Everything graduate students want to prepare for their generals: a succinct, clear presentation of over a century of evolutionary thinking in the social sciences, with incisive criticisms. The main strands of social evolutionism are skillfully disentangled are related to biological evolutionism. I can think of no better text to use in any course on sociological theory. Pierre van den Berghe
One of the most important books i have read in recent years. It cuts through the nihilism and antiscientism of the past decade with a splandidly shiny sciences... His expositions of the works of leading figures make for one brilliant tour de force after another. Marvin Harris
The text is superb. It is easily the outstanding treatment of the subject in print. It deserves wide currency and should becmoe the standard textbook for any sociology or anthropology course on sociocultural evolution. Robert L Carneiro