Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind

by Yuval Noah Harari

When kings fail to do their jobs and regul...

properly, it leads to loss of trust, dwindling credit and economic depression. That was the lesson taught by the Mississippi Bubble of 1719, and anyone who forgot it was reminded by the US housing bubbl...

Charles Dickens wrote of the French Revolution that ‘It was the best of times, it was the worst of times.’

especially true of the seven decades that have elapsed since the end of World War

As long as China and the USA are at peace, the Chinese can prosper by selling products to the USA, trading in Wall Street and receiving US investments.

With the individual wielding unprecedented power to decide her own path in life, we find it ever harder to make commitments.

We moderns have an arsenal of tranquillisers and painkillers at our disposal, but our expectations of ease and pleasure,

and our intolerance of inconvenience and discomfort, have increased to such an extent that we may well suffer from pain more than our ancestors ever did.

They never realise that they are not their feelings, and that the relentless pursuit of particular feelings just traps them in misery.

What is important is to get to know as many different approaches as possible and to ask the right questions.