other posted reviews， however， demonstrates that my reticence is justified。 It appears that most people either loved it or hated it。 Many of the reviews were quite passionate in their tone。 I suppose if you are a writer this may actually be a good thing。 A heated debate may well draw in more readers。I found the basic premise of the book compelling and very thought provoking。 Rarely have I read a book that left me at a loss in terms of writing a review。 This is one of those books。 A quick look at other posted reviews， however， demonstrates that my reticence is justified。 It appears that most people either loved it or hated it。 Many of the reviews were quite passionate in their tone。 I suppose if you are a writer this may actually be a good thing。 A heated debate may well draw in more readers。I found the basic premise of the book compelling and very thought provoking。 Many of the theories put forward are， to say the least， controversial and if read lightly may be offensive to some。 I don’t believe that Mr Diamond is a racist but whenever you attempt to analyze why one people prevailed over their rivals you are treading a dangerous line。 There can be no doubt that the superior weapons， horses， military discipline and the unforeseen impact of European contagions made the defeat of the Aztecs and Incas inevitable。 Much the same holds true in the conflicts between the indigenous African nations and the European “colonial” powers。 Still， I found Diamond’s explanations about continental orientation and domesticable plants and animals to be intriguing but somewhat unconvincing。 Despite this I recommend the book for anyone who has ever wondered about the uneven pace of technological advancement around the world。 Are we Americans just the beneficiaries of geography and climate？ This book may help you decide。 。。。more
Diana Sung
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A very interesting thesis with some fascinating scope and perspective。 Having read some books （Harari， Gladwell， and Bittman come to mind） that came after Diamond's work， and probably owe much of their enthusiastic recasting of human history through different scholarly lenses to this text， I find Diamond less impressive than he probably was in 1997 for blasting holes through existing theories that explained human history。 I'm not sure I'm completely convinced by his environmental determinism the A very interesting thesis with some fascinating scope and perspective。 Having read some books （Harari， Gladwell， and Bittman come to mind） that came after Diamond's work， and probably owe much of their enthusiastic recasting of human history through different scholarly lenses to this text， I find Diamond less impressive than he probably was in 1997 for blasting holes through existing theories that explained human history。 I'm not sure I'm completely convinced by his environmental determinism thesis， but I do appreciate his vigorous attempt to thwart the racist interpretations of "civilization。" 。。。more
Nina
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