Part one of the review of this book by Jared Diamond focused on the role of guns, germs and steel in the conquest of native peoples by invaders. This part focuses on the evolution of Europeans and Asians from being hunter-gathers to the domestication of wild plants and animals. The animals brought plentiful protein, and created the ability to farm much larger areas of land. Domestication of animals also brought the epidemic-causing germs, but the survivors developed immunity and grew to large populations supported by the ability to grow food. Technology advanced as people were freed from the continual search for food, more complex systems of government were developed, and armies could be formed, trained, and fed. Population densities increased, new lands were sought, germs were introduced to the new lands and caused marked reduction in the population of the natives who might not welcome the new settlers, and the well-armed settlers took over with the help of their armies.

I recommend the book to anyone who has an interest in horticulture, because there are detailed descriptions of the plants found in different areas of the globe, and how the Europeans and Asians had the advantage that they were able to domesticate plants that produced large grains with high levels of protein. Chapter 7, “How to Make an Almond,” describes how edible and harvestable foods evolved. The title refers to the fact that most almonds contain chemicals that make them too bitter to eat, but a non-bitter mutant was eventually domesticated. Many wild plants have specialized mechanisms to scatter seeds, and that prevented humans from being able to harvest them. A genetic mutation developed in some of the plants that prevented the seeds from being scattered. Humans harvested the seeds, ate some, planted some, and profited from the practice.

There are interesting historical facts throughout the book, and there is no way I can cover all of them. I’ll give a few examples of items that interested me, and perhaps that will help others decide whether they want to read the book. The author has an interest in New Guinea. He observed that there no domesticated large animals or large game animals to provide protein, and the natives ate mice, spiders, frogs and other small animals that people elsewhere didn’t bother with. He proposes that the shortage of protein was probably why cannibalism was widespread. The Aborigines of Australia were getting along quite well despite the lack of large domesticated animals until white settlers arrived and drove them away from the coastal areas. Two Englishmen, Robert Burke and William Wills, attempted to be the first Europeans to cross Australia from south to north. They fell on hard times, and were rescued on three separate occasions by Aborigines. Burke scared away the final group of Aborigines when he foolishly fired his pistol at one of them, and the two Brits died of starvation. Perhaps that story is a good place to end this two part review while contemplating the advantages or lack of advantages to being “civilized” in the outback of Australia.