The Creative Spark: How Imagination Made Humans Exceptional

Excellent presentation of the key to the uniqueness of the human species: creative collaboration. Written clearly and intelligently for the lay reader interested in the science but not interested in being overwhelmed by the scientific jargon and minutiae, but brings the receipts in the notes for those looking for the detailed scientific arguments. Succinctly and clearly summarizes the ESS (extended evolutionary synthesis) before focusing on the application to the evolution of genus Homo, in particular highlighting the importance of niche construction. Highly recommended for a highly readable summary of current science regarding human evolution with a laser focus on the creativity and cooperation that forms the human niche.

You will not learn much about human origins but a lot about politics and social mores of early 21st century.

I admit I have a soft spot for people who venture into large syntheses, based on a broad point of view and solid (secondary) research. Apparently Agustin Fuentes is such a person. He's an American biological anthropologist associated with Princeton. What particularly charmed me is that he is averse to reductionist approaches: for each domain of human activity he discusses (dexterity, art, sex, religion, …) he has an eye for complexity and context, and he indicates nuances and also gaps in our knowledge.
Of course I am not well versed enough to be able to make a general assessment of this book, but a number of aspects that I do know something about (the evolution from hominids to humans, for example) allow me to say that this is a very show more solid, up-to-date to date book that offers a truly global look at both the uniqueness of humans and their embeddedness in the natural environment. I know, anthropocentrism has long since ceased to be woke, but I think we should certainly dare to face the ways in which our species distinguishes itselve – for better and for worse – from our environment. Fuentes rightly follows the nuanced middle ground.
In itself, the focus on creativity is not so earth-shattering and unique. As the book shows, behind that notion lies a complex interaction of consciousness, imagination, cognitive abilities, communication skills, cooperation, and so on. As a result, this book offers much more than an investigation into where and how human creativity originated (the question in itself - in that formulation - is of course nonsensical).
More in my History account on Goodreads: https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/2386756790 . show less