What's it about?

Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies explores why some societies advanced faster and dominated others throughout history. Jared Diamond argues that geographical and environmental factors—not inherent human differences—shaped these outcomes. The book traces how the availability of domesticable plants and animals, continental axis orientations, and disease exposure gave Eurasia an early advantage in food production, technology, and societal complexity, culminating in events like the European conquest of the Americas. Spanning 19 chapters and an epilogue, it uses case studies (e.g., Polynesia, Africa, China) to illustrate how these "ultimate causes" drove historical disparities, urging a scientific approach to understanding human history’s broad patterns.