Angela Saini | Award-winning Science Journalist and Author

For fans of Sapiens and The Dawn of Everything, The Patriarchs is a groundbreaking exploration of the origins of patriarchy. It was published in spring 2023 from 4th Estate (UK & Commonwealth), Beacon Press (United States), and Hanser Blau (Germany). In this bold and radical new book, Angela Saini goes in search of the true roots of gendered oppression, uncovering a complex history of how it first became embedded in societies and spread across the globe from prehistory into the present. Travelling to the world’s earliest known human settlements, analysing the latest research findings in science and archaeology, and tracing cultural and political histories from the Americas to Asia, she overturns simplistic universal theories to show that what patriarchy is and how far it goes back really depends on where you live.

It was an Amazon US Editor's Pick in Nonfiction, Apple Books best book of March 2023 and Canada's Indigo bookstore's Staff Pick for March 2023. It was named a top book to read in 2023 by the Financial Times, The Guardian, New Statesman, Indian Express, OPEN magazine, and one of the top ten books in politics and current affairs for spring 2023 by Publishers Weekly. It was also one of Science Friday's best summer books for 2023, one of the Hindustan Times's best books of the year so far, and was given a five-star review by the top Dutch newspaper NRC.

Read Angela's interviews with the New Statesman and with The Guardian. Hear her on BBC Radio 4's Woman's Hour. Listen to her interview with former Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard for A Podcast of One's Own. And you can listen again to her 2023 Wollstonecraft Lecture at the London School of Economics.

Order the UK edition now at Waterstones, Blackwells, W HSmith, Amazon UK or ask your local independent bookshop. Order the US edition now at Barnes & Noble, Powell's, Amazon US, Indigo (Canada).

For press and book event enquiries in the US please contact Caitlin Meyer at Beacon Press. For the UK, please contact Naomi Mantin at HarperCollins. For rights and translations please contact Louisa Pritchard. Rights in the UK and Commonwealth, United States, China, Germany, Poland, Netherlands, Spain, Russia, Ukraine, Greece, and Japan have been sold.

PRAISE FOR THE PATRIARCHS

"This is an impressive, breathtaking and thought-provoking book which unwraps the concept and history of patriarchy with clear intellectual precision."

— Financial Times

"Saini makes a persuasive case that patriarchy is more vulnerable to change than it appears. It’s a game changer."

— Publishers Weekly

"Saini brings sparkling intelligence to this debate. She is brilliant at ferreting out intriguing nuggets of information and synthesising them into a big but not over-simplified picture... This view of the fragility of male domination is compelling because Saini fleshes it out with vivid exploration of societies past and present that are not patriarchal... How stirring it is to read such an optimistic view of our past and of our future in these daunting times."

— The Observer

"Angela Saini begins her stirring interrogation of patriarchy by arguing that it is neither constant, inevitable nor unshakeable... By the end of this fascinating and insightful book, Saini is optimistic: big shifts in the status of women have occurred in the past, and will in the future."

— The Guardian

"A new Angela Saini book is always an event for me, and The Patriarchs didn’t disappoint."

— New Statesman

"A powerful show of how the patriarchy is made and remade, over and over again."

— Meghan Bartels, Scientific American

"This book is a magisterial account of the beginnings and continuance of patriarchy in global contexts... The study reveals a skilful blend of scholastic findings of an impressive variety of disciplines ranging from archaeology, anthropology, sociology, biology, history, literature and not least interviews with contemporary academics, activists, and personal memoirs of key feminist writers who have influenced the field of women’s and gender studies."

— Women's History Review

"Saini has interviewed dozens of scholars and exhibits a dazzling capacity to analyse centuries’ worth of history... the writing glimmers with sharp observations."

— Irish Independent

"A powerhouse of a book... Fifty-two pages of references and a bibliography are impressive and give away the diligence a book of this quality demands. It boasts impeccable, and honestly breathtaking, academic rigour."

— New Indian Express

"Saini takes a rigorous, broad-ranging and illuminating look at the various historical iterations of patriarchy, and, in tandem, the progression of the feminist cause. The result is an uncompromising deconstruction of the complex manner in which patriarchy has knotted itself into our lives and societal structures... The Patriarchs is an urgent and necessary wake-up call of a book, teeming with research without being taut: managing to do the difficult thing of unpicking complex theory and academia, and fluidly delivering it in an accessible, thoroughly readable way… There is so much to learn from Angela Saini."

— The Irish Times

"Her bold, brilliant book delves into history, science, philosophy, archaeology, and anthropology to answer the question: How did male-dominated societies become the norm? Surprisingly accessible, The Patriarchs is packed with fascinating information and impeccably researched insights... Saini remains hopeful, confidently arguing that the patriarchy is more vulnerable than it may appear. Fans of Yuval Noah Harari’s Sapiens will love this engaging and enraging read."

— Apple Books, Book of the Month for March

"Brilliant... The great value of this slim and accessible volume is the sweeping story it tells about how 'men came to rule' in a world that was once much more diverse in its social structures."

— Jacobin

"Based on extensive interviews with leading experts, this wide-ranging book injects new life into debates on the origins of patriarchy. Saini shows how much theorising about the roots of gender inequality is a 'racket,' resting on shaky assumptions about human biology and social norms, and serving to naturalise what it should seek to question: the penetration of household and family relations by predatory systems of power and exploitation."

— David Wengrow, archaeologist and co-author of The Dawn of Everything

"This is a truly excellent, important and insightful book. By unpacking the terms ‘patriarchy’ and ‘feminism’, Saini reveals that the words themselves have complex histories. She reminds us to critique every piece of evidence and wade back through centuries of misunderstanding, misrepresentation and mistruths. A glorious work!"

— Janina Ramirez, historian and author of Femina: A New History of the Middle Ages

"Bold, incisive, and beautifully told, THE PATRIARCHS is a truly riveting investigation into the origins and consequences of structural power. The depth and originality of Angela Saini’s thought and research is breathtaking, and world-changing. A phenomenally important and deeply enjoyable book."

— Elinor Cleghorn, feminist cultural historian and author of Unwell Women

“A deep and incisive look at the historical origins of patriarchal structures we are still fighting today. A must-read for every feminist.”
— Rafia Zakaria, author of Against White Feminism

"I learned something new on every page of this totally essential book. And for such a serious topic, I was surprised to be greatly entertained too. Angela is the best possible guide. A book to buy for many, many people in your life."

— Sathnam Sanghera, author of Empireland

"The Patriarchs is fantastic... I love this because of its fabulous combination of real detail about some really interesting cultures centered on women, but again, with a very strong political message."

— Martha Lane Fox, Orwell Prize judge

“Angela Saini is one of today’s most incisive and important writers about humanity’s troubling turns, twists, and biases. The Patriarchs, a book that is at turns myth-busting, startling, enraging, surprisingly hopeful, and addictively readable, wholly underlines that point. Don’t miss it.”

— Deborah Blum, Pulitzer Prize winner and author of Love at Goon Park: Harry Harlow and the Science of Affection

“In a world sewn together by the myth of permanence, The Patriarchs offers a portal to possibility: the way things are is not necessarily how they could have been. Male supremacy was never inevitable; it was a political choice. Once again, Angela Saini has the receipts. She is scientific journalism at its best—equally engaging and enraging in her forensic denaturalization of power.”

— Alok Vaid-Menon, author of Beyond the Gender Binary

"Once again, with methodical precision, Angela Saini demolishes yet another notion that underpins our society... She gives numerous examples through history, where non-patriarchal societies have done well, showing that another way is possible. She also offers unique insights about how gender roles and norms emerged out of the rise of the nation-state and the need to defend borders and compel citizens to comply. With meticulous research, scholarly brilliance, and lucid writing, Saini leaves us with hope, that change is possible."

— Salil Tripathi, author of The Colonel Who Would Not Repent

“The Patriarchs cements Saini’s status as a writer of the highest caliber. Whether Saini is exploring how science views males as superior to females (Inferior), how politics creates nonscientific perceptions of difference and inferiority (Superior), or how the world came to be dominated by men (The Patriarchs), the reader is sure to be informed, infuriated, inspired, and spurred to action by her thorough investigations of how and why bad ideas are recycled and injustice persists.”

— Amy Parish, primatologist, University of Southern California

"... an extraordinary tour de force by Angela Saini marked by both a brilliant gift for analysis and an extremely talented pen. Saini, a science journalist and author of the groundbreaking, highly acclaimed Superior: The Return of Race Science, one-ups her own prior achievements..."

— Stan Prager, book reviewer and historian

"With an anthropological eye, Angela Saini’s The Patriarchs: How Men Came to Rule is an eye-opening triumph... Mighty in scope and delivery, this is a tremendous, transformative work."

— Editor Joanne Owen for LoveReading

“In this disarmingly accessible book, Angela Saini takes the reader on a wide-ranging tour through the nature, history, and present-day manifestations of patriarchy. The prose is sparkling, the information is richly textured, and the insights are plentiful. The Patriarchs is essential reading for anyone interested in how the legacy of the past continues to shape the relations between women and men, and how women have struggled to throw off its yoke.”

— David Livingstone Smith, author of Making Monsters: The Uncanny Power of Dehumanization

“Saini deftly interweaves interviews with experts in genetics, archaeology, history, sociology, and literature, as well as social and legal activists, with nuanced interpretations of key moments in the history of women to understand how oppression becomes normalized and patriarchy almost inevitable. Filled with important stories and the data underlying them, The Patriarchs helps us grapple with the big questions about the deep histories and present battles over power, gender relations, and women’s experiences in a world that often seems bent on keeping us down.”

— Rebecca Futo Kennedy, chair of Classical Studies, Denison University

“Gripping and beautifully written, Saini’s The Patriarchs is mind-bending. I learned so much about the past and present of patriarchy and notable, diverse matrilineal societies that prove there is nothing inevitable about sexism, domination, or patriarchy. The Patriarchs compels us to look beyond what is and what was, and imagine what could be.”

— Jennifer Shahade, author of Chess Queens

"Her recap of the archaeological record and the insights available through advances in genetics is dazzling, taking us from the Anatolia of millennia past to Genghis Khan’s realm centuries ago... Saini details the staggering toll that overarching male authority has taken, as well as the fightback against it."

— The Hindu

"De Brits-Indiase journalist Angela Saini ging op onderzoek uit en schreef een meeslepend boek voor iedereen die bereid is om ‘vaste’ waarheden los te laten."

— NRC