More About the 'Dawn of Everything' Series

New features for God's Spies readers

Cro-Magnon cave painting, Lascaux, France

New Series — Reflections on 'The Dawn of Everything'

Regular readers will remember that in this scheduling note I promised a new set of features:

I’ve been slowly reading my way through Graeber and Wengrow’s The Dawn of Everything, and it has radically changed my view of prehistoric humans — who they were, how they lived, and more importantly, how they thought.

Why does this matter? Because, simply put, we’re going back there. The next anthropological era will be the New Old Stone Age. And for the first time since I started writing about climate, I see this “devolution” not as a loss, but simply as a return to ways of life — yes, ways — our present thinking blocks imagining.

I’d like to share these thoughts with paying members — glosses on quotes from the book, notes on major and minor points the authors make, questions that need answering.

None of this will subtract from what free subscribers receive. It’s merely a bonus, should the new series prove worth reading.

That series starts with this post:

• Reflections on Graeber and Wengrow’s ‘Dawn of Everything’

All of these posts can be found in a separate section of the site. To access them, click the item labeled ‘The Dawn of Everything’ near the Home tab at the top of the site’s main page:

Most of these pieces will be reserved for paid subscribers as a thank-you and expression of my gratitude, though some will be available to everyone. Free subscribers, however, for whom I'm also grateful, need not fear — regular posting will continue on the same schedule as before, generally once a week except for the occasional hiatus.

Another Series — ‘Short Takes’

I'm also thinking about adding another series, “Short Takes” — quick comments on items that catch the eye or the imagination. These will generally be free and will have their own section as well, accessed from the pull-down item “Short Takes” under the site's title banner.

Feel free to let me know in comments or by email what you think of these ideas. I'm interested in your feedback.

At some point, I may start publishing fiction here as well, but I'll explore that with all of you at another time. Serialized Substack fiction is becoming a “thing.” Whether it's also becoming a good thing for most writers is another story.

Again, thanks to you all. Every subscriber, paid and free, has helped build this site and given me a precious opportunity — a chance to put my thoughts in a public forum and see which ones sparkle in the eyes of readers. No writer could ask for more.