I always cite Jaynes' book as having the best title of all time. A good antidote to Sapiens, in particular, is "Against the Grain" by James Scott, who (as was

I always cite Jaynes' book as having the best title of all time. A good antidote to Sapiens, in particular, is "Against the Grain" by James Scott, who (as was Jaynes) is at Yale. It's a survey of recent archeology and anthropology that has great new evidence and novel interpretations of old evidence. Very accessible and highly recommended. https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300240214/against-grain/ https://yalebooks.yale.edu/book/9780300240214/against-grain/