21 Lessons for the 21st Century

Written by:
Yuval Noah Harari
Narrated by:
Derek Perkins

Unabridged Audiobook

Ratings
Book
152
Narrator
33
Release Date
September 2018
Duration
11 hours 52 minutes
Summary
#1 NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • In Sapiens, he explored our past. In Homo Deus, he looked to our future. Now, one of the most innovative thinkers on the planet turns to the present to make sense of today’s most pressing issues.

“Fascinating . . . a crucial global conversation about how to take on the problems of the twenty-first century.”—Bill Gates, The New York Times Book Review

NAMED ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF THE YEAR BY FINANCIAL TIMES AND PAMELA PAUL, KQED

How do computers and robots change the meaning of being human? How do we deal with the epidemic of fake news? Are nations and religions still relevant? What should we teach our children?

Yuval Noah Harari’s 21 Lessons for the 21st Century is a probing and visionary investigation into today’s most urgent issues as we move into the uncharted territory of the future. As technology advances faster than our understanding of it, hacking becomes a tactic of war, and the world feels more polarized than ever, Harari addresses the challenge of navigating life in the face of constant and disorienting change and raises the important questions we need to ask ourselves in order to survive.

In twenty-one accessible chapters that are both provocative and profound, Harari builds on the ideas explored in his previous books, untangling political, technological, social, and existential issues and offering advice on how to prepare for a very different future from the world we now live in: How can we retain freedom of choice when Big Data is watching us? What will the future workforce look like, and how should we ready ourselves for it? How should we deal with the threat of terrorism? Why is liberal democracy in crisis?

Harari’s unique ability to make sense of where we have come from and where we are going has captured the imaginations of millions of readers. Here he invites us to consider values, meaning, and personal engagement in a world full of noise and uncertainty. When we are deluged with irrelevant information, clarity is power. Presenting complex contemporary challenges clearly and accessibly, 21 Lessons for the 21st Century is essential reading.

“If there were such a thing as a required instruction manual for politicians and thought leaders, Israeli historian Yuval Noah Harari’s 21 Lessons for the 21st Century would deserve serious consideration. In this collection of provocative essays, Harari . . . tackles a daunting array of issues, endeavoring to answer a persistent question: ‘What is happening in the world today, and what is the deep meaning of these events?’”—BookPage (top pick)
Reviews
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Anonymous

Was recommended by Bill Gates. Did not disappoint

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Cynthia B.

Brilliant narration of a must-read book. I was glad to have listened to Harari’s Sapiens first (with same narrator) so that his way of addressing human patterns of thinking and behaving was familiar to me. As a historical glance at humanity, Sapiens was a fast, engrossing read. 21st Century, on the other hand, takes more time - and sometimes letting it alone for a few days — to think about our current times. Worth it.

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Harry H.

If you like doomsday prognosticators then this book is for you. People who forecast “the end is near” have been spotted on street corners for centuries. I had to quit after almost 2 hours into the audio. Harari seems obsessed with The Evil Donald Trump, liking him to the worse thing to hit the world since WWI and WWII. Really? Doesn’t he know Trump will be forgotten 20 years from now?

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Melodie M.

I enjoyed the book it provoked critical thinking and gave the reader important information about what children should b studying for the future.

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Daniel V.

Brilliant observations and analysis. Funny at times. Skewering age old institutions with aplomb. Thoroughly enjoyable.

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Bill J.

Impossible to read and listen to because this guy, though awesome, changes the editions so much. Cool book, wish he, or publisher, would not change the sentence order.

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Anonymous

Great book, one of the best. I would highlight his 2018 geopolitical analysis, the pre-Russia invasion of Ukraine, and so so more. Brilliant! Highly recommend!

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Van C.

What an amazing book....made me think deeply about a wide range of stuffs. One can't read this book and be the same person.

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Vasilije S.

Very well narrated meditation on the present time issue of human condition. Another excellent book by an excellent author.

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Damon P.

I enjoyed reading Harari. I found the narrator’s reading excellent and the content of all three books very interesting. I would highly recommend these books it is well worth the read.

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Kyryl P.

A hard book to get into for the first couple of hours as some of it sounds like vague speculations, but eventually it proves to be very deep, thought out and insightful.

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Thomas H.

Extremely thought provoking, particularly the growing impacts of technology and AI that we know is coming in next decade. Recommended reading for anyone willing to listen to challenges about our future.

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