Humankind

A Hopeful History – from the presenter of the 2025 BBC ‘Moral Revolution’ Reith lectures

By: Rutger Bregman

Narrated by: Thomas Judd, Rutger Bregman

Bloomsbury presents Humankind by Rutger Bregman, read by Thomas Judd and Rutger Bregman.

THE SUNDAY TIMES AND NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER
A Guardian, Daily Telegraph, New Statesman and Daily Express Book of the Year

‘Hugely, highly and happily recommended’
Stephen Fry

‘You should read Humankind. You’ll learn a lot (I did) and you’ll have good reason to feel better about the human race’
Tim Harford

‘The book we need right now’
Daily Telegraph

'Made me see humanity from a fresh perspective'
Yuval Noah Harari

It’s a belief that unites the left and right, psychologists and philosophers, writers and historians. It drives the headlines that surround us and the laws that touch our lives. From Machiavelli to Hobbes, Freud to Dawkins, the roots of this belief have sunk deep into Western thought. Human beings, we’re taught, are by nature selfish and governed by self-interest.

Humankind makes a new argument: that it is realistic, as well as revolutionary, to assume that people are good. The instinct to cooperate rather than compete, trust rather than distrust, has an evolutionary basis going right back to the beginning of Homo sapiens. By thinking the worst of others, we bring out the worst in our politics and economics too.

In this major book, internationally bestselling author Rutger Bregman takes some of the world’s most famous studies and events and reframes them, providing a new perspective on the last 200,000 years of human history. From the real-life Lord of the Flies to the Blitz, a Siberian fox farm to an infamous New York murder, Stanley Milgram’s Yale shock machine to the Stanford prison experiment, Bregman shows how believing in human kindness and altruism can be a new way to think – and act as the foundation for achieving true change in our society.

It is time for a new view of human nature.©2020 Rutger Bregman (P)2020 Bloomsbury Publishing Plc

Really enjoyable read...

Really enjoyed the fresh perspective as well as all the examples of Human Kindness. Thank you.

Mind shifting, hopeful (hi)story of our kind

Great arguments and thoughts. I have still a little doubt about it, that it isn't all perfect knowledge. But it's clear this book tries to go a long way to find valuable information and give you the other, more common, side of "human nature" which our western culture miss so much.

The most positive book I’ve ever read or listened to

I would like this book to be required reading for all students. It shows us all just what humans can do when they put their minds to it. It’s not just a fuzzy feel good book. The author shares all his research and leaves the reader the gift of allowing for more research to be done on a personal level. I’m telling all my friends if they only read one book this year, make it this one. There is a lot to take in. I’ve listened to it twice already and I know I will revisit it again.

Eye Opening

Very informative and interesting.Many popular psychological research studies have been brilliantly debunked .The author has also provided some very inspiring little known vignettes from history to affirm humankinds basic goodness.

Wonderful experience driven by facts and science

I find this book wonderful to read.
I feel very positive in how I see the world today, even in the midst of Covid19 and other true problems we face today.

I recommend this book to those who still believe the good in this world is worth fighting for. There is a lot more goodness out there, and we only need to reframe how we see the world to see and even taking our part to shape it.

Forget the demagogues and doomsday sayers. We have the answers right here on earth and it is each other.

The author leads the reader through history, research and scientific studies to show all of these points above and more. I wish the rest of the world could read this book as part of their school curriculum so we can avoid the demagogues and narcissists manipulating our human tendencies to fear people who are different. This book is the light at the end of the tunnel.. the positive energy one needs to deal with every day now for almost four years. ;)