A review by carolynf
Paleofantasy: What Evolution Really Tells Us about Sex, Diet, and How We Live by Marlene Zuk
4.0
As a history teacher who wanted to know more about the life of prehistoric people, I found this book very helpful! It discusses the diet, life span, and sex life of people before and after the development of agriculture. It is framed as a debunking of many of the myths commonly believed about evolution and what the modern human body is genetically suited for. But the author manages to explain the science of natural selection and genetics in a way that a non-science person can understand. I found especially interesting the section on how only within the last 9000 years humans have developed the trait that allows 35% of us to process lactose, and how studying the food caught in the teeth of Australopithecus helps us understand the primitive diet.
Because I do not have a science background I'm not entirely sure how accurate any of this is. Most of it rang true and seemed to make a lot of sense. The only false note was regarding the use of the term "Paleolithic." The author seemed to use this term to refer to all prehistoric people whether before or after the agricultural revolution. 9000 years ago is not Paleolithic - it is either Mesolithic or Neolithic depending on the area of the world that you are looking at.
Because I do not have a science background I'm not entirely sure how accurate any of this is. Most of it rang true and seemed to make a lot of sense. The only false note was regarding the use of the term "Paleolithic." The author seemed to use this term to refer to all prehistoric people whether before or after the agricultural revolution. 9000 years ago is not Paleolithic - it is either Mesolithic or Neolithic depending on the area of the world that you are looking at.