1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus

[Yithmas]

An excellent, well reseached work on what America was really like prior to the arrival of Europeans from the late 15th century onward.
Sheds some light on the latest research, archeological discoveries and also interprets old facts in new contexts.
The book is also refreshingly non-Eurocentric in its evaluation of American civilizations and will be quite an eye-opener to many.
I found it especially fascinating to read that, based on latest research, the life-expectancy and overall quality of life even in Native American societies in North America (the example taken are the tribes in the New England area) was superior to that of 17th century Europe, even though technology was less advanced.

And another thing that blew my mind: The prairies of North America and parts of the Amazon Rainforest may acttually be the result of millenia-long human landscaping.

[Vortigern99]

Fascinating, thanks for the review!

[Bikewer]

I read this one last year; fascinating stuff. I was pretty much knocked out to learn that as much as 90% of the indigenous population of the Americas died as a result of direct or indirect contact with Western peoples....Mostly by disease.
Jesuits, exploring North along the Mississippi, found essentially wall-to-wall settlements, farms, villages, and towns in their early trips.
Years later....Nothing. A "charnel house" of dead villages and abandoned farms.
The National Geographic channel has had a couple of shows since based on the researches detailed in 1491.

[Salsassin]

Yeah, trade routes were very good at carrying diseases.