The Better Angels Of Our Nature illustrates why we live in the most peaceful time in history, looking at how our motivators to act violently are outweighed by our tendencies towards peace, and which major shifts in history caused this global reduction in violence.

From watching the news today, it's easy to think that we live in dangerous and violent times.

But according to Steven Pinker, we've never been safer.

One of the world's leading thinkers on language and psychology, Pinker is a Harvard professor, Pulitzer Prize finalist, and a regular contributor to the New York Times, Time, and The New Republic.

In this book, the author looks broadly at human history, examining what drives us to violence and what keeps us from it.

Combining statistics and historical narrative, The Better Angels of Our Nature makes the surprising case that violence has been on a continuous decline for the past 5,000 years — a process that continues today.