From the cultivation of the first crops to the founding of modern states, Origins reveals the impact of the earth beneath our feet on the shape of our human civilizations.
...[an] extraordinary book ... Dartnell understands geology, geography, anthropology, physics, chemistry, biology, astronomy and history. That’s quite an achievement, but what makes him really special is the way he communicates the interconnectedness of these disciplines in a clear, logical and entertaining way. Origins is one of those rare books that dissolves mystery through the steady application of sublime lucidity. While reading it, I kept thinking: 'Oh, that makes sense' ... Perhaps the most profound lesson of this superb book is that nothing is permanent, or predictable.
It is stimulating, entertaining stuff. Dartnell has an easy, light touch that mixes well with his considerable knowledge of our planet’s geological history. The result is a first-class read – and an important one, for we should never forget we are still beholden to the rocks below us.
Lewis Dartnell’s new study of how geology and geography have shaped human history is a kind of Big History book, but it is better than many in the genre. This is partly because he is an academic who specialises in communicating science and is very good at what he does .. What marks Origins out, though, is Dartnell’s love for geography itself — for tracing the deep connections between the physical planet and the human world ... What emerges is an excitingly grand argument driven by delight in detail. And they are delightful details. My next dinner-party monologue will chiefly involve things I discovered from Dartnell ...
