Professor Alice Roberts, anatomist, author and broadcaster Richard Morrison * The Times *īlending cutting-edge science with lyrical storytelling, Rebecca Wragg Sykes paints a detailed portrait of our enigmatic relatives. It's tempting to say, ' If you read only one book about the Neanderthals, read this one' - except that if the next 20 years provide as many revelations about our ancestors as the past 20 have done, she will need to produce just as weighty a second volume. Rebecca Wragg-Sykes's fact-packed but highly readable book puts us right with a superbly authoritative guided tour of much new evidence. Kindred is a beautifully written exploration of our fast-developing understanding of Neanderthals and their culture and a compelling insight into how modern science is revealing the secrets of an extinct species who, for 350 thousand years before Homo Sapiens became dominant, inhabited a world 'as wide and rich as the Roman Empire.' - Professor Brian Cox, Physicist and TV presenter

Yuval Noah Harari, author of Sapiens * The New York Times *īeautiful, evocative, authoritative. Important reading not just for anyone interested in these ancient cousins of ours, but also for anyone interested in humanity. Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC ISBN: 9781472937476 Number of pages: 416 Weight: 300 g Dimensions: 198 x 129 mm MEDIA REVIEWS Kindred does for Neanderthals what Sapiens did for us, revealing a deeper, more nuanced story where humanity itself is our ancient, shared inheritance. Planning, co-operation, altruism, craftsmanship, aesthetic sense, imagination, perhaps even a desire for transcendence beyond mortality. Much of what defines us was also in Neanderthals, and their DNA is still inside us. Above all, they were successful survivors for more than 300,000 years, during times of massive climatic upheaval. She reveals them to be curious, clever connoisseurs of their world, technologically inventive and ecologically adaptable. Rebecca Wragg Sykes uses her experience at the cutting-edge of Palaeolithic research to share our new understanding of Neanderthals, shoving aside cliches of rag-clad brutes in an icy wasteland. Since their discovery more than 160 years ago, Neanderthals have metamorphosed from the losers of the human family tree to A-list hominins. Kindred is the definitive guide to the Neanderthals. 'Important reading not just for anyone interested in these ancient cousins of ours, but also for anyone interested in humanity.' Yuval Noah Harari

'Beautiful, evocative, authoritative.' Professor Brian Cox ** WINNER OF THE PEN HESSELL-TILTMAN PRIZE 2021 **

Kindred neanderthal book review