BEFORE THE DAWN Recovering the Lost History of Our Ancestors

Nicholas Wade, a science reporter, compiles the current knowledge of the last 50,000 years of human evolution. He addresses such topics as language, brain size, tool-making, and race. His use of controversial ideas makes most of the discourse speculative--lots of "may" and "perhaps." Alan Sklar's deep voice never bungles a complicated term. Listeners must be ready for lingo like "allele," "steatopygia," and "anthropophagy." While some narrators can't handle any foreign words, Sklar demonstrates his skill with the African click languages. J.A.H. © AudioFile 2006, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 06/ JAN 07]