Episode · Freakonomics Radio · 2026-01-21
Books mentioned on Steve Levitt Quits His Podcast, Joins Ours
After five years, Levitt is ending People I (Mostly) Admire, and will start hosting the occasional Freakonomics Radio episode. We couldn’t be happier.
Steve Levitt discussed Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari.
Books mentioned, in the order they came up
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Sapiens
Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari is a sweeping narrative that traces the evolutionary and historical development of the human species from prehistoric bands to modern civilizations.
Discussed“And so what was interesting as I read his amazing book Sapiens, there is not a character in the entire book.”
Where to get it
Other mentions in this episode (2) — ad reads, self-promotion and passing references, never counted
Passing Twilight
“And honestly, they were almost all young adult fiction because mostly I just read the books that my kids were reading like Harry Potter and the Twilight series.”
Passing Harry Potter
“And honestly, they were almost all young adult fiction because mostly I just read the books that my kids were reading like Harry Potter and the Twilight series.”