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Rebecca Wragg Sykes, a contemporary British Paleolithic archeologist specializing in Neanderthals and other extinct archaic humans, gives us here a book that will appeal to both the general public and the well informed. I didn’t understand everything but enough to make the book extremely interesting. When meaning is unclear, enough information is provided to make search on the web easy. A comprehensive bibliography is available online.

The book’s scope is comprehensive. Cutting-edge information is presented. In the last two decades, study of ancient DNA has ballooned the quantity of data available.

*Neanderthals appeared 450 000 to 400 000 years ago.
*They split from Denisovans 400 000 years ago.
*Neanderthals existed for 350 000 years.
*40 000 years ago, they disappeared, but we carry Denisovan and Neanderthal genes still today.

Research has shown that modern humans overlapped with Denisovan and Neanderthal populations, and that they had children together, that they interbred. Homo Sapiens and Neanderthals interbred 47 000 - 55 000 years ago. Homo Sapiens and Denisovans interbred 44 000 - 54 000 years ago. During the last 200 000 years, there are at least three, but potentially six periods when Homo Sapiens and Neanderthals interbred. Humans today have Neanderthal and Denisovan DNA, in small but varying quantities. In the context of current times, it has been said that this DNA increases the risk of serious Covid-19 illness. See link below.

It is amazing what new studies indicate about Neanderthal life. Their tools, how they used and reshaped them, their clothes, their ability to communicate, their peregrinations, their art. their intuitiveness and their ability to innovate are examples of the wide range of topics discussed. Their perception of death is analyzed from a perspective that is not ours. It is just such analysis that makes the book above the ordinary.

One example--tooth marks on the bones of the dead were shown to indicate cannibalism. Although repugnant to our way of thinking, through cannibalism one individual absorbs another individual into their being. One might do this as a way to preserve the dead and to honor them. It is necessary to view behavior from a perspective different from our own.

Reading of the Neanderthal art discovered in 2016 is jaw-dropping. Stone ring structures of cut stalagmites and accompanying hearth fires layered one on top of another were found in the Bruniquel Cave of southwestern France. Images are available on the net.

Sykes explains how new scientific material leads to the conclusions drawn. Despite that I don’t always comprehend her thought processes, I appreciate her method of analysis.

What led to the extinction of the Neanderthals? Dramatic climatic changes might be a cause, but these they had survived multiple times before. Competition with the ever increasing number of Homo Sapiens for natura resources is another possible explanation. In addition, a larger portion of the human brain is tied to social skills. This gives us an advantage over them. There exist contagion theories too. There is today no conclusive answer.

Sometimes, the writing is longwinded. Two examples are the lengthy introduction and a section on Neanderthals in literature. For the most part, I liked the book’s comprehensiveness.

Basically, I like this book because the author draws an up to date picture of what we know of the Neanderthal people. I like how she reasons through known facts and draws conclusions. Through the study of our ancestors, we will come to better understand ourselves. The new DNA research opens up vistas that are tremendously exciting.

In the past, the capabilities of Neanderthals have not been properly understood. This book begins to set the record straight.

The author narrates her audiobook. She speaks at a good, steady pace. At times I had to rewind because I I had difficulty distinguishing some words. The narration I have given three stars. I do wish there had been a PDF with maps.

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*Kindred: Neanderthal Life, Love, Death and Art 4 stars by Rebecca Wragg Sykes
*Before the Dawn: Recovering the Lost History of Our Ancestors 4 stars by Nicholas Wade

Covid-19 article: