First published 1997
Tracing the grim origins of war, renowned thinker Barbara Ehrenreich unearths the unsettling truth: violence is not just a human flaw, but a sacred ritual dating back to our earliest ancestors. From the grasslands of prehistoric Africa to the trenches of Verdun, Ehrenreich explores how the fear of predation fueled the first organized bloodshed - and how those ancient terrors persist in our modern rites of nationalism and total war. A chilling look at the darkest impulses that bind us.
Genres: history, 20th-century, politics, non-fiction, 21st-century, academic
Vibes: dark, suspenseful, thought-provoking
Tropes: historical-non-fiction
Period: 20th-century, 21st-century
384 pages · Paperback
Content warnings: graphic-violence, violence