Rating: 
Summary: Intriguing premises-- Maybe we don't know as much?
Review: I found this to be an intriguing book. Hancock certainly raised enough issues to make one reconsider many things. I also recommend AREA 51 and its sequels by Robert Doherty as a refreshing fictional approach to this subject matter.
Rating: 
Summary: Stimulating, plausible speculation about human civilization.
Review: "Fingerprints of the Gods" is a very intruiging piece of work. Like most people, I find myself awestruck by the achievements of some of prehistory's supposedly primitive civilizations, but never really felt, that from watching documentries or reading essays, articles and books, that I actually KNEW anything about those civilizations. Even the scholars and "experts" seem in the dark about many of the most fundamental facts about those cultures. However, Hancock with this book, presents some seemingly quite plausible explanations about the great structures erected by our ancient civilizations. The pyramids of Giza are a great mystery to us, as are other ancient structures. Long-held and popular theories about those structures have limited the speculation and study done on them, and with this book, Hancock reveals a significant new theory which may strike very close to the truth of Earth's ancient people. The thing to remember is, of course, this book is presenting a theory. With any new theory, there has to be a lot of speculation involved, and not everything will fit snugly in place. Until new studies are done and a new perspective is adopted by a significant portion of both laypeople and professional historians, this book may seem too radical for many people to accept, despite how convincing the evidence may be. I believe what may be the flaw of this book, is that it's written in a style of self-discovery, a very personal style, that appeals to the common layman perhaps moreso than a studied expert, and since this book challenges the base theories scholars have held as near-truth for so long, it becomes difficult for many people to accept Hancock's studies as a serious and worthy of consideration. The references to a possible coming catastrophe don't help matters either, and give the book a slight air of sensationalism, but were integral to some of Hancock's theories, and it would have made no sense to leave them out of the book. I don't feel Hancock is doing anything like screaming apocalypse... he simply makes the point that that's what some of our ancestors might have been doing because of their own catastrophic memories. Overall, this is a very good book in my opinion, and fully intend on making a bit of research of my own into some of the details of what Hancock says to see if his speculation is as plausible as it seems. It's not the kind of book you can put down and easily stop thinking about.
Rating:
Summary: Alternative history has found true power with Hancock
Review: Graham Hancock has finally brought alternative theory of historical events to a new level. His deductive reasoning and thorough research make Fingerprints of the Gods a true page turner. From the hypothesis of Atlantis and the mysterious bearded philosophers, we get a more definitive picture about how modern civilization began. If you have ever wondered how supposedly people with primitive engineering skills built the pyramids at Giza or quetioned why two completely separate civilizations, the Egyptians and Incas, both revered pyramids, this book gives plausible explanation to it all.
Rating:
Summary: A different time table if history, very well presented.
Review: The book starts with the map of antartica that Piri Ries drew, 400 years before it was ever mappped by modern technology. "How did this happen?" Is a general basis of the book. Making comparisons of different cultural biginings and endings that are all to similiar. Basicly the author suggests that there was a very ancient yet very advanced civilization that preceeded our own. In particular the eygiptians. If you are an open minded history buff, this is defianitly the book for you.
Rating:
Summary: Makes you think
Review: When I first brought this book, I thought it was all going to be mumbo jumbo. It was all theory that a civilzation at our height of our technology could have disappeared in a instant. Makes you think.
Rating: 
Summary: biased analysis, sensationalism
Review: I found Fingerprints of the Gods to be thought-provoking and interesting reading. The main thesis of the book is that prior to about 9000-10000 BC there existed a (currently unkown) advanced civilization (based on the antarctic continent) that was destroyed by cataclysmic events. According to the author, survivors of this lost civilization are responsible to a large extent for the seemingly rapid development and scientific and architectural knowledge of the known, "historic" civilizations. Support for this thesis comes from a large array of sources (e.g., geology, archaeology, mythology, biology, cartography, etc.). Some of the points the author makes are independently supported by other investigators. Unfortunately, the author's main thesis....seems unsubstantiated...The author may in fact be able to account for this disconfirming data but there is little evidence for it in the book. In summary, although I found the book enjoyable (like some fiction) and I agree that there are mysteries of the ancient world that are currently inadequately addressed, the book was not, in my opinion, terribly convincing.
Rating:
Summary: Combines the best of parts of a detective novel/travel stor
Review: I bought this book just priot to a long trip to China. Usually I read then sleep on the flight over. Once I started I could not put it down and read it through the full thirteen hours of the flight. Highly informative and excellent flow of story line.
Rating: 
Summary: A great book, but less would have been more
Review: I loved this book, as I do most Hancock works. However, I can't say it was as 'enjoyable' a read as it could have been. The journey was wonderful, but much more cluttered than it had to be. Although I assume Hancock wanted to gather as much supporting evidence as possible, I became bogged down in the seemingly endless list of examples of many different points he was making. If there are cultures that had advanced understanding of astronomy, I need only read about a couple in depth and maybe have others cited in a list. I don't need to read exhaustively about each and every one, and Hancock repeats this pattern quite a few times. I found myself wanting to skip ahead 100 pages so I could get to the next point to be made. Still, if condensed, the journey is very pleasant and I found myself challenged toward the end when he discusses how, if our own civilization was going to be wiped out, and we knew about it, we would let future civilizations know when ours was in the grand scheme of history. The possibilities he puts forth are entirely logical and provide the 'link' the reader searches for in the previous 500 pages. In closing, I feel compelled to mention that, contrary to some reviews I've read here, Hancock does NOT draw iron-clad conclusions or make wild claims as to an upcoming apocalypse. He merely points out how other cultures may have guaged periods of time and the rise and fall of their civilizations and what that knowledge would mean if extended to the present. I would also point out that the 'flaws' others claim exist in Hancock's logic are no different than the ones that have become popularly accepted as facts. When you challenge the status quo, you invite criticism from the establishment and Hancock understands this probably better than anyone.
Rating:
Summary: Incredible, my favorite book of all time
Review: Perhaps once every 500 years a person comes along who opens new doors and challenges the conventional wisdom. And of course, the majority of people and the scientific establishment consider this to heretical. No one piece of evidence that this book provides means a whole lot alone. But the entire work presents a convincing case that something has been seriously overlooked in our evaluation of human history. For those who doubt the validity of this work, please keep in mind that a substantial group of geologists supports the water erosion theory of the sphinx and that at least some of these ideas have held up under the scientific peer review process. Whether you believe or not, I do, and Mr. Hancock presents a convincing case that events in human history are approaching a climax.
Rating:
Summary: Be warned and prepared before December 2012
Review: Maybe not all full proof, but certainly enough to start some deeper investigation. Sometimes after a first read too unbelievable, but after some thinking ... you say "Yes of course!". Just hope our "civilisation" (? if you can call it civilisation ?) is a little further than the one 15000 years ago !
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