Knowledgeable and delightfully witty, Mark Forsyth describes in his boozy cultural history of drunkenness why we have evolved to embrace alcohol. With seriousness and enthusiasm, he recounts tales of tipsy ancient Egyptians, wine drinkers in ancient Greece, and drunken Vikings who, like us, were united by their love of alcohol.

What began with tipsy single-celled organisms in the primordial soup has historically manifested in the enduring human tendency to prefer looking deep into the glass more often than not. At all times and in every corner of the world, every culture has succumbed to the alcoholic high or, undoubtedly unsuccessfully, fought against it. Drunkenness has always been a collection of contradictions, sometimes fostering conflict and at other times peace. For the Persians, it was a prerequisite for political debate, while for the ancient Greeks, it served as a means of self-discipline, and in ancient Egypt, it was a condition for spiritual ecstasy and enlightenment. Indulging can have religious or sexual motivations, it can topple kings and elevate peasants. Highly informative and amusing, Mark Forsyth describes what people drank, who overindulged, and why – among the countless possible reasons – humanity has yet to break free from alcohol. This is, in the best sense, the history of the tipsy world.