Above Instinct follows a lone Neolithic man through the ancient world’s violence and beauty as he searches for belonging and partnership. Bloodshed, winters, and hunger have steadily eroded his family and left him alone, but when his last family member dies, he hears of a peaceful and munificent group that could rescue him from loneliness and despair.
Equipped with man’s resourcefulness, superstition, and aggression, he confronts man, animal, and nature, searching to end his isolation and hard existence. His own survival means conflict between man’s fundamental nature and wants, the desires and survival of others, and an indifferent and vicious early world.
About the author
James Walker is a chartered nuclear, mining, and mechanical engineer, and a former infantry and signals soldier, with various degrees in physics and engineering. He has worked on nuclear submarines, nuclear weapons and reactors, in construction and manufacturing, and now works in the mining industry. James was born in South Africa, grew up in England and Cyprus, and now resides in Canada.
Above Instinct was inspired from soldiering for protracted periods alone in the wilderness, and the symbiotic and anthropomorphic relationship that naturally develops with nature.