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Reviews
Sapiens: кратка история на човечеството by Ина Димитрова, Yuval Noah Harari, Ювал Ноа Харари
cgriesemer's review against another edition
4.0
Wow, what an in-depth and fascinating journey through human evolution, the how and why we are the way we are, and how out of sync that is with the modern world around us. Really interesting stuff. I obviously appreciate all the creature comforts of today, but there is definitely an appeal to the lifestyle of our foraging millenia gone-by.
pabasara_k's review against another edition
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
anteus7's review against another edition
5.0
I really enjoy reading things that challenge what I have learned in the past. This book did a lot of that.
Sapiens has been on my radar for a long time, but I never seemed to get around to it. I recently read a book called The Dawn of Everything (which was way over my head in a number of ways--I just don't have the depth of anthropological background to get some of the references, I think) that mentioned this book, so I decided to read it next. I wish I had read it before The Dawn of Everything!
Harari's style is accessible. He is dry and witty, knowledgable without being pedantic, and clear. He does, for my taste at least, a great job of weaving multiple disciplines together: history, sociology, economics, anthropology. He does this in a way that remains accessible.
This is a book that has made me think a lot about our own cultural evolution and where we may be headed in the future. In the last part of the book, Harari engages in some speculation which I also appreciated. Nothing like a good 'what if?'
Sapiens has been on my radar for a long time, but I never seemed to get around to it. I recently read a book called The Dawn of Everything (which was way over my head in a number of ways--I just don't have the depth of anthropological background to get some of the references, I think) that mentioned this book, so I decided to read it next. I wish I had read it before The Dawn of Everything!
Harari's style is accessible. He is dry and witty, knowledgable without being pedantic, and clear. He does, for my taste at least, a great job of weaving multiple disciplines together: history, sociology, economics, anthropology. He does this in a way that remains accessible.
This is a book that has made me think a lot about our own cultural evolution and where we may be headed in the future. In the last part of the book, Harari engages in some speculation which I also appreciated. Nothing like a good 'what if?'
thechaliceofaries's review against another edition
4.0
The Animal That Became A God
I found this to be a very entertaining read that gave a broad overview of many different fields relating to Homo sapiens’ time on earth - including but not limited to anthropology, evolutionary biology, economics, and theology. It begins by describing our humble and insignificant beginnings as an animal with no considerable advantage in size, strength or abilities to the other larger and more intimidating predators around at the time, to our current position as the most powerful and terrifying species on the planet. Considering what a vast timespan it covers, it’s understandable that even with 460+ pages it only manages to touch on most of these topics briefly. However, it does provide an engaging, if not at times subjective, narrative of human’s place in the world, and gave me so much to think about. It’s worth keeping in mind that like all historical books, this is just one man’s account of things, including his own concepts and ideas (some which are easy to agree with, and others that I had trouble digesting as facts), and therefore everything that is read here should be taken with a grain of salt. However, in spite of this, Sapiens was a great introduction to many topics that I’m now motivated to further read up on, and I think everyone should give it a go at least once in their lives.
I found this to be a very entertaining read that gave a broad overview of many different fields relating to Homo sapiens’ time on earth - including but not limited to anthropology, evolutionary biology, economics, and theology. It begins by describing our humble and insignificant beginnings as an animal with no considerable advantage in size, strength or abilities to the other larger and more intimidating predators around at the time, to our current position as the most powerful and terrifying species on the planet. Considering what a vast timespan it covers, it’s understandable that even with 460+ pages it only manages to touch on most of these topics briefly. However, it does provide an engaging, if not at times subjective, narrative of human’s place in the world, and gave me so much to think about. It’s worth keeping in mind that like all historical books, this is just one man’s account of things, including his own concepts and ideas (some which are easy to agree with, and others that I had trouble digesting as facts), and therefore everything that is read here should be taken with a grain of salt. However, in spite of this, Sapiens was a great introduction to many topics that I’m now motivated to further read up on, and I think everyone should give it a go at least once in their lives.
lucasjenkins's review against another edition
3.5
This certainly is a popular science book, in which the author does not go into depth in any one subject in particular, and is generous in giving his own (and naturally biased) opinion or perspective on the various historical developments of humankind. Nevertheless, an enjoyable and thought-provoking book, and perhaps a good precursor to my next, more intellectual read: The Dawn of Everything.
blythebeary's review against another edition
informative
medium-paced
5.0
I had delayed reading this book because I heard critiques about it, but I thought it was fascinating. It would be impossible to capture all of human history in one book, but I think the broad angles that the author chooses are excellent. I think people will interpret the meaning of this book differently depending on their own dispositions and beliefs, and whether or not they feel those dispositions and beliefs are challenged or validated.