Catching Fire

How Cooking Made Us Human

By: Richard Wrangham

Narrated by: Kevin Pariseau

Ever since Darwin and The Descent of Man, the existence of humans has been attributed to our intelligence and adaptability. But in Catching Fire, renowned primatologist Richard Wrangham presents a startling alternative: our evolutionary success is the result of cooking.

In a groundbreaking theory of our origins, Wrangham shows that the shift from raw to cooked foods was the key factor in human evolution. When our ancestors adapted to using fire, humanity began. Once our hominid ancestors began cooking their food, the human digestive tract shrank and the brain grew. Time once spent chewing tough raw food could be used instead to hunt and to tend camp. Cooking became the basis for pair bonding and marriage, created the household, and even led to a sexual division of labor.

Tracing the contemporary implications of our ancestors diets, Catching Fire sheds new light on how we came to be the social, intelligent, and sexual species we are today. A pathbreaking new theory of human evolution, Catching Fire will provoke controversy and fascinate anyone interested in our ancient origins - or in our modern eating habits.

©2009 Richard Wrangham (P)2009 Audible, Inc.

Critic reviews

• Top 10 Books of 2009 (Dwight Garner, The New York Times)

• Books of the Year 2009 (The Economist)

"[A] fascinating study...Wrangham's lucid, accessible treatise ranges across nutritional science, Paleontology and studies of ape behavior and hunter-gatherer societies; the result is a tour de force of natural history and a profound analysis of cooking's role in daily life." ( Publishers Weekly)

" Catching Fire is convincing in argument and impressive in its explanatory power. A rich and important book." (Michael Pollan, author of In Defense of Food and The Omnivore's Dilemma)

the most awesome book I have ever read (heard)

Being female and observing females of many species, I have found that female equates to interest in food and male equates to interest in something else, need I say? Cooking backburnered as unimportant even to the point of it being required female activity is appraised in a whole new light and well proved up in this awesome book. Hey it is cooking that got us big brains, you know that lowly female activity? It makes me laugh! I think the genius author of this book will probably be excommunicated from the male religion of male supremacy. I also thought his points about why women CHOSE to be mated is also very important as well. Anyone who cannot see the importance and genius of this book and the importance of every thought in it, well, needs more cooked food and non-processed cooked food.

On a personal note, I tried a raw food diet and gave it up and now I know why and I don't have to feel guilty that I do not serve up my dogs a raw food diet instead of opening a can.

Really interesting insights

Really interesting insights in early adoption of fire from our ancestors and their learning of cooking as an activity that shaped our biological development, social behaviour and so many other aspects of ourselves. A must listen to.

very informative

I liked it a lot, nice follow. It is a very interesting topic. it is worth your time.

Fire the 🐐 no 🧢

This book blew my mind. I cannot stop thinking about this book. I can not stop talking about this book. Fantastic research and reporting.

Fascinating and the narrator was perfect for this.

The subject seemed odd at first but became really believable with the careful presentation of arguments and supporting research. The narrator Kevin Pariseau was perfect for this book; I wish he had been the narrator of many of the other non-fiction books I've heard. The book gets a little slow in places and there is some repetition but overall it was a great listen.

Very interesting stuff.

A fresh perspective on the origins of humanity and the current struggle to control epidemic obesity.

Fascinating - relevant - accessible academic

Any additional comments?

This book was easy for a person like me to understand (one anthropology class in university) but well researched and structured. Very academic, so a little dry at parts but I liked the information so much it doesn't matter. Really interesting ideas that have implications for social policy, science, and our own individual diets.

Needs a chapter on the science of fire making.

I wish it would have covered the science of fire making. At least one chapter. Overall, an excellent book!

Food for thought

Informative, yet somewhat repetitive. The book provides some new angles to approach the evolution of humans and the cultural norms that bind them.

How my audible book review process caught fire

What made the experience of listening to Catching Fire the most enjoyable?

Learning about expensive tissue theory, and the highlights of evolutionary digestion made listening to this most enjoyable.

What do you think your next listen will be?

The Origins of Political Order From Prehuman Times to the French Revolution by Francis Fukuyama

What does Kevin Pariseau bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

Kevin Pariseau has a "David Attenborough-like" narrative quality. He also nails some tribal pronunciations to great enjoyment.

What’s the most interesting tidbit you’ve picked up from this book?

The expensive tissue theory is the most interesting tidbit from this book.

Any additional comments?

I found this book to be a bit dry at points. Yet overall, I must admit it is rather illuminating. As a novice/outsider to evolutionary anthropology, I feel like it bridged a gap in understanding for me. Particularly, the thesis/thrust of the book linking how cooking with fire changed our ancestors diet patterns and then in turn their cognition and behavior. The expensive tissue theory with the reallocation of tissue from the gut to the brain is mind blowing. I would like to learn more about that from a biochemist's point of view. Also, towards the end, he goes into the current trends and studies surrounding nutrition and metabolism. I would be curious to learn more about contemporary studies akin to David Atwaters experiment, that could foster better nutrition labeling and hopefully curb the pandemic of obesity in America and abroad. Worth a read, but certainly worth a listen. Thanks Audible!