Evolutionary Studies in Imaginative Culture: Review of Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization
“A narrative running in at just under 300 pages of fact-filled, thought-provoking, humorous and engaging prose, telling a rich story of alcohol in human social life. This is a book you will recommend to anyone who not only enjoys a drink but wonders about its evolutionary and cultural history, about the health pros and cons of alcohol, about whether alcohol should be welcomed or banned at the office party.”
Peter Gray, “Review of Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization,” Evolutionary Studies in Imaginative Culture, April 12, 2022.
BBC Brasil
“O filósofo defende uma abordagem deste assunto livre de preconceitos e que as pessoas tenham conhecimentos dos perigos e benefícios para tomarem suas decisões de forma informada e consciente.”
Buarque, Daniel. “Bebida alcoólica ajudou a civilizar a humanidade, diz filósofo americano.” BBC Brasil, February 12, 2022
World of Fine Wine
“It is precisely because altered states can be accorded the dignity of a wellnigh indispensable status in human experience that philosophizing about them is not the barfly’s prattle that it might seem.”
Walton, Stuart. “A superb panoramic study of intoxication and its importance,” World of Fine Wine 74: 52-54 (December 2021)
The Guardian: Don’t Plan it, just go!
“The good news is that, as counterintuitive as it sounds, you can work at being more spontaneous. For his book, Slingerland looked at how ancient Chinese thinkers tackled the problem. “It involved things like ritual activities, meditation, breathing practices or just trying to trick your mind into forgetting that you’re trying to be spontaneous.” Because, he explains, if you put your mind to the problem directly, you’re activating the part of the brain you need to shut down – the cognitive control areas. The key is relaxation, not striving.”
Amy Fleming, “Don't plan it, just go!,” The Guardian, January 11, 2022
Time: The Joyful Return to Social drinking
“As pandemic lockdowns ease and we return to ordinary life rhythms, the revival of social drinking should be embraced with euphoric gusto. The shared experience of music, happy chatter, effortlessly synchronized conversation, rising endorphin levels, and reduced inhibitions catalyzed by a few glasses of ethanol has been impossible to replace with Zoom chats, and it is something we’ve been desperately missing. Let us look forward to once again celebrating the ancient, distinctly human joy of sharing a pint or two among friends.”
Edward Slingerland, “The Pandemic Changed How We Drink. It's Time to Go Back to the Joy of Social Drinking,” Time, December 30, 2021
Blinkist: 22 Hidden Gems
“Drunk is an inquiry into the reasons why humans started getting drunk. Drunk examines how inebriation helped our ancestors evolve into creative, communal, cultural beings and considers whether or not alcohol is an appropriate tool for the modern age. In the audio version of this explainer, you enjoy an excerpt from a certain famous classical composition. No spoilers though, you will have to listen for yourself!”
Rob Gillham, “22 Hidden Gems – Fantastic Nonfiction for 2022 That Deserve to be on Your Radar,” Blinkist Magazine, December 20, 2021
Tim atkin: Time for honesty about alcohol
“The book is aimed at a general audience, albeit one interested in a cuvée of history, neuroscience, archaeology, literature, sociology, anthropology and psychology. For anyone interested in booze – and if you’re reading this column I assume that you are – it’s a work that makes you think about your own rapport with alcohol.”
Tim Atkin, “Time for Honesty About Alcohol,” Harpers, December 13, 2021
Zocalo: Announcing the Zócalo 2022 Book Prize Shortlist
“What is racism costing all of us? How are communities across America battling the opioid crisis? Who are the people drilling in the Bakken oil fields of North Dakota? And just how essential was drunkenness to the creation of civilization as we know it?
These are the questions that animate the four books shortlisted for the 2022 Zócalo Public Square Book Prize.”
“Announcing the Zócalo 2022 Book Prize Shortlist,” Zócalo, December, 9 2021
Stanford: Book review - of vice and Virtue
“Even in the best outcomes, drinking often exacts a heavy toll, from hazy heads to cringeworthy karaoke memories. And at its worst, the consequences can be truly catastrophic. So why do humans keep bellying up to the bar thousands of years after the first hangover? The question is at the center of Edward Slingerland’s erudite, entertaining and edgy defense of (mostly) moderate drinking, Drunk: How We Sipped, Danced, and Stumbled Our Way to Civilization.”
Sam Scott, “Book Review: Of Vice and Virtue,” Stanford Magazine, December 1, 2021
Reason: Why We Drink
“Evolution has spoken, and teetotalling has not overtaken the world. The alcohol-tolerant among us are hardly a dwindling group, its disadvantages notwithstanding. So Drunk sets out to answer the question of why we drink. Not just the cultural and social explanations, but why we keep doing it despite its destructiveness.”
Katrina Gulliver, “Why We Drink,” Reason, November 2021