Book Reviewed: Sapiens: A Graphic History: The Birth of Humankind Vol 1 by Yuval Noah Harari

An incomplete and inaccurate graphic history of life Teaching kids to impart knowledge relies on project-based learning (PBL), graphic illustrations, video materials and other tools. After reading this book with the star-studded “positive” comments from Barack Obama, Bill Gates, and Natalie Portman, we learn that a good marketing strategy works for sales, but not for knowledge to be gained. It is an exciting journey through ancient times to discover the images, paintings, habitats, and pottery, left by our ancestors. But historical evidence for our ancestry also comes from paleo-biological studies of fossils. Interweaving recent discoveries, maps, and illustrations. Evolution tells the story of our origins. This book is narrated with an inquisitive child, an educator, a cop, and author Harari about our origins. There are several instances of inaccuracy and unscientific facts in this book, the examples are: Only homo sapiens can change their social system, and behavior in all animals is determined by their genetic system; homo sapiens had a cognitive revolution that made them different from other animals; and humans are still adapted to hunter-gather lifestyle. The last few pages are devoted to boring narratives of Diprotodons, the largest marsupials whose extinction was brought about by humans. This book which brings life in 245 pages of illustrations miss out on critical historical facts. For example, there were five mass extinctions of life on the planet including the last event called the Cretaceous–Paleogene extinction event that occurred 66 million years ago. This wiped-out dinosaurs, and it was critical in creating geophysical conditions for the rapid evolution of mammals. The book barely mentions the relationship between humans, Neanderthals and Denisovans. There is genetic evidence for interbreeding with at least four archaic hominin species that included Neanderthals and Denisovans. The continental drift in the late Triassic Period (which lasted from approximately 251 million to 199.6 million years ago), the supercontinent of Pangea fragmented, and the continents began to move away from one another to the current structure creating new opportunities for species evolution. The book has several cases of cultural sensitivities. The story is supposed to be narrated by a character referred to as Professor Saraswati, apparently referring to Hindu Goddess Saraswati of knowledge and learning who is depicted as a fat Indian lady with a large tilak on the forehead. The book also refers to birth of Christianity and Islam but do not refer to Hinduism, the oldest faith in the world. The earliest hymns of the sacred scriptures of Rig-Veda were written in 1700 B.C.E. They not only connect mankind to worshiping God, but also represent some of the finest poetry ever written in an ancient language.