Great Universal Catalogue Guns, Germs and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies Author: Jared Diamond Trade Paperback Usually ships in 24 hours Delivery is subject to warehouse availability. Shipping delays may occur if we receive more orders than stock. Our Price: $24.99 You could save $2.50 (10%) with our iREWARDS Program Ordering is 100% secure . Spend $39 or more at chapters.indigo.ca and your order ships free!. ( Details ) Dimensions: 480 Pages, 6.125 x 9.25 in | ISBN: 0393317552 Published: April 1999 | Published by Zebra Bouquet Our customers who bought this item also bought: Clash Of Civilizations (1998) Book ~ SAMUEL P. HUNTINGTON How the Scots Invented the Modern... (2001) Book ~ Arthur Herman chapters.indigo Review This amazing book debunks racially based theories of human development. It explains how human history has progressed to our present state, moving from writing to technology, government, organized religion and so on. Chronicling the geographic and environmental factors that shaped the modern world, Guns, Germs and Steel is wide in scope. From the Publisher Winner of the Pulitzer Prize. In this "artful, informative, and delightful" (William H. McNeill, New York Review of Books ) book, Jared Diamond convincingly argues that geographical and environmental factors shaped the modern world. Societies that had had a head start in food production advanced beyond the hunter-gatherer stage, and then developed religion -- as well as nasty germs and potent weapons of war -- and adventured on sea and land to conquer and decimate preliterate cultures. A major advance in our understanding of human societies, Guns, Germs, and Steel chronicles the way that the modern world came to be and stunningly dismantles racially based theories of human history. Winner of the Pulitzer Prize, the Phi Beta Kappa Award in Science, the Rhone-Poulenc Prize, and the Commonwealth Club of California's Gold Medal. About the Author Jared Diamond, professor of physiology at the UCLA School of Medicine, is the author of the best-selling and award-winning The Third Chimpanzee. He has published over 200 articles in Discover, Natural History, Nature, and Geo magazines Reader Reviews Average Reader Review: Number of Reviews: 5 1. Get it! Read it! Spread it! Reviewer: Daniele Michaud from Montreal Quebec (michaudd@videotron.ca) Date: 6/28/2000 6:38:24 PM Simply brilliant, and a pleasure to read. Strongly recommended to anyone with an interest in anthropology, history and sociology. NOT a cold analysis though: the author makes no mystery about the fact that he was driven to writing this book by events in his own life, and frankly this is partly what makes the book so interesting to read. 2. required reading Reviewer: ted wilson from Vancouver B.C. Date: 5/2/2000 1:28:49 PM It is a rare individual that has the background, compassion, and depth to provide provocative answers to the central question of this book. This is a book that encourages the reader to re-examine their own understanding of human history by looking through the minds eye of archeologists the world over. It is not the answers given, but the work behind them that impresses. 3. Where do we go from here? Reviewer: stephen a. haines from Ottawa, Ontario (bigbunyip@home.com) Date: 3/28/2000 3:28:33 PM Anyone claiming they could present the extent of human history in a mere 400 pages should be treated with derisive scorn. Yet Diamond has achieved this feat with admirable skill. He poses the question, 'why have whites gained such vast material wealth while black peoples have not'? His response reviews the environmental factors present over the five inhabited continental land masses and how these elements shaped cultural foundations. The most impressive aspect of this book is the thought that must have gone into writing it. The brevity of it belies the fact that Diamond must have shed many preconceived notions [such as we all have] to produce a work of such vast scope. Tracing humanity's progress from its African roots around the planet as each continent was occupied and how each landmass impacted that occupation requires the broadest vision. The only thing missing from his synopsis is what motivated the Third Chimpanzee to spread itself over the whole planet. Rightfully, he calls for this very query in the Epilogue. By viewing history with a scientific instead of the more commonly applied cultural eye, better answers about who we are may be derived. 4. Your world view will change. Reviewer: Jeremy Crowhurst from Vancouver, B.C. Date: 1/12/2000 11:51:37 PM This is a stunning book, easily understandable, which may change the way you look at everything. A must for parents who want to answer some of those tough questions children ask, and who want to teach them how to figure out some of the answers for themselves. 5. Great Read! Reviewer: Stephen from Vancouver, BC Date: 9/5/1999 9:43:15 PM For anyone who wants a sound, general knowledge about the history of civilizations and the why, where, and how they became, this book is a great read. The book is a real eye-opener in some ways, and helps to define history beyond European roots. I would recommend this book to eveyone! Read all of the reviews... 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