In this book, the author sets out to determine why it is that Eurasians seem to have developed all the technology, and why they've managed to spread and "take over" world-wide, whereas other cultures weren't able to or just didn't do that.

It was o.k. I listened to the abridged audio (I hadn't realized it was abridged until I checked it out of the library, but decided to give it a shot, anyway). I'm not sure if some of the stuff that I think I missed (phrases that "suddenly" appeared without a definition, etc) was because I was not paying attention momentarily, or if it was something that was cut out of the book for the abridgment. I don't know if it would have made a difference if the version I had was unabridged, but the book was only o.k. for me. Somewhat interesting, but probably nothing I'll remember for any amount of time. I will probably still try another book by Diamond, however.

Five Stars for a Flawed Book?
Although much of Jared Diamond's book Guns, Germs, and Steel seems speculative or even flawed, his writing is ground-braking and inspiring. Through the author's experiences, the book receives depth and color. It is a pleasure to read this beautifully flowing text. It may help in addressing the most pressing issues of modernity, such as poverty, violence, and problems that may be induced by climate change.
His case is that modern civilization is essentially branded by the food production capabilities of early civilizations, prompting not only innovation but also the evolution of germs that had enabled them to overtake other people's lands.
Firstly, even though the author attempts a holistic approach, the work is too narrow, missing a bigger evolutionary picture. Secondly, by merely drawing analogies to the invasions of European germs into the American continents, Diamond does not make an evolutionary case for the participation of germs to Eurasian supremacy. Also, the idea of microbes as an aid to conquest can only have played a role for isolated civilizations conquered in the last few hundred years, not for the development of Eurasian peoples that acquired enhanced immune systems. Diamond delivers his own counter argument where the Antonine Plague in the second century did not lead to the conquest of Rome by Middle Eastern forces despite millions of victims at home. Thirdly, the argument may be upside down. Instead, localized abundance of food and human crowding, induced by climate change and geographical bottlenecks, may have led to a rapid rise of civilization (see the experiment below). Lastly, the quality of the book drops significantly from the middle onwards, from Chapter 10, when the author leaves his home turf. His ideas of the different continental axis add an unnecessary complexity with no goal in sight. Meanwhile, the author is out of his league and engages in selective informing when it comes to historic analogies. His chapter about writing is lengthy and deviates into unnecessary details. It does not seem to fit into the narrative in any important way. In short, I do not appreciate it when authors start off with a hypothesis only to throw anything in that may support it, regardless of its relevance or accuracy.
My own research laid out in the book The Great Leap-Fraud, Social Economics of Religious Terrorism shows that the development of humanity can be compared to a large wheel that very slowly drives an interdependent mechanism. Actions lead to symptomatic reactions in rather logical and simple ways. For the ancients, if something was not simple, relative to their level of development, it was not adopted. Diamond must know, as a whole, that the human species is lazy and conservative. If it does not have to change, it will not. If it can overfeed, it will. If it does not need to innovate, it will not. Without external forces, hunter-gatherers simply roam deeper into their territory rather than changing their old ways. Modern Fair Trade experiments speak volumes in this respect. Yet, they were able to identify and improve upon the most suitable crops. As Diamond observed, the hunter-gatherers of New Guinea possess knowledge that dwarfs most, if not all, modern biologists. In other words, 50,000 years ago, the species may have emerged just as intelligent as modern humans, but its intelligence evolved in a different, more specialized way (see Jewelry and cave paintings). On the other hand, the dumbest cow can distinguish delicious clovers from bitter weeds. Hence, the selection process may be less impressive than portrayed by Diamond.
In my work, it seems rather that two factors played a major role in conquests: scarcity induced aggression in ancient times and religious conflicts during the last 2,500 years. The one with an edge was not blessed with food production but with stronger alliances. It is true, of course, that economic advantages re-enforce not only stronger allies but also a more innovative food production (irrigation). After all, it is (human) nature to favor the strong over the weak.
However, the major implications of the text remain unanswered: how can the have-nots be converted into haves? The question is not how to bring the remaining hunter-gatherers into the civilized world or how to turn farmers into city dwellers but how to evolve slumified cities around the globe, even in the West, into a world of human dignity without creating an expectation of a free lunch and dependency by transferring wealth to the poor. Hence, I reject the Diamond's notion of moral justification for redistributive state control. Nevertheless, the quality of the book cannot depend on my agreement but merely on its originality and substance. This is where it deserves a hearty five stars.
A.J. Deus
Author of The Great Leap-Fraud - Social Economics of Religious Terrorism
Ajdeus.org

This is the second time I've read this book. Loved it. Jared Diamond takes us through a journey through human history to shows how some societies dominated over others via guns, germs and steel courtesy of organized agriculture, friendly climates and domestication of plants and animals. In a way, Jared Diamond continues the tradition of Darwinism onto our modern age. The National Geographic companion video to the book is worth a look. GGS should be mandatory reading for all inquisitive people who want to make sense of our crazy world.

Guns, Germs, Steel is civilization explained. It concisely summarizes the history of human civilization, starting from the tipping point of technological innovation in 11,000 BC - when humans first engaged in food production and settled down, abandoning its nomadic ways - until today. It explains how differences in the geography and environment dictated the advancement of civilizations, disputing the notion that whites are inherently a superior race.

I love anything related to civilization building - I play Simcity 4 and Civilization IV for PC as well as Civilization for Xbox 360, and I play the Settlers boardgame. Now I can say I've the read the pinnacle of literature on the topic - Guns, Germs, Steel.

It's pretty lengthy though, so wondering if you should read this book? Ask yourself this: have you ever wondered how humans went from nomadic tribes to complex organized states, how organisms evolve, how ideas and technologies spread, and why Europe settled North America and not vice versa? If you answered yes to any of these questions, or if you're a science geek or history buff, this is a must read!

Jared Diamond is one of the most genius authors of our time. Sure, he is a little eccentric, but the depth and detail he goes into in his books is nothing short of incredible.

Guns, Germs and Steel describes why some cultures evolved into more "modern" societies while others seemed to sit still in the evolutionary process. If the human race started in Africa, why did the America's become the world's leading power? Why are there still parts of the world that remain uncivilized despite all the technological advances that we have seen over the past few decades? All these questions and more are explored in Diamond's book.

I would recommend this book to anyone interested the history of the world's evolution into new societies.

I read the book almost 2 years ago and I still consider it one of the best book I have ever read. Diamond is analytical and factual thoughout the book. The book is long, but absolutelly never boring. Bravo Diamond!

Diamond takes us on a global journey through time and historical causes and effects. He dispels racial prejudice in offering botanical, climatic and geographical rationales behind seeming cultural advantages in world history. I loved his panoramic view and down to earth research into how we got to this place in time.

The thing that sets this book apart from most books is the level of detail. Most books are mostly narrative with the occasional specific detail. Not this one. Every page is filled with specifics.

As to whether his basic premise that technology arose in societies that had the right mix of domesticable plants and animals is correct, it's tough to say. I think he makes a compelling argument. I certainly am convinced that it was not some sort of racial superiority that resulted in Europeans dominating the world. I do think that there was a large measure of randomness involved and that it was by no means preordained.

One thing is certain, however. This is the work of a towering intellect. The Pulitzer was well deserved.

It took longer than expected to read this book, not because it's over 400 pages, but because of the author's use of a large number of examples to illustrate his main arguments. However, the book is neatly divided into clear sections making it easy to stop reading and then pick up again. The author does a good job of compressing thousands of years of human "pre-history" into convincing arguments of why certain societies developed differently from each other. Definitely recommended.

While this book presented interesting ideas, and I do indeed feel as if I learned something, I found it rather hard to get through (I stopped and started reading it three times before I finally gave up around pg. 300). I finally had to give up because I just felt as if I was reading a textbook and some of the themes seemed to be repeated. I can't say it was bad because it does set out to do what it says but it is very technical and dry at times.

Jared's take that the fate of human societies and ethnicities is largely a function of geography and timing rather than their DNA is well argued and I buy into it although many find it very controversial.

I absolutely disagree with Craig McFarlane. The book is an easy read. It's enjoyable, rationally informative, profoundly interesting, and it keeps the reader wanting to know more about how some cultures were able to subjugate others so easily and how others
were comparatively progressively limited due to their geographical limitations. This book is a must read for anyone interested in getting a bigger picture of how it is that things are as they are.

Guns, Germs, and Steel should be a required reading for everyone. This book provides many answers in understanding how the world is today by looking at how the world developed. Jared Diamond is an excellent writer. Although some parts tend to drag on a bit, the overall concept of the book is well written.

Jared Diamond's book is essentialy a crash course in cultural ecology. It explains how and why civilizations have formed in the past; including, how these civilizations have developed advantages over others in the form of technology and resistance to diseases. This book is a must read for anyone interested in how the life cycle of a nation works.

Jared Diamond's thoroughly researched masterpiece work takes a broad stroke of history and ties together multiple disciplines into a coherent and consistent thesis of how our civilizations got here. I'm amazed at how many details I can remember from the book, and how it's become a prism for how I look at our world.

He easily debunks the common Eurocentric views many of us had simply because we live at this time in history; commonly that European or Judeo-Christian or Western teachings and achievements are the primary reasons for why the world is what it is. I found it at once positive, affirming, and equal. It's a thesis that shows why some people did better than others not because they were better but because of circumstances.

I recommend it highly.

Read the other reviews for details of what this book is about. I'll just say that while I did not agree with many of Diamond's views or hypotheses, and I tired of hearing the same arguments and examples over and over, this book made me think about things I'd never previously considered, and therein lies its value. Take the book with a pinch or a pound of salt, but it will at least get you thinking and help you develop a broader view of the world around you.

Compared to "a short history of progress", this book reads more like a text book. I am enjoying it, by sometimes skimming over the detailed facts the author uses in justifying his points. The book goes into great detail about the development of societies. I am finding it very interesting and enlightening. FYI: An easier read (or a starter on this topic) would be "a short history of progress" by Ronald Wright.
Guns germs and steel answers the question of why was euro-asian civilization more advanced then to that of hunter-gatherer societies such as those found in the Americas.

Guns, Germs and Steel??

The title of this book should be the importance of farming, farming, farming.

It's an interesting book and its depth is certainly impressive. I guess I was hoping for a little more guns, germs and steel.

Diamond definitely does what he sets out to do. This was to refute the idea that race had anything to do with the development of societies around the world. My quibble is with the writing. I find his style to be extremely tedious. He lists endless exmaples that interrupt the flow of his arguments. The writing reminds me of what I would read in an essay by a university student (that is bad for those who don't remember). He cannot link his arguments or examples together without awkward phrasing that makes the book hard to get through.

The whole purpose of writing this book, as the author Jared Diamond
freely admits, is to debunk the notion that the human race, culture and
traditions had anything to do with the striking differences of the
technological progress achieved by different societies on different
continents throughout history. His main postulate is that only in the
Fertile Triangle of the Middle East were there the right conditions, such
as climate, choice of plants and animals to be domesticated etc., to
favor food production on a grand scale. These favorable conditions in
turn allowed other technological developments, which resulted in -
until recently - the technological preeminence of Western civilization.
According the Diamond, any other group of humans given the same
opportunities would have fared in the same way. Thus, he puts the
onus on geography and environment, one of the few theories in the
evolution of human societies, which has been kicking around for some
time. In support of this, he provides an endless litany of examples,
mostly conjectural and hypothetical.

Diamond speaks from a totally anthropocentric position: anything and
everything in the world throughout recorded, or at least archeologically
documented human history, is weighted from the perspective of its
usefulness to humans. He seems to completely lack compassion for
the non-human living creatures and the biosphere in general. His only
concern is how to best exploit the Earth and use all living things to the
benefit of man. Given his antiracist position, this anthroporacism is
offensive.

Somewhat surprisingly for such a politically correct author, is his
implicit advocacy of eugenics by stating that New Guineans are
smarter than Westerners because only the fittest and smartest survived
throughout their history of "high mortality from murder, chronic tribal
warfare, accidents and problems in procuring food". In contrast,
Europeans have diluted the quality of their genetic pool by allowing "to
survive live-born infants fatal infections as well as reproduce
themselves, regardless of their intelligence and the genes they bear
"(sic) (Prologue paperback ed. p. 20 - 21).

Lastly, one idiosyncratic note: in the Prologue Diamond takes great
pains to assure the reader that he is sublimely qualified to write a
complete and definitive book on this subject by the virtue of his
upbringing, education, and professional and personal experience.
Perhaps, this might have been better left for a reviewer to decide.