In Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind, renowned historian Yuval Noah Harari chronicles both the creation and evolution of humankind. Harari recounts the manner in which both history and biology have defined and enriched our understanding of what truly being “human” means. Unlike most books that either utilize a biological or a historical approach in narrating the history of humankind, Sapiens opens at the dawn of modern cognition approximately 70,000 years ago. From how human evolution has played a part in transforming the world’s ecosystem to how empires and civilizations arose, Harari integrates science and history to reexamine generally accepted ideologies, link developments in the past to the matters of the present, and evaluate detailed events in a much wider perspective. We are entering a new age—an era where humans can not only successfully shape the world but also shape themselves. Where does this lead humankind? More importantly: what do you want to become?
