Customer Reviews

Out of Eden

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Amazon doesn't carry this book, and it is only available through third parties. Don't be fooled (as I was) into thinking that this means that this book is out of print!

In the US, this book is available directly from Amazon as "The Real Eve: Modern Man's Journey Out of Africa." Judging from the TOC, the books are the same, but the American edition is cheaper and will probably arrive faster.

Oppenheimer's work is a masterpiece of breathtaking scope. He handles the many aspects of the migration of human genes in a masterful, entertaining, exciting and, above all, immensely informative way. He takes a huge puzzle and puts together the pieces in a coherent and convincing manner. He paints a very compelling picture of the timing and the routing of the movement of humans to populate every corner of the world and presents hypotheses for phenotypic differences between peoples. Anthropologists may quibble with some minor details, as did I, but these do not detract from what I have to call the majesty of the subject matter. His book successfully links genetic data with archeological evidence and, above all, with climatological data to plot the routes taken by our ancestors. I highly recommend this book.

I'd better say straight away that I am convinced the "Out-of-Africa" concept for peopling the world has validity. Therefore, I found this account, written for the layman, of which I am one, to be easily read, plausible & properly resourced. I can recommend this book to curious first-time readers about The Journey of Man. Seamlessly cobbles together genetics,paleontology and paleoanthropology to make a well-reasoned argument.

This is a an excellent presentation of our mutual origins based on the best scientific evidence available at the time. It should give pause to those who believe we were physically created about 10,000 years ago as well as those who believe that we have origns occurring in multiple parts of the earth. It does not rule out a devine plan, only that it occurred over an extended period and according to natural processes set in motion at The Beginning. This is must reading for those who seek to unify a creationist belief with the outcome of natural selection.

Very happy with this transaction. Item had arrived within the expected time frame and as in great condition as described. Many thanks and keep up with good work!

I have had a fair amount of experience reading complicated literature, and enjoy following a clear, tightly reasoned argument, but this book is just too hard to follow. The author has not managed to provide an accessible account Man's prehistory. He gives us a degree of detail more appropriate for a scientific treatise. He has a fascinating story to tell, and I hope that he will eventually provide a more readable book.