The Book of Life: An Illustrated History of the Evolution of Life on Earth, Second Edition |
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The Book of Life: An Illustrated History of the Evolution of Life on Earth, Second Edition
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by Stephen Jay Gould
Sales Rank: 261986
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$9.95
At Amazon
on 6-21-2008.
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Features
Cover Type: Paperback with 256 pages
Published by: W. W. Norton & CompanyEdition: 2nd Edition September 3, 2001
Written in: English
ISBN 10 Number: 0393321568
ISBN 13 Number: 978-0393321562
Book Dimensions:
11.3 x 8.4 x 0.7 inches
Weighs: 2.2 pounds
Product Review
An unusual scientific reference work by any measure, The Book of Life opens with an unusual protest from its editor, Stephen Jay Gould, who worries that it may have left out much of importance discovered between the present and the book's original publication in 1993. Gould's worry is well placed--in the last few years, many advances have been made in taxonomy and genetics, to name just two areas. Still, the book is a lucid, readily comprehensible, and largely up-to-date overview of the origins and evolution of life on earth, from the emergence of bacteria 4 billion years ago to that of Homo sapiens in recent geological time. Written by distinguished scientists, the text proceeds chronologically, giving an in-depth account of the fossil record. It is matched by hundreds of paintings, drawings, charts, and graphs that reinforce the authors' discussions.
More than all that, The Book of Life is a manifesto proclaiming the essential correctness of evolutionary theory, which has come under fire in places like Afghanistan and Kansas. "Life has changed through time," paleontologist Michael Benton observes. "No other explanation will account for the sequence and variety of the life forms preserved as fossils, or the history recorded since humankind began to draw, paint, and carve, about 30,000 years ago." The book's careful documentation of those changes makes it a highly useful reference for high school and university students, and it's a book that rewards casual browsing as well. --Gregory McNamee
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
From Library Journal
It is hard to know just what to make of this book. On one hand, the inclusion of dozens of striking color paintings and an introductory essay by Stephen Jay Gould on the history of iconography in the life sciences suggest a coffee-table book on biological illustration. On the other hand, the bulk of the illustrations, along with the organization of the text, suggest a textbook or encyclopedia aimed at high school students and general readers. Each of the six chapters--beginning with the origin of life in the seas, continuing through the age of dinosaurs, and ending with the evolution of the primates and hominids--is written by an expert in the field and addresses the latest research. Unfortunately, there are no bibliographies pointing readers to primary sources. This book will probably see the most use in the reference collection of public and school libraries.
- Eric Hinsdale, Trinity Univ. Lib., San Antonio
Copyright 1993 Reed Business Information, Inc.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Reader Reviews
This review is from: The Book of Life: An Illustrated History of the Evolution of Life on Earth (Hardcover)
I was excited to read an up-to-date history of life on earth. This book contains chapters which examine the emergence and diversification of all the major animal forms from the Precambrian Era to the emergence of Homo sapiens. Each chapter is written by an expert in the field. Unfortunately, I was very disappointed in the book, and have actually stopped reading it about two-thirds through. The book's style and approach wildly fluctuates not only from chapter to chapter, but even within chapters. There are some true gems in this book, from the description of the geological ages and the accompanying illustrations on pages 24-25, to the discussion of the function of the plates on the back of Stegasaurus on page 136. Unfortunately, to get to these eminently readable gems you often must wade through pages of monotonous and technical descriptions of the fauna which characterize a period. It would be much more memorable and pedagogically sound to pick just one or two examples and give detailed descriptions of them. Compounding the disappointment with the dry text, the pictures which accompany the text fail to give a sense of the actual evidence the paleontologist must grapple with. For instance, it is very disappointing that there are so few photographs of fossils. The book has many paintings and drawings of what animals might have looked like, but the descriptions of fossils are not accompanied by photographs of the actual fossils! In a science such as paleontology, where visualization is half the battle, this omission seems quite strange. Also, technical anatomical descriptions, such as of the pelvic structure of dinosaurs on page 133, would be much easier to digest with some nice diagrams. Introductory undergraduate texts make better use of pictures than this supposed popularization! Finally, there are a bit too many highly cluttered phylogenetic trees containing species which only the aficianado will appreciate. This only accentuates my final point: the book is written for a popular audience, to whom I cannot recommend it. I would instead recommend it to the aficianado who has lost touch with recent molecular and paleontological efforts at phylogeny reconstruction. The neophyte should look elsewhere.
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The Book of Life: An Illustrated History of the Evolution of Life on Earth, Second Edition
Available from Amazon
Price: $9.95
Updated on 6-21-2008.
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