Social science is at the cusp of a revolution incorporating a better understanding of how our
capabilities and culture have evolved and how the interplay of social and political choices
shape human experiences. Joseph Henrich has been at the forefront of this more holistic social
science. In this wonderfully readable book Henrich shows how our species is special and how
our practices beliefs and instincts have emerged because of our cultural learning. This
must-read book will be cherished and consulted for its ideas and insights.--Daron Acemoglu
coauthor of Why Nations Fail The cumulative collaborative nature of human culture far more
than our individual intelligence is what makes it--and us--special. How and when this
collective brain emerged and evolved has until recently been only vaguely understood. Now
Joseph Henrich brings a rich and deep rigor to the topic and tells the epic story in easy
narrative style. This is a remarkable book.--Matt Ridley author of The Rational Optimist and
The Evolution of Everything In this accessible authoritative book Joseph Henrich explains why
culture is essential for understanding human evolution. It is a must-read for anybody curious
about why we are the way we are.--Robert Boyd coauthor of How Humans Evolved and Not by Genes
Alone Joseph Henrich has written a magnificent book. With verve and clarity he sets out a
compelling theory of the interactions between genes and culture and defends the theory with a
remarkable range of evidence from fields as varied as history primatology neuroscience and
the science of sport. This book provides an enthralling account of the secret of our success.
--Stephen Stich Rutgers University Is the ability to acquire highly evolved culture systems
like languages and technologies the secret of humans' success as a species? This book convinces
us that the answer is emphatically 'yes.' Moving beyond the sterile nature-nurture debates of
the past Joseph Henrich demonstrates that culture--as much a part of our biology as our
legs--is an evolutionary system that works by tinkering with our innate capacities over
time.--Peter J. Richerson University of California Davis In the last decade in the
interstices between biology anthropology economics and psychology a remarkable new approach
to explaining the development of human societies has emerged. It's the most important
intellectual innovation on this topic since Douglass North's work on institutions in the 1970s
and it will fundamentally shape research in social science in the next generation. This
extraordinary book is the first comprehensive statement of this paradigm. You'll be overwhelmed
by the breadth of evidence and the creativity of ideas. I was.--James Robinson coauthor of Why
Nations Fail With compelling chapter and verse and a very readable style Joseph Henrich's book
makes a powerful argument--in the course of the gene-culture coevolution that has made us
different from other primates culture far from being the junior partner has been the driving
force. A terrific book that shifts the terms of the debate.--Stephen Shennan University
College London A delightful and engaging expedition into and all around the many different
processes of genetic and cultural evolution that have made humans such 'a puzzling
primate.'--Michael Tomasello codirector of the Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary
Anthropology Henrich is one of a small group of anthropologists who has revolutionized our
thinking about evolution. His new book is a highly readable introduction to how our genes and
cultural variants evolved together. This nuanced work offers the most comprehensive answer I
know of to the question of how we became human. It tells the story of how culture cultural
learning and cultural evolution made us so smart.--Jonathan Haidt author of The Righteous
Mind The Secret of Our Success provides a valuable new perspective on major issues in human
evolution and behavior. Bringing together topics from such diverse areas as economics
psychology neuroscience and archaeology this book will provoke vigorous debates and will be
widely read.--Alex Mesoudi author of Cultural Evolution
