Description
“21 Lessons for the 21st Century” is a non-fiction book written by Yuval Noah Harari, a historian, philosopher, and professor at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. The book was published in 2018 and is a follow-up to Harari’s previous works, “Sapiens” and “Homo Deus”.
The book is divided into 21 chapters, each addressing a different issue that Harari sees as crucial to understanding the challenges and opportunities of the 21st century. These include topics such as nationalism, religion, immigration, artificial intelligence, and climate change.
Harari draws on a range of disciplines, from history and philosophy to biology and computer science, to offer a wide-ranging and insightful analysis of the issues facing humanity in the present and future. He encourages readers to think critically about the assumptions and beliefs that underpin our political and social systems, and to consider alternative approaches that may be better suited to the challenges of the modern world.
One of the key themes of the book is the idea that many of the problems facing humanity in the 21st century are global in nature and require collective action and cooperation to solve. Harari argues that traditional political structures and ideologies may not be adequate to address these challenges, and that new forms of global governance may be necessary.
Overall, “21 Lessons for the 21st Century” is a thought-provoking and engaging book that offers a wide-ranging and insightful analysis of the key issues facing humanity in the present and future. It has been widely praised for its clarity, depth, and originality, and has become a popular and influential work of contemporary non-fiction.
Dr Aditya Kumar (Verified Purchase)
I thought I was going to read evidence-based “fact book.” But instead, it was mostly a collection of the author’s opinions and observations of the supposedly 21st century. I would say some of them qualify as wishful thinking. For example, AI will completely replace physicians and surgeons. Unfortunately, it is not that simple.
Puneet Khattar (Verified Purchase)
I have very much enjoyed Yuval Noah Harari’s two previous books, Sapiens and Homo Deus, which were among the best books I have read in my life (and I read a lot). But 21 Lessons for the 21st Century is even better. It is the author’s magnum opus, the best attempt to date to make sense of life in the digital age.
Malay Bhavsar (Verified Purchase)
Excellent author, easy to read. Some say it’s not as good as his previous two books, but the bar was set pretty high. My guess is the author isn’t very religious. If you’re one of the close-minded delusional majority, get ready to have your bubble burst, he doesn’t pull any punches. He makes a lot of sense, so if you don’t have any, well, let’s hope this sinks in. I’m surprised the apologists haven’t chimed in yet… Well, it’s still early…
Harpal Singh (Verified Purchase)
While there were some chapters that were a bit above my insights in the topics, I found the book to be so thought provoking and engaging. Anyone who takes the risk to write on these topics will endure scrutiny for sure, but I love about books like this is that is forces me to pause and rethink my beliefs and ideals. Time and time again I wrote down a quote into my Evernote page and then conducted research to learn more.
Manav Gadhvi (Verified Purchase)
This is the third book by the author that I have read. His Homo Sapiens was excellent. His Homo Deus was an utter disappointment. This third book is somewhere between the two.