The Story of the Human Body

Evolution, Health, and Disease

By: Daniel E. Lieberman

Narrated by: Sean Runnette

In this landmark book of popular science, Daniel E. Lieberman—chair of the department of human evolutionary biology at Harvard University and a leader in the field—gives us a lucid and engaging account of how the human body evolved over millions of years, even as it shows how the increasing disparity between the jumble of adaptations in our Stone Age bodies and advancements in the modern world is occasioning this paradox: greater longevity but increased chronic disease.

The Story of the Human Body brilliantly illuminates as never before the major transformations that contributed key adaptations to the body: the rise of bipedalism; the shift to a non-fruit-based diet; the advent of hunting and gathering, leading to our superlative endurance athleticism; the development of a very large brain; and the incipience of cultural proficiencies. Lieberman also elucidates how cultural evolution differs from biological evolution, and how our bodies were further transformed during the Agricultural and Industrial Revolutions.

While these ongoing changes have brought about many benefits, they have also created conditions to which our bodies are not entirely adapted, Lieberman argues, resulting in the growing incidence of obesity and new but avoidable diseases, such as type 2 diabetes. Lieberman proposes that many of these chronic illnesses persist and in some cases are intensifying because of “dysevolution,” a pernicious dynamic whereby only the symptoms rather than the causes of these maladies are treated. And finally—provocatively—he advocates the use of evolutionary information to help nudge, push, and sometimes even compel us to create a more salubrious environment.

(With charts and line drawings throughout.)

A great story of the human body

The book was so detailed that I cannot think of anything that I disliked. I was fascinated by the overall story of the human body which kept me hooked. The author goes into a lot of detail, which I personally enjoyed. To me this was a great read to explore the mysteries of life.

Amazing book that will change your worldview

Dr. Daniel Lieberman has a fantastic ability to squeeze lots of credible science into an easy-to-follow narrative. But the book is more than just lessons in evolutionary biology; Lieberman pushes readers to think about the practical applications of the science, and posits his own ideas of what the key takeaways are for our lives and society, while never exceeding the limits of what credible science has shown us.

Everything you wanted to know about us

Thoroughly enjoyed learning so much about who we are today by observing who we were yesterday. Well thought out. Great common sense insights on all things human. I am very happy with what I learned.

Must read for health and wellness professionals and educators

Audio is engaging and easy to listen to. The author's words are thoughtfully organized and he offers a breadth of information from different scientific and medical disciplines.

A must read for every human!

Very informative book, relevant no matter what you do for a living
I like the stories, details and overall information about the human body and how evolution got us here
Is not a textbook history of the human evolution but rather an interesting book

Great narration as well