The Handshake: A Gripping History
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Narrated by:
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Ella Al-Shamahi
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By:
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Ella Al-Shamahi
About this listen
Friends do it, strangers do it and so do chimpanzees - and it's not just deeply embedded in our history and culture, it may even be written in our DNA. The humble handshake, it turns out, has a rich and surprising history.
So let's join palaeoanthropologist Ella Al-Shamahi as she embarks on a funny and fascinating voyage of discovery - from the handshake's origins (at least seven million years ago) all the way to its sudden disappearance in March 2020. Drawing on new research, anthropological insights and first-hand experience, she'll reveal how this most friendly of gestures has played a role in everything from meetings with uncontacted tribes to political assassinations - and what it tells us about the enduring power of human contact.
Because the story of the handshake ... is far from over.
“It's a little book of wonder, it's fantastic” CHRIS EVANS
“A fabulously sparky, wide-ranging and horizon-broadening little study ... joyously unboring” SUNDAY TIMES
Critic reviews
“It's a little book of wonder; it's fantastic.” (Chris Evans)
“A fabulously sparky, wide-ranging and horizon-broadening little study...joyously unboring." (Sunday Times)
Ella is also the perfect narrator for this. It's a serious book but at times doesn't take itself too seriously. A lot Ella's humour comes through and adds to the charm. Absolutely would recommend.
Short but incredibly sweet
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Simply Wonderful
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