A landmark, radically uplifting account of our species'** progress,
from one of the world's preeminent thinkers.**
"Unparalleled in its scope and ambition...All readers will learn
something, and many will find the book fascinating.'--The
Washington Post
"**Breathtaking. A new Sapiens!"****** --L'Express
*
"**Completely brilliant and utterly original ... a book for our
epoch."***--**Jon Snow, former presenter, Channel 4 News (UK)
"**A wildly ambitious attempt to do for economics what Newton,
Darwin or Einstein did for their fields: develop a theory that explains
almost everything."****** --The New Statesman
**"An inspiring, readable, jargon-free and almost impossibly erudite
masterwork." ** --The New Statesman
"[A] sweeping overview of cultural, technological and
educational forces... Its breadth and ambition are reminiscent of
Diamond's Guns, Germs, and Steel and Harari's
Sapiens."--Financial Times
****"Astounding in scope and insight...provides the keys to the
betterment of our species."**--**Nouriel Roubini, author of Crisis
Economics
"A masterful sweep through the human odyssey.... If you liked
Sapiens, you'll love this." --Lewis Dartnell, author of
Origins
"Oded Galor's attempt to unify economic theory is impressive and
insightful." *--*Will Hutton, The Guardian
"A great historical fresco." --Le Monde
***"It's a page-turner, a suspense-filled thriller full of surprises,
mind-bending puzzles and profound insights!"--*Glenn C. Loury, author
of *The Anatomy of Racial Inequality
"Brilliantly weaves the threads of global economic history. A
tour de force!"--*Dani Rodrik, author of Straight Talk on
Trade
In a captivating journey from the dawn of human existence to the
present, world-renowned economist and thinker Oded Galor offers an
intriguing solution to two of humanity's great mysteries.
Why are humans the only species to have escaped--only very recently--the
subsistence trap, allowing us to enjoy a standard of living that vastly
exceeds all others? And why have we progressed so unequally around the
world, resulting in the great disparities between nations that exist
today? Galor's gripping narrative explains how technology, population
size, and adaptation led to a stunning "phase change" in the human story
a mere two hundred years ago. But by tracing that same journey back in
time and peeling away the layers of influence--colonialism, political
institutions, societal structure, culture--he arrives also at an
explanation of inequality's ultimate causes: those ancestral populations
that enjoyed fruitful geographical characteristics and rich diversity
were set on the path to prosperity, while those that lacked it were
disadvantaged in ways still echo today.
As we face ecological crisis across the globe, The Journey of Humanity
is a book of urgent truths and enduring relevance, with lessons that are
both hopeful and profound: gender equality, investment in education, and
balancing diversity with social cohesion are the keys not only to our
species' thriving but to its survival.
