Guns, Germs and Steel

The Fate of Human Societies

By: Jared Diamond

Narrated by: Doug Ordunio

Length: 16 hrs and 20 mins

Publisher's summary

Pulitzer Prize, General Nonfiction, 1998

Guns, Germs and Steel examines the rise of civilization and the issues its development has raised throughout history.

Having done field work in New Guinea for more than 30 years, Jared Diamond presents the geographical and ecological factors that have shaped the modern world. From the viewpoint of an evolutionary biologist, he highlights the broadest movements both literal and conceptual on every continent since the Ice Age, and examines societal advances such as writing, religion, government, and technology. Diamond also dissects racial theories of global history, and the resulting work—Guns, Germs and Steel—is a major contribution to our understanding the evolution of human societies.

©1997 Jared Diamond (P)2011 Random House

Phenomenal

Amazing work by Jared Diamond. Highly recommend for any readers who desire to further educate themselves on the progress of humanity, the concepts of race and culture, and how our cultures and current world have developed.

theory's debunked through deeper research

while the historical analysis is considerable, the emphasis lacks the overarching elements that other historians have used to debunk this book's conclusions.

This book deserves better!

It's a brilliant book, the author has a very ambitious and all spanning theory about human history and evolution. However the voice performance is so flat I'm quite sure I missed nearly half of the book. This needs an update!

lots of data

this book had a lot of interesting information in it. very hard to stay focused on though.

Great look into the rise if western civilization.

I thought the book did a great job of filling gaps that were not covered in my high school and college history courses as to why western European society ended up being the most dominant in the modern world.

And this is why the world is the way it is.

Just marvelous how this book presents its ideas. The arguments made in this book can be judged critically, which is what the author did, he presented the historical evidence and inferred the argument from it. The information stated in this book is quite important in the understanding of the evolution of human society and civilization.

A Grand Overview for History Buffs

Of course, as an overview, there are going to be key moments in history that are not mentioned here. However, Diamond is great at addressing this from the beginning, and so because he does not boast to be explaining everything we need to know about this subject matter, readers/listeners are able to more readily accept his claims. This is a great starting point for those interested in geography-based history.

Diamond has a secure grasp on the biological processes relevant to his discussions, such as disease transmission and ecological dispersion. This balanced worldview comes from his birdwatcher-mother upbringing and earlier endeavors in medical school. This work opened my eyes to how important environmental conditions are to the development of human societies.

This is a definite read for any global history buffs; specific enough for scholars yet also conversational enough for the layman. The narration was for the most part on par, except for the moments when you could tell Ordunio was turning pages in the recording studio or when there was a clear brake in the tone of voice indicative of different recording sessions. I would recommend this to others.

Worth "wade"

First couple of chapters are slow as they just outline what is to come. The author then systematically goes through the process of the development of society from an evolutionary standpoint.

The principles and patterns are repeated with each section of the book.

I like that it made me think more deeply about many things I would ordinarily take for granted. For example, hunting/gathering as opposed to early food production was really a matter of expediency rather than an inevitable progression.

I also like the discussion of plant domestication and the many considerations of what makes a particular plant useful and domesticable. The author goes deep into such minutia but it is worth the wade in the end.

my book soon to follow

Would you listen to Guns, Germs and Steel again? Why?

yep, cuz i distracted easliy

What was one of the most memorable moments of Guns, Germs and Steel?

genetics based of cultural diffusion.

Which scene was your favorite?

mr plum in the library with the toothpick

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

when I realized that i was talking like reader.

Any additional comments?

send me free stuff

Everybody should know this history

Great book, insightful, should be taught in a schools, and it is the story about all humans.