false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1179401688m/911323.jpg 17977 12 Just as we trace our personal family trees from parents to grandparents and so on back in time, so in <I>The Ancestor's Tale</I> Richard Dawkins traces the ancestry of life. As he is at pains to point out, this is very much our human tale, our ancestry. Surprisingly, it is one that many otherwise literate people are largely unaware of. Hopefully Dawkins's name and well deserved reputation as a best selling writer will introduce them to this wonderful saga.<p> <I>The Ancestor's Tale</I> takes us from our immediate human ancestors back through what he calls `concestors,' those shared with the apes, monkeys and other mammals and other vertebrates and beyond to the dim and distant microbial beginnings of life some 4 billion years ago. It is a remarkable story which is still very much in the process of being uncovered. And, of course from a scientist of Dawkins stature and reputation we get an insider's knowledge of the most up-to-date science and many of those involved in the research. And, as we have come to expect of Dawkins, it is told with a passionate commitment to scientific veracity and a nose for a good story. Dawkins's knowledge of the vast and wonderful sweep of life's diversity is admirable. Not only does it encompass the most interesting living representatives of so many groups of organisms but also the important and informative fossil ones, many of which have only been found in recent years. <p> Dawkins sees his journey with its reverse chronology as `cast in the form of an epic pilgrimage from the present to the past [and] all roads lead to the origin of life.' It is, to my mind, a sensible and perfectly acceptable approach although some might complain about going against the grain of evolution. The great benefit for the general reader is that it begins with the more familiar present and the animals nearest and dearest to us&#151;our immediate human ancestors. And then it delves back into the more remote and less familiar past with its droves of lesser known and extinct fossil forms. The whole pilgrimage is divided into 40 tales, each based around a group of organisms and discusses their role in the overall story. Genetic, morphological and fossil evidence is all taken into account and illustrated with a wealth of photos and drawings of living and fossils forms, evolutionary and distributional charts and maps through time, providing a visual compliment and complement to the text. The design also allows Dawkins to make numerous running comments and characteristic asides. There are also numerous references and a good index.-- <I>Douglas Palmer</I> 3135643 book 2003 The Ancestor's Tale: A Pilgrimage to the Dawn of Evolution total:1017|5:478|4:379|3:133|2:24|1:3| 1017 4356 1935 169 5 11 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Fri Mar 14 11:39:26 -0700 2008 Fri Mar 14 14:10:52 -0700 2008
Okay, I might have to grant people the "elitist" bit, because, well, I'm a bit of an elitist myself. But I dare you all to read this book and then tell me that Dawkins isn't ...more...]]> 4 4 false false Fri Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Wed Sep 05 21:40:33 -0700 2007 Wed Sep 05 22:04:29 -0700 2007 more...]]> 5 5 true false Sun Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Fri Apr 25 22:12:20 -0700 2008 Fri Jun 27 08:56:29 -0700 2008 Often I agree with Dawkins' views on creationists, but usually he's an obnoxious ass about it. Thankfully, in this book he only disses them occasionally. For most of the book he sticks to his strengths, i.e., c...more...]]> 5 3 false false Mon Oct 01 04:35:58 -0700 2007 Tue Sep 25 07:56:11 -0700 2007 Tue Sep 25 07:59:24 -0700 2007 more...]]> 3 3 false false Tue Oct 02 17:15:16 -0700 2007 Tue Oct 02 17:15:16 -0700 2007 more...]]> 5 2 false false Sat Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2006 Fri Mar 30 16:53:12 -0700 2007 Fri Mar 30 17:02:08 -0700 2007 more...]]> 5 2 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Wed Jul 25 06:51:19 -0700 2007 Wed Jul 25 06:55:13 -0700 2007 more...]]> 5 2 false false Sat Aug 11 08:19:17 -0700 2007 Sat Aug 11 08:27:15 -0700 2007 more...]]> 5 2 false false Sun Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Wed Jul 25 05:33:16 -0700 2007 Thu Jul 26 12:00:36 -0700 2007 more...]]> 4 2 false false Fri Nov 16 10:41:17 -0800 2007 Fri Nov 16 10:52:28 -0800 2007 more...]]> 5 2 false false Thu Jan 31 22:14:17 -0800 2008 Thu Jan 31 22:19:50 -0800 2008 A Brief History of Time of biology. Incredibly well written, funny and articulate, a history of the major events of life and evolution, told as a pilgrimage to the origin of life. Not content to write a book merely about biology, Dawkins goes on verious tangents about psychology, sociolo...more...]]> 4 2 false false Sun Aug 17 11:00:21 -0700 2008 Sat Oct 18 15:27:26 -0700 2008 4 1 false false Sun Dec 21 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Thu Jun 07 20:10:33 -0700 2007 Sun Dec 21 20:27:29 -0800 2008 more...]]> 0 0 false false Fri Aug 14 11:51:29 -0700 2009 Fri Aug 14 13:20:57 -0700 2009
The book is built around the conceit that we're on a pilgrimage, a la Chaucer, and along the way our concestors tell storie...more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Jun 28 13:21:45 -0700 2009 Sun Jun 28 13:27:57 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Sun Aug 23 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 16 18:19:24 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 23 14:45:33 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 0 false false Sun Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Sat Nov 22 07:40:33 -0800 2008 Sat Nov 22 07:53:11 -0800 2008 1 A magnificent book. Step by step, Dawkins shows you how you are personally related to every living thing on Earth. You no doubt knew that already, but at the end of the book you feel it at an emotional level. None of this vague brother bird, sister ant stuff - you're now better informed, and k...more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Sep 14 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Aug 31 10:49:21 -0700 2009 Wed Sep 09 10:45:20 -0700 2009 1 more...]]> 5 0 false false Mon Oct 26 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Fri Oct 02 23:18:13 -0700 2009 Mon Oct 26 17:25:17 -0700 2009 Bottom there is a great moment when perspiring, lank haired comedy genius Rik Mayall, in the character of perspiring, lank haired pervy virgin Richie postulates:

"I could have been a chess champion you know. If I'd spent my whole life learning how...more...]]> 5 0 false false Tue Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sat Feb 07 13:29:32 -0800 2009 Mon Mar 09 09:31:33 -0700 2009 1 The Ancestor's Tale as the archetype for all others. There are a few other books out there that...more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=911323