The Rational Optimist: How Prosperity Evolves By Matt Ridley

The next book that the Saskatoon Book Club For Non Fiction Books - Coffee/Bar Group will be reading will be The Rational Optimist: How Prosperity Evolves by Matt Ridley. We will then be meeting at The Thirsty Scholar on 8th Street on Tuesday, September 30, 2025 at 7:30 PM to discuss this book.
“Matt Ridley is an excellent science writer who has worn many hats, including those of a scientific researcher (he holds an Oxford doctorate in zoology), a journalist (writer and editor for The Economist), a bank chairman (non-executive), and a venture capitalist. His previous books explain the many striking similarities between human beings and other species. In The Rational Optimist: How Prosperity Evolves, he turns to explaining the differences that allow mankind to increase and prosper far beyond the potential of its closest genetic relatives. This book is a tale of natural history and of the rise and decline of human civilizations as viewed through the spectacles of Charles Darwin and Adam Smith and with the ebullient rational optimism of the late economist Julian Simon.” (Courtesy of a review by The Independent Review a Journal of political economy)
For two hundred years the pessimists have dominated public discourse, insisting that things will soon be getting much worse. But in fact, life is getting better—and at an accelerating rate. Food availability, income, and life span are up; disease, child mortality, and violence are down all across the globe. Africa is following Asia out of poverty; the Internet, the mobile phone, and container shipping are enriching people's lives as never before. An astute, refreshing, and revelatory work that covers the entire sweep of human history—from the Stone Age to the Internet—The Rational Optimist will change your way of thinking about the world for the better.
I hope you can make it to this meetup on Sept 30/25. If you are planning to attend, but haven’t yet RSVPed “Yes” for this Meetup, then I would appreciate if you could click the “Attend” button to let us know how many seats to save.
I look forward to seeing you then,
Thomas