PRAISE FOR RONALD WRIGHT AND A SHORT HISTORY OF PROGRESS: "Wright sifts the findings of archaeology and anthropology with thoughtful grace to build a potent argument." -- Guardian "Impressive . for the evidence Wright assembles from his authoritative grasp of history, and for the skill and clarity with which he imparts information. He makes history, ecology, anthropology, and political science easy to read." --Associated Press "Provocative . Already a bestseller in Canada, Wright is now making his biggest mark since his debut novel (A Scientific Romance, 1997) attracted wide attention. illuminating and disturbing, and expansively documented." -- Kirkus Reviews, STARRED REVIEW "I don't care if you have never read and will never read any kind of book at all, but you must read this one.

" -- Globe and Mail "An elegant and learned discussion of what the rise and fall of past civilizations predict about our own: nothing good." -- Maclean's "In this short, superb essay, Wright succeeds at impressing on his readers how fragile the remarkable experiment we call civilisation really is." -- The Liberal "Rarely have I read a book that is so gripping, so immediate and so important to our times. Jared Diamond will be jealous!" -- ABC (Australia) "A beautiful tract on the plight of humanity and how we always tend to spoil our nest and why we need to learn from that." --Sydney Sun Herald "A compelling work of distilled wisdom . Wright is a pungent phrase-maker and a penetrating thinker. His learning is historical, anthropological and cross-cultural." -- Times Literary Supplement "[Ronald Wright] is an historical philosopher with a profound understanding of other cultures.

" -- Jan Morris "Ronald Wright, one of this country's intellectual treasures . takes his readers on a sweeping educational tour of history and every continent's previous civilization . This excellent book should be required reading at the White House." -- Quill & Quire.