
- English
- ePUB (mobile friendly)
- Available on iOS & Android
About this book
'It's a little book of wonder, it's fantastic' Chris Evans
'A fabulously sparky, wide-ranging and horizon-broadening little study ... joyously unboring' Sunday Times
Friends do it, strangers do it and so do chimpanzees - and it's not just deeply embedded in our history and culture, it may even be written in our DNA. The humble handshake, it turns out, has a rich and surprising history.
So let's join palaeoanthropologist Ella Al-Shamahi as she embarks on a funny and fascinating voyage of discovery - from the handshake's origins (at least seven million years ago) all the way to its sudden disappearance in March 2020. Drawing on new research, anthropological insights and first-hand experience, she'll reveal how this most friendly of gestures has played a role in everything from meetings with uncontacted tribes to political assassinations - and what it tells us about the enduring power of human contact.
Because the story of the handshake ... is far from over.
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Information
Table of contents
- Cover
- Title Page
- Copyright
- Dedication
- Contents
- Introduction
- 1 Origin Story: Where Does the Handshake Come From?
- 2 Symbolism: What Does the Handshake Mean?
- 3 Finger Snaps and Penis Shakes: Handshakes, Greetings and Cultures
- 4 A Step-by-Step Guide to the Handshake
- 5 The Hand of Destiny: History’s Best Handshakes
- 6 The Hand of Doom: History’s Worst Handshakes
- 7 Demise: Is This the End of the Handshake?
- Epilogue
- Acknowledgements
- Notes