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After finishing The Wager earlier this month, I dove into the next book on my list for this year - Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari. This #1 international bestseller came out way back in 2014 (so it's not a new book but it is new for me!), but after several recommendations, I’m finally getting around to reading it. Despite being 10 years old, it remains very relevant!
The book is, as it says right on the cover, a brief history of humankind, and it takes us through the changes and developments in human society, culture, and technology from the hunter gatherer days right up to the present and beyond, speculating on what might come next. It makes the reader realize how brief humankind’s existence has been in the big picture, how recent many of the things we take for granted are, and how quickly the pace of change has accelerated in recent years. It also highlights the importance of trust in many of the systems we depend on, as well as the power of humankind’s collective imagination and what it has allowed us to build and achieve (sometimes for better, sometimes for worse).
There are many, many reviews of this book out there, so I don’t need to say much more about it, but I would quote Bill Gates in saying that “I would recommend Sapiens to anyone who’s interested in the history and future of our species.” One of my favourites parts is how it deals with the influence of empires and colonization on the modern world (which is currently a very hot topic) in a very honest way. You will definitely think differently about being human and about life in today's modern global society after reading this book!
KarenSensei
Jan 31, 2024
this is one of my favorite books of all time!! you learn so much from it!