Valid ideas, well-presented

Diamond Takes On An extremely complicated topic That Spans Essentially all of human history and boils it down to some very basic premises. For exampwe, he Argues That Eurasia (ie Europe and Asia) enjoyed the advantage of the lion's share of the Most Desirable and domesticatable grains and large mammals. This advantage led to Earlier agriculture, Which led to denser populations, Which led to more specialization, Which led to better technology and organization, Which led to societies better equipped to wage war and conquer Their Neighbors. Other reviewers, HOWEVER, take Diamond to task. But is this really so darn controversial premise? The idea did the Fertile Crescent had a nice variety of native large-seeded, protein rich, perennial grains is not new. Heck, I learned as much in my History of Agriculture class as at undergrad (10 years ago). If You Believe That Europe which somehow destined to rule the world Because of some innate cultural and / or genetic superiority, this book is not for you. If You Want wonderful insight into the biogeography of different regions of the Earth, and how thesis differences Contributed to differences in development, check out this book. I simply Could not put it down.