Like a Book of Spells?! The Book Teaches You How to Rebuild Civilization in One Volume
Hi, I’m Hide — tech journalist and part-time house-husband. It reminded me how much fun encyclopedias were when I was a kid.
The Book is built around the concept of “the ultimate book for learning civilization.” It explains everything from medicine, electricity, and farming to weapons, instruments, and games in detail — and it’s so artistic you never get bored reading it.
You can choose English or Japanese, so it works whether you want to read it as a book or prioritize the artwork. Let’s look inside.
**Official site: [Hungry Minds](https://hungryminds.art)**
For my articles, I sometimes receive products on loan or as samples from companies, within the bounds of Yahoo! News’ rules. However, if a product doesn’t meet my standards for writing about it after actually using it, or if its downsides significantly outweigh its good points, I return it and don’t write about it. I don’t receive any payment from companies.
A fun way to learn how all kinds of things work
The concept is a lot like an encyclopedia, but instead of looking things up, it’s organized by field — that’s what’s great about The Book.
The medicine section, for example, goes from how the body works to first aid, in an order that keeps you interested. Read it through and you understand how things work, so it’s great to read together with your kids.
The illustrations aren’t just realistic — lots of them are fantastical too. You learn how things actually work, and it’s so fun to look at that anyone gets drawn in.
## The concept: read it and you can rebuild civilization
Like that popular manga where a fallen civilization is rebuilt from scratch with science, it’s written with the idea that with this one book, you could rebuild civilization.It covers not just modern things like radio, but connects them back to classic mechanisms like musical instruments.From how to make perfume, which dates back to ancient Egypt, to how modern civilization worksInstruments range from simple ones to complex ones like pipe organs — fascinating
It’s the kind of book that makes you daydream: “If this went back in time, today’s civilization might be way more advanced…” Each technology is neatly summed up in two pages, so I keep rereading it.
Made by a company in Dubai
It’s made by Hungry Minds, a Dubai-based company that specializes in publishing — pretty unusual. Its team comes from all over the world, and apparently new ideas are always popping up.
The backgrounds of the people who made The Book are interesting too, so it’s no surprise it was already a crowdfunding success.In Japan, I feel like an idea like this might struggle to get funding, but their track record of several releases backs up this book’s quality.Lev, the illustrator, has knowledge of architecture and other fields beyond art, which probably gives the illustrations their depth.
## Analog, and yet this much fun
I’m usually drawn to gadgets and tech products, but this time I was completely captivated by this book.
Everything from the content to the binding is crafted down to the details, so it’s less “fun to read” and more “a pleasure to hold.”
The content of their already-published The Anthem to Humankind is fascinating too
I’d love to collect their other books, like The Anthem to Humankind, The Black Book, and The CARDS, and display them on my shelf — and I’m curious about their content too.
A great product that reminded me how much fun analog things can be when they satisfy your thirst for knowledge and love of owning cool stuff.
