[Gideon]

I don't believe these books are available in eBook format, but I'm anxious to get some other viewpoints about these books and hopefully, bibliophiles that we are, others have read them.

I read Ishmael a couple of years ago, and just finished reading The Story of B for a class I'm TA-ing (it's being used as a sort of intro book for a lower division class on meaning and culture - just something approachable to get some of the less trained students in the game.)

At any rate, finishing the Story of B I was really left with exactly the same impression I had of Ishmael... "Hmm... that sounds about right, I suppose. Now what?" Now, letting go of all the factual issues.. his essential thesis is the way we are living is not a way that can sustain us indefinitely. Pretty easy to agree there. And the books are long explanations of that from evolutionary and cultural perspectives....

But Quinn never actually gives you anything to work with in the end! It's great that someone is explaining some of these problems (I suppose) but "Now what?"!! The best I can gather is he is suggesting some sort of neo-tribalism, which is clearly out of the question. And thus his ideas more or less become nonsense.

Anyway, that is my frustration. I'm anxious to hear other ideas.