Discusses the long period of human history known as the Stone Age during which humans evolved into beings capable of inventing and using increasingly sophisticated tools and creating complex social groupings.

In 1961, John F. Kennedy referred to the Papuans as “living, as it were, in the Stone Age.” For the most part, politicians and scholars have since learned not to call people “primitive,” but when it comes to the Papuans, the Stone-Age stain persists and for decades has been used to justify denying their basic rights. Why has this fantasy held such a tight grip on the imagination of journalists, policy-makers, and the public at large? Living in the Stone Age answers this question by following the adventures of officials sent to the New Guinea highlands in the 1930s to establish a foothold for Dutch colonialism. These officials became deeply dependent on the good graces of their would-be Papuan subjects, who were their hosts, guides, and, in some cases, friends. Danilyn Rutherford shows how, to preserve their sense of racial superiority, these officials imagined that they were traveling in the Stone Age—a parallel reality where their own impotence was a reasonable response to otherworldly conditions rather than a sign of ignorance or weakness. Thus, Rutherford shows, was born a colonialist ideology. Living in the Stone Age is a call to write the history of colonialism differently, as a tale of weakness not strength. It will change the way readers think about cultural contact, colonial fantasies of domination, and the role of anthropology in the postcolonial world.

When a modern young boy is transported back in time to a Stone Age village, he learns all about a new way of life.

"Find out how early humans hunted a woolly mammoth, made fire, and created cave paintings in this fascinating book for children about the Stone Age. For any kid who can't get enough of Stone Age facts, DKfindout! Stone Age is packed with up-to-date information, fun quizzes, and incredible images of every aspect of Stone Age life. Discover what Stone Age people wore, sample some of their favorite foods, and read about the history of wolves. Look inside the Stone Age, and learn all about the Iron Age, Bronze Age, and the Ice Ages, too. All the information is broken down into bite-sized chunks, and the colorful illustrations bring history to life. The perfect books for children aged 6-8, the DKfindout! series contains beautiful photography, lively illustrations, and key curriculum information. It will satisfy any child who is eager to learn and acquire facts - and keep them coming back for more!"

This simple information book uncovers the history of Stone Age people and how they lived, from their clothing and houses to monuments such as Stonehenge which still survive today. Full of facts, colourful illustrations and photographs of historical artefacts such as baked pots, tools and jewellery. Ideal for beginner readers who prefer fact to fiction, and those studying the Stone Age at school. Internet links take readers to specially selected websites to find out more.

Stone Age Economics is a classic study of anthropological economics, first published in 1974. Ambitiously tackling the nature of economic life and how to study it comparatively, the book includes six studies which reflect the author's ideas on revising traditional views of the hunter-gatherer and so-called primitive societies, revealing them to be the original affluent society. The book examines notions of production, distribution and exchange in early communities and examines the link between economics and cultural and social factors. It consists of a set of detailed and closely related studies of tribal economies, of domestic production for livelihood, and of the submission of domestic production to the material and political demands of society at large.

Raymond Briggs’s funniest creation–theBoy Wonder of the Stone Age. This funny, sad, yet wonderfully life-affirming story is about a misunderstood boy genius who refuses to accept the limitations of the world in which he lives. Young Ug is upwardly mobile, always on the brink of finding a better way, a nicer way of getting through life. He discovers that the fire that comes out of the sky can make dead animal bits taste terrific, but his mother thinks this is a disgusting idea and, she adds, “Terrific? What sort of word is that? Don’t you bring language like that into this cave!” He invents the wheel but doesn’t know quite what to do with it. What he really wants is a pair of soft, warm trousers. But how many millions of years must he wait for them? Ug’s story is told in more than 100 colorful frames with speech balloons much like a graphic novel but for a younger audience. Witty footnotes explain some of the many hilarious anachronisms.