Sapiens

Mampu made the bookmark

The Covid 19 lock down has given us a unique opportunity to read fat books. We are just in the first week and I have already finished the Sapeins - a 464-page international bestseller from Yuval Noah Harari. I am very proud of this achievement. For the last 30 years or so I had got unused (is there any such word?) to the idea of reading fat books. Not that I did not try. I did, but I was repeatedly frustrated to discover that my progress was always very slow. Before long I would lose interest in a  particular book and keep it aside for some imaginary time in the future. 

Not that I did not read anything in the last few years. I finished the autobiography of Sourav Ganguly in one sitting last year. I finished quite a few good books on mountaineering fairly quickly. But I have struggled with many other serious books with good literary or intellectual value. For example I have not been able to read any major work of fiction in the recent past. I so much want to read Amitav Ghosh but I have not made any progress with him. I want to read William Dalrymple. Two of his books are rotting on the shelves. There are many more authors, subjects and titles but unfortunately I have been a failure. 

Somnolence has been the biggest enemy that has stood between me and the books that I wish I could read. The moment I sit down with a book I doze off. Is it a sign of boredom or just a biological need? I think it's both. 

Mampu went berserk here

Earlier this month, on 5th March, on DN Road in Bombay Mampu was very excited to see new books being sold on the footpath at Rs 100 each. All fast selling titles. I knew they were pirated copies and I have reservations about buying them. It is not a moral or ethical question. It is about quality. But Mampu went berserk. She bought Michell Obama's Becoming, Harari's 3 books and a couple of other books of fiction. 

Last Saturday, sitting at home out of fear of the Corona virus (the nationwide lockdown had still not been announced but our office had issued work from home advice and the state government had issued a 5-day lock down order) I decided to attack the Sapiens. 

Some intellectuals of a higher order might dismiss the book as popular science. That might well be so. The book is about human evolution over the last 70,000 years or so. Now, to tell that story in 464 pages you cannot afford to get into the depth of any one particular subject. Harari does not attempt to do that by any stretch of imagination. What he does is he connects various dots in human evolution and tells the story. 

I definitely learnt a lot of new concepts, new ideas, new ways of looking at things. I am definitely a more informed person. I may not remember all the new things I learnt but they will definitely remain in my overall consciousness.

Not all the details Harari gives are 100 per cent authentic, I felt. They may not be grossly wrong but they are somewhat approximate truths. I suppose it is impossible to be 100 per cent authentic when you are dealing with such a vast vast subject. But I like the book overall. 

There are certain personal biases that take over the main theme of the book in certain portions. But that's what is to be expected. There are many philosophical points of views that Harari pushes. I am fine with the philosophy but just thought that they were beyond the scope of the book. 

Overall I am very happy that I read the book. I can never remember the nitty gritty details of a book. I only remember the impact it had on me after reading. This book will be remembered as - I am glad that I read this book. It opened my eyes to a lot of things. Taught me to look at things from a different perspective.