Customer Reviews

Who We Are: A Chronicle of the Ideas That Shaped Our World (Kirk Heriot)

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This book is incredibly informative yet incredibly accessible. As it states, the author assumes no prior knowledge, and this book is written in a clear, understandable way. As you read it, you'll likely come across pieces and say, "Hey, I knew that!" and what's great is this book puts those pieces together and fills in your understanding of our collective history in a new and commendable way. It would be the ultimate high school text book, college graduation gift, or book to read for yourself.

I have discovered a book-one book-which will tell you everything you ever wanted to know about anything you'd like to know about, all in some 500 pages. It is encyclopedic in scope and written in a scholarly, but easy to read style. Look in the index, pick your subject, from the prehistoric to the computer to DNA and cell theory. It's a book lover's must.

This is a great book! I never thought I would say that I could not stop reading a book on world history and civilization, but now I can. Dr. Heriot has a unique ability to not only paint a broad landscape with bold brush strokes to cover the history of civilization but also to focus, and keep, our attention on the finer details of human invention leading to human accomplishment. He also offers his own 12 'real lessons' of history "not in the flow of political and military events, but in how we think". While I recommend this book for the general public, it would also be ideal for college course work as an introduction to world history and civilization.

Grounded in solid historical fact, the author is not hesitant to offer his opinions on various aspects of history. While this may cause readers to stop and reflect it also causes one to
consider the accuracy of the history learned during ones formal
education. The preponderance of factual information will at least cause one to stretch their mind around a new take on established lore. Who We Are: A Chronicle of the Ideas that Shape Our World is well worth the journey though its chapters.

I can only imagine that Dr. Heriot's desire to become a pathologist was fueled by the same drive to know not only WHAT we (humans) are, but WHY we are the way we are.

Far from a superficial accounting of historical events, Heriot give us the detailed and fascinating dramas which gave birth to the ideas (great and erroneous) which have shaped each and every one of us. For each person clearly on the right path (Pasteur) there seems to have been at least one person doggedly on the wrong path (Columbus), but their degree of impact is not in relation to the truth of their initial assumptions. That is a critical lesson we learn from Who We Are.

Seeing in history the development of our ideas is as important as understanding how 9 months of gestation leads to the development of our physical beings. It is staggering to see how much of both are the product of serendipity.

There are no pre-requisites for reading this book. No knowledge of history or science is required. Bring your inquisitiveness into your own life and the state of humanity as a whole and you will be primed to receive a lifetime of insight into how the past has shaped our now, which is in turn the foundation for our future.