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Reviews
Paleofantasy: What Evolution Really Tells Us about Sex, Diet, and How We Live by Marlene Zuk
wyvernfriend's review
4.0
Entertaining rant (with footnotes) about how evolution is a constant, not a static thing and that a lot of the foundation of the so-called Palaeolithic diets and lifestyles are misinformed about how humans and diets work. My ancestors evolved to drink milk, others may vary.
There is sometimes more detail than I needed but overall worth a read. I'm still going to skim those palaeolithic books, they often have good gluten free choices. Yeah, my genetics dealt me an interesting hand.
There is sometimes more detail than I needed but overall worth a read. I'm still going to skim those palaeolithic books, they often have good gluten free choices. Yeah, my genetics dealt me an interesting hand.
fiveredhens's review against another edition
informative
medium-paced
3.5
it was... fine but seemed to be sculpted by an editor that wanted to turn it into something that it didn't want to be
sevenlefts's review
3.0
An easy-to-understand response from an expert on ecology and evolution to all those people who think that living like a caveman (whatever that means) is the solution to all of our problems.
Zuk takes opinions and ideas she's gleaned from websites and message boards promoting the "paleo" lifestyle, and gently points out how they are misguided and ill-informed. Using science. Along the way, readers can learn a lot about recent human evolution, genetic drift, and our similarities and differences with our fellow primates.
I found the chapters on family structure and child-rearing especially interesting. I do like how Zuk uses the oversimplified claims as teaching moments. She's funny, too. I think it would be fun to take one of her classes.
Zuk takes opinions and ideas she's gleaned from websites and message boards promoting the "paleo" lifestyle, and gently points out how they are misguided and ill-informed. Using science. Along the way, readers can learn a lot about recent human evolution, genetic drift, and our similarities and differences with our fellow primates.
I found the chapters on family structure and child-rearing especially interesting. I do like how Zuk uses the oversimplified claims as teaching moments. She's funny, too. I think it would be fun to take one of her classes.
geekberry's review
informative
slow-paced
3.0
I was really interested in the content, but I have to say the title is a bit misleading. It should be more like "what evolution can't tell us" or "some stuff about evolution".
I'm a bit over this style of non-fiction book that dumps a bunch of information on you but doesn't have much to say, really.
I'm a bit over this style of non-fiction book that dumps a bunch of information on you but doesn't have much to say, really.
iamleeg's review
4.0
Really interesting content on human and primate evolution, and the ideas of natural selection, sexual selection, genetic drift and more in general. As with many "takedown" books, the description of the position being countered seems stereotypical but it's just a launching point to get into the meat (and grains and vegetables) of the book.
saltypiratewench's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
3.0
The narrator really grated my nerves. Something about her intonation and emphasis made it feel condescending the entire time. If I could do it over again, I would have gotten a paper copy instead! Always listen to the sample folks! The book content itself was good! Love a good pseudoscience take down!