From the Bookshelf of Science and Inquiry…

The Selfish Gene

Richard Dawkins

Start date: June 1, 2014

Finish date: June 30, 2014

Discussion: Book Club 2014

Find A Copy At

Libraries

Group Discussions About This Book

Showing 2 of 24 topics — 696 comments total

Book Club 2014

March 2014 - Epigenetics Revolution
By Betsy , co-mod · 13 posts · 147 views

last updated Nov 06, 2019 03:45AM

September 2014 - Sixth Extinction
By Betsy , co-mod · 62 posts · 168 views

last updated Jan 06, 2016 01:48AM

showing 10 of 13 topics view all »

What Members Thought

May 24, 2015 Petra X rated it really liked it

Shelves: reviewed, dnf-or-never-read, medicine-science, 2015-reviews

If you are bored look up the Community Reviews, sort by 1-star. They are very entertaining. One of them as a uni professor advising a student to burn down the book store where they bought this book. Then we have the creationists, then the person who thinks it is all a capitalist manifesto. There are those who think he is arrogant, depraved, uses philistine language (!) ...

How can anyone be a creationist and not believe in dinosaurs and such? Do they believe that the earth is flat? Are they the ...more

260 likes · Like · see review

Aug 05, 2008 Susanna - Censored by GoodReads rated it really liked it

Shelves: science, book-club

This book is probably really about three and a half stars - I am glad I read it, and it was interesting, but I'm not necessarily planning on a re-read. It is, however, probably an important book to have read.

And I disagree with Dawkins in his most recent introduction - this is indeed a "young man's book," as evidenced by the fact that he is still hotly defending it over thirty years after having written it. Not that this makes The Selfish Gene a lesser book in any way - although possibly a more ...more

5 likes · Like · see review

Dec 28, 2011 David S. T. rated it it was amazing

Shelves: favorites, science

I read the 30th anniversary edition of the book, from what I can tell the anniversary edition only contains a new short introduction and some review extracts. I kind of wish that Dawkins would have added some new additional footnotes, because the notes from the second edition were great, Dawkins better explained some things and even admitted in a few places where he was wrong. With this being 20 years after the second edition, surely even more has changed.

This book so far is my favorite from Da ...more

2 likes · Like · see review

Jun 08, 2008 Rowland rated it it was amazing

Shelves: science

“The Selfish Gene” is an extremely well researched and written book on evolution. Dawkins looks at the genes as the most basic unit of replication. He argues that it is the survival of genes that is the reason that life exists and that “a predominant quality to be expected in a successful gene is ruthless selfishness”.

It is a very thought provoking read. He not only looks at the how a gene propagates from generation to generation but also how a gene might express certain behaviour in an organis ...more

Like · see review

Jul 22, 2008 Kathy rated it liked it

Shelves: read-non-fiction, read-science, x-feb-08-thru-jan-09

I admit a certain prejudice against Richard Dawkins, whom I originally had my hero list. But when he started his evangelism of atheism, he lost my respect. I do not object in any way to atheists; what I resent is an atheist's (or anyone else's) scorn of my own beliefs.

Anyway, that prejudice may have influenced me. Dawkins has an intriguing premise and sets it forth reasonably, but in places I found myself annoyed with his intellectual superiority. Perhaps it's my fault rather than his - but not ...more

Like · see review