Forsyth M. Brief History of Drunkenness Book

Mark Forsyth (born 1977 in London) is a famous British writer and popular blogger. In 2018 his book A Brief History of Drinking was published about Homo sapiens' long passion for alcohol, from the Stone Age and Ancient Egypt to Prohibition-era America. 

Why did primitive apes come down from the treetops to earth? How did Neolithic shamans communicate with ancestral spirits? Why did the Sumerians consider beer a sacred drink? How was drinking done in an ancient Greek symposium, a medieval British tavern, or a saloon in the Wild West? Why did the ancient Egyptians believe that beer saved humanity? And how did the Egyptian woman who wanted to spend the night in a noisy beer hall behave? Why did alcohol awaken feelings of brutal hunger and sexual desire? Why were kings, pharaohs, shamans, and Vikings buried with things to feast on? Why do Americans dilute gin and whiskey? Why is drinking alcohol before noon a mauvais ton in modern Britain? 

Based on facts, hypotheses, and theories, the author gives his opinion on alcohol in the history and culture of different peoples and continents. 

Number of pages: 188