Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies Author: Jared Diamond

Title: Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies

Author: Jared Diamond

Publisher: W.W. Norton & Company

Date Published: March 1997

Category: Non-fiction / History / Anthropology

Guns, Germs, and Steel examines the environmental and geographical factors that influenced the development of civilizations across the globe. Jared Diamond argues that the disparities in power and technology among societies are not due to differences in intelligence or inherent abilities, but rather the result of environmental factors that favored certain regions. He explores how the availability of domesticable plants and animals, along with geographic factors, led to the development of agriculture, the spread of germs, and the creation of technologies that enabled some societies to dominate others.

The book has been praised for its interdisciplinary approach, drawing from history, biology, and anthropology to provide a comprehensive understanding of human societal development. It won the Pulitzer Prize for General Nonfiction in 1998 and has been influential in discussions about the factors that shape human history.