Ben Waber reviewed Earth Transformed by Peter Frankopan
A Unique if Slightly Unfocused History of Humans
4 stars
This book uniquely contextualizes human history by positioning the environment as an important player, exploring the effects of different environmental changes over the millennia and situating those changes within major human events. Frankopan doesn't engage in environmental determinism - he's quick to point out when the environment is much more of a bit player in a particular event - but it is enlightening to get a full sense of the oft-neglected power of the environment in driving events. The science around modern times does get a bit shaky (there's a lot on cloud seeding that is unfounded, for example), and the lack of systematic exploration of different types of environmental changes over the millennia leaves a big gap. But overall this is an extremely insightful read. Highly recommend
This book uniquely contextualizes human history by positioning the environment as an important player, exploring the effects of different environmental changes over the millennia and situating those changes within major human events. Frankopan doesn't engage in environmental determinism - he's quick to point out when the environment is much more of a bit player in a particular event - but it is enlightening to get a full sense of the oft-neglected power of the environment in driving events. The science around modern times does get a bit shaky (there's a lot on cloud seeding that is unfounded, for example), and the lack of systematic exploration of different types of environmental changes over the millennia leaves a big gap. But overall this is an extremely insightful read. Highly recommend