Homo Sapiens Rediscovered was a fascinating listen. The narration by Julian Elfer had the perfect tone and voice for this book and kept me fascinated the whole time, and I ended the book having learned a lot!
Paul Pettitt does a great job of keeping the book from becoming too heavy. Between his voice and the narrator, it was another read that felt like listening to a lecture or podcast by a good professor. He takes us the reader on the journey of how Homo Sapiens have evolved over time, showing us how the latest discoveries in science, and archeology have helped paint this journey.
This book did have the potential to become very heavy with hard science, and while Paul Pettitt does not shy away from the science, he brakes it up with personal anecdotes and stories to help give you time to you digest the information. He also talks about science in such a way that even if you are not familiar with the topic, you get enough context to understand.
It still can become confusing to read, especially when just listening, simply because it's hard to discuss science in a clear timeline. I spent much of the book just wanting to take notes in a notepad or in the margins.
Thanks to the author and publisher for providing a free ARC copy of the audiobook through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

4.5 stars for Homo sapiens: Rediscovered

I went into good a little jaded, not going to lie. As someone who is a professional archaeologist and has studied human evolution, osteology and physical anthropology I went in thinking ‘This is either going to be good, or its going to be more pseudo-science nonsense,’ Well Dr.Pettitt, you did not disappoint, I loved this book. The writing was concise and engaging and I was impressed with how complex archaeological methodologies and theories were explained in such a way that the reader didn’t get bogged down with jargon (something the field is notorious for). His writing explains new developments in the field with ease and I would recommend this to anyone who is interested in human evolution and our origins. I learned a lot reading this and it is a breath of fresh air since the field has been surrounded by disappointing pseudoscience for years now. I’ll definitely be recommending this to colleagues when it hits shelves!

Narration was done really well. The subject matter of the book was interesting and presented in a very digestible way. At times it felt a bit scattered but overall I enjoyed listening to it.

Homo Sapiens Rediscovered is an excellent read for anyone with an interest in human history, bioarchaeology, or anthropology. The history of mankind is presented in easy to understand language, and Pettitt provides an adequate background for each topic that is covered throughout the book.

I was provided with a copy of Homo Sapiens Rediscovered on audio by Netgalley and Tantor Audio. The narrator is excellent, and the cadence is almost conversational throughout. I feel like Pettitt did a great job not overwhelming the reader with too much heavy information at once.

This book takes you on a journey through human prehistory, human ancestors, DNA analysis of ancient humans, early tool use, and a number of more recent eras of human history. This was a very easy read, and I highly recommend.

Homeostapiens rediscovered by Paul Pettitt presented as an audiobook was an extremely informative book about the homo sapiens. I was sent a copy of the audiobook and it orator was very engaging, as well as, using inflection in their voice to bring forth a point.

As one that has researched a little on their own and read several books , I was still intrigued by all the information he was giving. He delves in and helps you understand where these names came from and why. He also has an in-depth look as to what each one means and how they were able to get names for them and how they relate to us now.

As a lay person, I found this book extremely easy to understand and very informative. For one that's more of a scholar of this it may be repetitive, but the new information that he has and presents in the book is fascinating.

I encourage everyone that wants to learn a little bit more about where we came from to pick up a copy either physical print or on an audio and give it a chance. You will be surprised as to what you learned.

If you’re already an enthusiast of this topic, you probably won’t learn a ton from this book, but for a newbie like me this was a good summary of the latest knowledge about our species and the science used to study its origin. Accessible, easy to follow but still sufficiently in-depth and detailed.

A couple of things that I didn’t like:
- seeing words such as “rediscovered” or “rewriting” in the title made me expect finding some ground-breaking information in the book. If that’s the reason why you want to read this book, you might be left disappointed
- there’s MANY instances in the book where the author briefly introduces a new concept just to tell you that “we will come back to it in chapter XYZ”, which felt fragmented at times

The strong points of the book are its conversational tone, clear explanations, and the author’s anecdotes and personal history. There was also some clever wording and some humor. But after a while, the book just became a series of community names and approximate dates (years before present) and everything jumbled together in my mind. The narration, however, was excellent. The narrator was able to communicate the humor expressed by the author and was even able to make clear what were parenthetical remarks. Thank you to Netgalley and Tantor Audio for the audio review copy.

I received an audio ARC of “Homo Sapiens Rediscovered: The Scientific Revolution Rewriting Our Origins” by Paul Pettitt from NetGalley and Tantor Audio (Thames & Hudson Ltd.) in an exchange for an honest review.

NOTE TO PUBLISHER: I requested that a librarian on GoodReads add the audio version of this book on December 31, 2021. To date, it has still not been added, so I listed the review for this audio book under the hard copy version.

For non-academics, reading scientific literature can be tiresome. This can be a big problem for scholars because we *want* to share our discoveries with the public in a way that can be easily understood. With gender now in the forefront of people’s minds, books like Paul Pettitt’s are invaluable. You might be asking: ‘What does human evolution and adaptation have to do with the public discussions of gender?’. Trust me, it has *everything* to do with helping people to understand. For an enlightened easy-to-read news article about what DNA research has revealed about human chimeras, I would recommend Walla 2022 https://www.jpost.com/health-and-wellness/pregnancy-and-birth/article-725991

Normally, I prefer to read a scientific book, but, once again, this goes back to my training and my innate desire to pick apart and analyze everything. Instead, I received an audio ARC, which really changed things for me. My first instinct upon hearing the narrator was to get a pad and pen and start taking notes. But I changed tactics and just listened instead, absorbing everything that the narrator said.

It is nearly impossible for me to separate myself as an anthropologist from myself as just a regular person due to my education. But as I’ve chosen not to scientifically evaluate the book (there are plenty among us who already have and will), I decided to evaluate and review this book as an educated listener.

I do have to admit that every single time the narrator said “Neanderthal,” I found myself grating my teeth. The narrator used the British ‘th’ sound rather than a hard ‘t’ sound (e.g., Neander-THAL vs Neander-TAL). But my anguish at hearing the ‘th’ sound is due primarily to my training, where other academics drilled the use of the hard ‘t’ sound in to me (US scientists often use different sounds for the same words versus their European counterparts).

Is this book for the faint of heart? No. Is this book for someone who thinks religion is infallible? Perhaps not. But this book *is* for the lay public who are interested in how far we’ve come scientifically. Pettitt takes the reader on a journey from our earliest origins—from Australopithecines to Neanderthals to Anatomically Modern Humans (AMH)—and as any good anthropologist does, shows us how the advancements in science and the ongoing research collide and improve our understanding of human development.

Pettit really strives to explain everything as simply as possible, so readers don’t need advanced degrees—or any degree at all—in order to understand what he’s saying. This audio book reminds me of a classroom lecture. And as an educator myself, I know that students don’t remember everything in lectures; but they do retain a lot. In fact, they retain a lot more than they realize.

I would recommend this book to numerous people. For academics and scientists, this book provides a great overview. Although most of us strive to keep abreast of the current literature, the overview will help to solidify what we already know. College students will find this audio book useful, especially if they are taking a science class and need to get information quickly. But other members of the public, I believe, will also benefit greatly from listening to this audio book. You will learn the basics of human evolution and adaptation, along with the new scientific discoveries and dating methods.