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Title:	First Steps
Authors:	Desilva, Jeremy
Genre:	Non Fiction
Pages:	268
Year:	2021
Language:	English
Description:	The nineteenth century philosopher Soren Kierkegaard clearly knew a thing or two about walking, when he said, 'Every day, I walk myself into a state of well-being and walk away from every illness'. He would not have been aware of the anatomical and evolutionary history that has allowed humankind to walk upright but paleoanthropologist Jeremy Desilva does. With these details at his fingertips, readers are confidently escorted through seven million years of evolution, exploring the history of bipedalism and its role in our well-being. Lively, informative and peppered with engaging personal anecdotes, this is a fascinating account of 'how walking upright made us human'.
Categories:	Non fiction, Learning, Science & Technology, 2023 Titles

Reviews

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By: AUCK 037		2025-06-04 15:56:45

We had mixed reactions to the book 'First Steps' by Jeremy DeSilva. The author was adept at summarising the science about where we had come from and how our body works. The group thought that the notes were particularly helpful. In terms of response some thought the beginning was dull , others intense and needing to be taken in small bites but others were pleased with the informative nature. We had a good discussion about being bipeds.

By: CHCH 145		2025-06-04 14:16:08

Excellent and inspiring. A compelling read, reminding us about how we evolved over millions of years to become bipedal Homo Sapiens.

By: CHCH 557		2025-05-14 22:12:30

This one was a bit of a miss for our group. Most people didn't finish it.

By: DUNED 029		2025-04-07 10:18:37

Most people enjoyed it but agreed it was not a book they would have read normally. It was impossible to recall all the stages of evolution and discovery of fossils. Some interesting hypotheses.

By: COROM 002		2024-09-24 11:47:05

We were interested in learning about our ancient origins and development, and these fascinating fossil discoveries. Our ex-science teacher member found a documentary on the subject to watch at our meeting, and was helpful in guiding our discussion. And the notes were very good too.

By: CHCH 422		2024-07-04 10:50:36

Very interesting theories. The book challenged perceptions of the origin and development of man. Not everyone in our group read the book but those who did enjoyed the compelling writing style which made the topic readable and accessible to many. Some felt it didn't have a conclusion with lots of theories being shared. They also weren't sure about the audience and would have liked more pictures and maps to help support the text.

By: TAUR 004		2024-04-17 15:00:41

The group thought the book was in 2 halves. They were interested in the second half with the author's theories of how bipedalism has affected us. Some of the names in the first half proved challenging for some members. A lot of discussion.

By: OWAKA 001		2023-10-30 11:39:32

Fascinating insight into the origin of homo sapiens and bipedalism, and how the way we walk upright influences other facets of our lives such as childbirth, arthritis in knees and hips, hernias etc. Descriptions of reactions of scientists to others' hypotheses and reluctance to share information on findings was interesting and very human!

By: WHITBY 002		2023-09-11 15:47:04

A few did not finish this book but those that did were well rewarded. Though it was written in a simple chatty style, we were quite overwhelmed by the detail! We learnt a lot and had a great discussion, particularly about subjects with which we were familiar - eg. childbirth.

By: ROTO 006		2023-05-11 11:32:08

A very enjoyable, easy scientific book to read. It was so full of interesting facts that the group felt a re read would open up even more doors of knowledge and things to discuss.

By: NELS 002		2023-03-09 12:24:21

Group loved this book - stimulating, educational, funny, and intelligent.