Starred review from April 30, 2001
Enthusiastic readers of popular history have come to expect the author of Millennium and Truth: A History and Guide for the Perplexed to deliver a read filled with wonders, important insights, wit and outrageous opinion. In this marvelous new work, Fernández-Armesto, a member of the Modern History Faculty at Oxford, starts with a simple premise: civilization is not evidenced by a formal political structure, aesthetics, ethical principles or religion, but rather by a culture's attempt to refashion its environment. His overview of the world's civilizations (arranged by habitat—desert, tundra, etc.—rather than by more traditional categories such as chronology or technological aptitude) admits no progress, and, in fact, alleges that to believe otherwise is a dangerous business that breeds complacency in the face of moral perils. The vivid writing is equal to the scope of the author's ambition, to catalogue most, if not all, of the civilizations the world has seen. So infectious is Fernández-Armesto's passion for his subject that no exotic person (Khmer King Suryavarman II) or place (the Inca retreat of Quispaguanca)—no matter how remote—seems superfluous to the text. Scattered within the fact-filled portraits are numerous opinions on topics large and small, opinions that mark Fernández-Armesto, if not a contrarian, a formidable iconoclast: civilization did not "originate" in the "alluvial soils" of Mesopotamia, the idea of Proto-Indo-European language developing in isolation is "an obvious fantasy" and "most" accounts of history include "too much hot air and not enough wind." But, despite a chilling evaluation of "western civilization" (for which he claims affection) and its global influence, he concludes on a pragmatic, almost optimistic note, resolving that "there is no remedy except to go on trying."
April 15, 2001
Contemporary civilizations tend to believe they are lineally linked to past ones. The West, for instance, believes in its descent from the ancient Greco-Roman world. But except for the Chinese, Fernandez-Armesto says, few civilizations have been continuous throughout human history. He perceives one constant in history, though--humanity's itch to alter its environment and impose artifice upon it. History buffs needn't worry, however, that that large argument is expressed in a ponderous, totalistic treatise theorizing about civilization, even if Fernandez-Armesto approaches vanished states and societies from "odd angles, rather than an ample conspectus." Certainly, those angles often clash obtusely with conventional imagery; for example, he regards the Mongol empire as a reforming civilization rather than a nomadic juggernaut of destruction. But Fernandez-Armesto is an agile writer, possessed of impressively deep knowledge as well as originality. The connections he makes aren't arbitrary but based on the environments out of which he sees civilizations arise: wastelands, grasslands, forests, highlands, and seaboards. A book full of surprises about humanity's relations with nature.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2001, American Library Association.)
March 15, 2001
In the Pulitizer Prize-winning Guns, Germs, and Steel, Jared Diamond sought to reexamine traditionally held views relating to the distribution of wealth and power, as well as the differing rates of technological development found throughout the world. He refuted racist theories that differing development was based on genetic superiority and argued instead that geographical, agricultural, environmental, and social factors directed the rate of advancement or growth among peoples on different continents. Along similar lines, Fern ndez-Armesto, a distinguished author (Millennium) and professor at Oxford University, examines world history from the unique perspective of environments and ecosystems. Not a comparative history of civilizations, his book is arranged by 17 distinct environments, from ice, tundra, and desert societies to sea and oceanic cultures. Fern ndez-Armesto believes that civilizations are most successful when they occupy an area that either straddles environments or has several microclimates to draw on for resources. He also argues that civilization can happen in any type of environment and that similar environments in different parts of the world do not guarantee a similar development. Unlike Diamond's work, Civilizations does not have the polished presentation or coherency of argument to make this an essential purchase. Still, educated readers who enjoy looking at world history from an experimental model will find much to consider. Recommended for larger academic libraries. Gloria Maxwell, Penn Valley Community Coll., Kansas City, MO
Copyright 2001 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.