PZ Myers. 2005 Dec 06. An updated book list for evolutionists. <http://pharyngula.org/index/weblog/an_updated_book_list_for_evolutionists/>. Accessed 2008 Dec 04.
Posted on M00o93H7pQ09L8X1t49cHY01Z5j4TT91fGfr on Tuesday, December 06, 2005
An updated book list for evolutionists
Just in time for Christmas! A while back, I presented a book list for evolutionists. Now I've updated it, adding a few recommendations and adding links so you can choose your favorite book vendor. Celebrate the birth of your favorite deity, the astronomical alignment of your choice, or any other traditional historical excuse for a midwinter party by passing along the gift of knowledge.
For the kids:
The Evolution Book (amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Sara Stein. A fine book, but not for the lightweight science kid: this one tries to cover just about everything encyclopedically, so give it to the truly dedicated bookworm.
Life on Earth: The Story of Evolution(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Steve Jenkins. Another encyclopedic illustrated summary of evolutionary history for the younger set.
Illustrated Encyclopedia of Dinosaurs(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). David Norman. Not really intended for kids, but packed with full-color illustrations and detailed descriptions of many dinosaur groups. My kids would spend hours leafing through this one; it's the dinosaur book I wish I'd had as a 12 year old.
Our Family Tree: An Evolution Story(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Lisa Westburg Peters. Excellent, simple summary of evolutionary history, for the K-3rd grade set.
The Tree of Life : Charles Darwin(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Peter Sis. Nice picture book biography of Darwin for the kids.
From the Beginning: The Story of Human Evolution(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). David Peters. An older book that may be hard to get, but worth it for the wall-to-wall drawings of the organisms scattered along the human lineage, from single-celled prokaryote to modern humans.
For the grown-up layman:
Endless Forms Most Beautiful: The New Science of Evo Devo and the Making of the Animal Kingdom(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Sean Carroll. A phenomenal book; if there's one book you should pick up for an introduction to evo-devo, this is the one.
Genome: The Autobiography of a Species in 23 Chapters(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Matt Ridley. Orac says, "It's a downright poetic look at each of the 23 chromosomes and what sorts of biological and disease processes genes from each of them are involved in, along with a nice dollop of evolution of the genome."
Finding Darwin's God: A Scientist's Search for Common Ground Between God and Evolution(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Kenneth Miller. Danny Boy says, "A Christian debunks creationism and shows how evolution can be compatible with Christianity."
Charles Darwin: Voyaging(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll) and Charles Darwin : The Power of Place(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Janet Browne. This is the best biography of Darwin out there.
Science As a Way of Knowing: The Foundations of Modern Biology(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). John A. Moore. This is part history book, part philosophy of science book; if you know someone who doesn't understand the scientific method, this one will straighten him out.
The Darwin Wars(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Andrew Brown. Much as we aspire to the pure search for knowledge, scientists can be testy and political and vicious, too—this is a study of the sociology of evolutionary biology.
Evolution: The Triumph of an Idea(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Carl Zimmer. If you want a general survey of the history and ideas of evolutionary biology that isn't written like a textbook, this is the one you want.
At the Water's Edge: Fish With Fingers, Whales With Legs, and How Life Came Ashore but Then Went Back to Sea(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Carl Zimmer. The focus in this one is on macroevolution of tetrapods and cetaceans. Excellently written, with a very thorough overview of the evidence.
Trilobite: Eyewitness to Evolution(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Richard Fortey. Everything you need to know about the basics of trilobytes, with a chatty and often amusing introduction to the world of paleontologists.
The Beak of the Finch: A Story of Evolution in Our Time(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Jonathan Weiner. A Pulitzer-winning account of the work of Peter and Rosemary Grant in documenting the evolutionary changes occurring in Darwin's finches in the Galapagos right now.
Taking Wing: Archaeopteryx and the evolution of bird flight(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Pat Shipman. Chris Clarke says, "an excellent and readable treatment of current thinking at printing on bird evolution and the evolution of that instance of powered flight."
The Blind Watchmaker: Why the Evidence of Evolution Reveals a Universe Without Design(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Richard Dawkins. Mrs Tilton says, "both as a general explanation of evolution and as a particular refutation of what has come to be known as intelligent design."
The Ancestor's Tale : A Pilgrimage to the Dawn of Evolution(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Richard Dawkins. A step-by-step account of human evolution, working backwards through time.
What Evolution Is(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Ernst Mayr. A survey of the theory by an opinionated master.
Evolutionary Biology(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Douglas J. Futuyma. If you don't mind reading a textbook, this is one of the best and most popular texts on the subject.
An Introduction to Biological Evolution(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Kenneth Kardong. Another textbook, but less weighty and less expensive then Futuyma's; a book I'd use in a freshman non-majors course.
For the more advanced/specialized reader:
From So Simple a Beginning: Darwin's Four Great Books (Voyage of the H.M.S. Beagle, The Origin of Species, The Descent of Man, The Expression of Emotions in Man and Animals) (amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Charles Darwin, Edward O. Wilson (Editor). I've read these books, but I don't own this edition…so this is one I'll be hinting to my wife might make a nice present. It collects the four in one volume, with introductions by Wilson, so if every you've wanted these seminal works for your bookshelf, here they are in an inexpensive edition.
On Growth and Form(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). D'Arcy Wentworth Thompson. I'm afraid no developmental biologist can list important books without mentioning this one.
From DNA to Diversity: Molecular Genetics and the Evolution of Animal Design(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Sean B. Carroll, Jennifer K. Grenier, Scott D. Weatherbee. Like it says…molecular genetics, evolution, developmental biology. A good textbook describing the new cutting edge of evolutionary biology.
Shaking the Tree : Readings from Nature in the History of Life(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Henry Gee. GirlScientist says, "This is a collection of scientific papers that were influential in the field for one reason or another." (I don't think she intended that her recommendation come out sounding so tepid.)
Extinction: Bad Genes or Bad Luck?(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). David M. Raup. A little statistics, a lot of paleontology, a good introduction to how we try to puzzle out what the world was like from a sparse data set.
The Structure of Evolutionary Theory(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Stephen J. Gould. Massive. Indulgently written. But full of interesting ideas.
Developmental Plasticity and Evolution(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Mary Jane West-Eberhard. Also massive. If you're already comfortable with the conventional perspective on evolutionary theory, though, this one twists it around and comes at it from the point of view of a developmental biologist.
Biased Embryos and Evolution(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Wallace Arthur. A slim and readable book about evo-devo.
The Triple Helix: Gene, Organism, and Environment(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Richard Lewontin. A slender book that lucidly summarizes the non-reductionist position on modern biology; it's a call for greater breadth in science.
The Shape of Life : Genes, Development, and the Evolution of Animal Form(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Rudy Raff. Hardcore evo-devo. A little out of date, but very influential.
For the anti-creationist:
Creationism's Trojan Horse: The Wedge of Intelligent Design(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Barbara Carroll Forrest, Paul R. Gross. The best summary of the sneaky political strategy of the creationists of the Discovery Institute.
Unintelligent Design(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Mark Perakh. Nice, blunt dissection of the pseudo-science of creationism.
Why Intelligent Design Fails: A Scientific Critique of the New Creationism(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Matt Young, Taner Edis, eds. A team-takedown of Intelligent Design's bad science.
Republican War on Science(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Chris Mooney. Here's my review; all you need to know about the current political attack on science.
The Counter-Creationism Handbook(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Mark Isaak. Here's a brief review, but it's enough to say that this is an indispensable tool for dismissing creationist arguments.
The Triumph of Evolution(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Niles Eldredge. Chris Clarke says, "useful and inspiring, both as a survey of evolutionary thought and a clarion call against creationism."
Denying Evolution: Creationism, Scientism, and the Nature of Science(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Massimo Pigliucci. Michael Feldgarden says, "It definitely falls into the category of "anti-creationist" and "specialized reader." I don't know if it's a little too complex for the lay reader (I don't think so). It's an excellent and well-written rebuttal of creationism and definition of science and the scientific method as it relates to evolutionary biology."
The Creationists(amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Ronald Numbers. Sean Foley says, "For an overview of the growth and role of the creationist movement in America."
Defending Evolution : A guide to the creation/evolution controversy (amzn/b&n/abe/pwll). Brian J. Alters, Sandra Alters. An excellent guidebook on how to handle creationism in the classroom, specifically for biology teachers.
I'll also add that Coturnix has a book list, too, and if you want a more specialized list, Mike has a list of books just for birders.
Just in case your favorite evolutionist has already read everything in the list, here's another possibility: bones! Here are a couple of sources of bones, fossils, and casts:
These kinds of lists can go on forever. Please do mention any other possibilities in the comments, and maybe they'll make it into the next edition.
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- I mentioned this one the last time we did this list, but no harm in repetition: "Life: An Unauthorized Biography" by Richard Fortey is a good read.
- Yeah, I should also mention that one bias in the list is that it only contains books I've actually read. Maybe I'm going to put that one on this year's xmas list, too.
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I have also reviewed Biased Embryos and Evolution, if anyone is interested.
I guess I need to take a look at that book list of mine - it's been a year after all, and see if I need to revise it, take some, add some, provide links... -
I have some:
Dead Men Do tell Tales by William Maples and Michael Browning
The Neandertals: Of Skeletons Scientists and Scandal by Trinkaus and Shipman
The Wisdom of the Bones: In Search of Human Origins by Walker and Shipman
Both are can be read by those who don't know much about Paleoanthropology.
More advanced:
Reconstructing Human Origins, 2nd ed, by Glenn Conroy
Paleoanthropology, 2nd ed, by Milford Wolpoff
The Human Bone Manual by Tim White and Pieter Arend Folkens#: Posted by on 12/06 at 08:07 PM -
Well, acttually one more that Wilkin's was hawing at his blog awhile back:
Frogs, Flies and Dandelions: The Making of Species, by Menno Schilthuizen. An interesting and well written account of what species are and how they form.
Dang, I should probably do my own list...instead of hogging this thread.#: Posted by on 12/06 at 08:15 PM -
I would heartily recommend Pennock's "Tower of Babel" in the anti-creationist section.
#: Posted by on 12/06 at 08:28 PM
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That's what it was called -- "Our Family Tree."
I'll be getting that for my soon-to-be 6-year-old niece, along with a crapload of American Girls stuff.#: Posted by on 12/06 at 08:29 PM -
I saw the 4 Darwin's books edited by Wilson sitting side-by-side with a similar collection edited by Watson. Wilson's looks so much nicer and, I hear, his intro is much better, too. I doubt I will buy it, though. No money. And I already have multiple editions/printings of all four.
Has anyone read Vermeij's newest? I am quite interested in a trustworthy review before I splurge on it.
When is John Wilkins' book coming out?
I would also add The Evolution of Female Orgasm by Elizabeth Lloyd.
Funny, this must have been ten years ago or so... I was reading Raup's Exctinctions. One day I went to see a real YEC creationist give a "lecture" (he happened to be Botany Department Head at the time and super-popular with students - Yikes!). As they tend to do, there was quite a lot of quote-mining, e.g., slides with excerpts from Gould, etc. Suddenly, he put up a slide with a quote from Raup. I remember I was able at that very moment to say, from memory, the NEXT two sentences following the quote - sentences that, of course, demolished the sreationist argument. I was too young and shy to speak up. After all, I was surrounded by about 200 Christians who particpated in group prayer before the talk. - I'm surprised that you don't include Philip Kitcher's "Abusing Science: The Case Against Creationism" in your list of Anti-creationist books. Although it is a bit old (1982) it still stands up as an excellent rebuttal of creationist claims.
- I just finished reading Endless Forms Most Beautiful and I was fascinated. I am a physicist who has not spent much time thinking about biology. I last studied it in high school, 30 years ago. I was throughly impressed by the progress that has been made in developmental biology. The understanding that the same genes are used for many functions during development looks like a stunning breakthrough. I have been recommending the book to all of my friends.
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Another fun fossil source.
#: Posted by Ron Sullivan on 12/06 at 08:50 PM
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I second the recommendation for Endless Forms Most Beautiful and I'm an evolutionary microbial genomicist, so it's not like I just like it because it deals with my research (which it doesn't -- not that I'm accusing PZ of supporting it for any such reason, of course). It just is really well written and interesting,
However, the author (Sean Carroll) *was* one of my professors at Wisconsin when I was a wee undergrad -- amusingly one of the clearest memories I have of him was his recommendation of Judd's The Eighth Day of Creation, actually, despite the dopey title, a good book about the history of early molecular biology.#: Posted by Jonathan Badger on 12/06 at 09:28 PM -
Mmmmmm.... bones!
#: Posted by sculptorsam on 12/06 at 09:30 PM
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Robert Pirsig's Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance (also available online):
http://www.virtualschool.edu/mon/Quality/PirsigZen/
The book contains probably one of the most clear writings about what scientific method. He also talks about the fight against universities and about the meaning of a university. Quite a view. The book is also very entertaining as a light reading. Just cracks me every time.
In a philosophical POV Prisigs Metaphysics of Quality is quite interesting.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Pirsig
Definitelly recommended.
- vince#: Posted by on 12/06 at 09:34 PM -
Hmh... When will I learn not to send before reading the message, even how short. Grr...
- vince#: Posted by on 12/06 at 09:37 PM - OT, but exciting: New species of mammal disovered in Borneo?! Watch the video.
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When is John Wilkins' book coming out?
Who knows? The press is reviewing it now and will tell me if it needs further work in January. If not, there's an outside chance it will get published early.#: Posted by John Wilkins on 12/06 at 09:50 PM - So, too late for the Holiday season. I'm sure you'll make us all know when it's out so we can order our copies....
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One more: Cassell's Atlas of Evolution. Douglas Dixon, Ian Jenkins, Richard Moody, Andrey Zhuravlev.
#: Posted by on 12/06 at 10:09 PM
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An excellent book on 19th century natural history and one of Darwin's contemporaries is Adrian Desmond's biography of Thomas Huxley (Huxley:From Devil's Disciple to Evolution's High Priest). Huxley was the one who spearheaded the movement to define scientists as a professional class - in other words, any one could aspire to be one through education and training. Natural history (and science) would no longer be restricted to the moneyed gentleman.
Darwin and the Barnacle by Rebecca Stott is an interesting look at the details of one of Darwin's major scientific projects.#: Posted by on 12/06 at 10:14 PM -
Has anyone read Elaine Morgan's books on the Aquatic Ape Theory? The Descent of Woman, The Aquatic Ape, The Scars of Evolution, etc. They're very readable (not to heavy for a non-biologist like me)and I found her arguments for an aquatic phase in human evolution compelling.
#: Posted by on 12/06 at 10:17 PM
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For the Love of Insects by Thomas Eisner. The biology is fascinating but the book is also autobiographical--a life in science.
And if you're really into entomology and have deep pockets Grimaldi and Engels Evoluton of the Insects is a magnificent and highly readable tome.#: Posted by Jim Harrison on 12/06 at 10:54 PM -
Thanks! "Our Family Tree" goes into my daughter's Holiday loot bag.
#: Posted by on 12/06 at 11:14 PM
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Why do you hate your neighbours to the north?
I will put in a good word for Evolution by Zimmer, which at least partially convinced my sceptical/likes to annoy me father. -
I'll second Andy's recommendation for Tower of Babel. Other additions:
Bones, Stones, and Molecules by David Cameron and Colin Groves. A solid overview of the Out-of-Africa vs. Multiregional Continuity debate over human origins. (Spoiler alert: Multiregionalism loses.)
Darwinism Comes to America by Ronald Numbers. Good historical treatment of early American religious responses to Darwin's theory. Also has a section on misconceptions about the Scopes trial.
Ontogeny and Phylogeny by Stephen Jay Gould.
Intelligent Design Creationism and its Critics edited by Robert Pennock. Collection of essays by the usual suspects. A solid, useful reference volume.
Two that I have on my nightstand but haven't gotten to yet:
Hunt for the Dawn Monkey by Chris Beard (primate origins) and The Ape in the Tree by Alan Walker and Pat Shipman (intellectual and natural history of the Miocene ape Proconsul).
Hope PZ's list prompts everyone to have a Merry War on Christmas.#: Posted by on 12/06 at 11:30 PM -
Bryson - I've read them, didn't think much of them and wouldn't recommend them for a reading list like this. Having said that, they are readable.
#: Posted by on 12/06 at 11:33 PM
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I'd Recomment Maynard Smith's "The Theory of Evolution" for somewhere between the layman and advanced reader.
#: Posted by on 12/06 at 11:39 PM
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For both kids and adults, I'd recommend the gorgeously illustrated <i>Journey From the Dawn<>. It follows a day in the life of Lucy and the first family, and also includes photos and sidebars with scientific information.
#: Posted by Jane Shevtsov on 12/07 at 12:06 AM
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One of the things I like about this blog are the posts on specific animals, with lovely pictures and specific discussion of what the beast is (or was) like, anatomy, diet, and so forth. Has anyone put together a list of books like that for layfolk? Bugs, mammals, fish ...
#: Posted by on 12/07 at 12:28 AM
- My kids loved the Illustrated Encylopedia of Dinosaurs - my 9-year old has literally memorized large parts of it. I highly recommend it for any dinosaur enthusiasts. They'll go completely nuts.
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I'm Suprised to see that Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors didn't make the list. It's one of my favorite Carl Sagan books.
#: Posted by on 12/07 at 12:50 AM
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For the biologists, I highly recommend Coyne and Orr's Speciation. It's the most thorough, complete view of speciation (in eukaryotes) available. Unless you have read all of the literature in the field, you will learn something from this book.
Also, if you want to look into classic works, check out Dobzhanksy's Genetics of Natural Populations. It's a collection of his publications along with comments from former students and colleagues like Dick Lewontin. -
About Aquatic Ape theory, check this website:
http://www.aquaticape.org/ -
There are some good recommendations in the comments here. Order lots of books through the links, and when the next quarterly coupon from Amazon comes through, I'll order as many of them as I can. While they all sound like great books, the list up top contains my personal recommendations, and I just can't put them on there until I've read them.
I have read Speciation. I should include it, but the other factor is that I've got so darn many books looming over my head on the bookshelves in my office that it is easy to overlook a few. -
Although neither is about evolution, I'd like to enthusiastically recommend two books about the underpinnings of modern biology.
The first, already recommended above, is Judsons's "Eight Day Of Creation", and amazing book that teaches, through a well-explained historical narrative, not only how the structure of DNA, of protein, and of the gene was discovered but, more importantly, what it all is. It's a book appropriate for anyone from the serious high school student knowing none of the answers to the postdoctoral fellow that already knows the answers but perhaps not the process. I always buy used copies when I see them, and give them as gifts.
The second book, not quite as resolutely accessible or educational but still fantastic to anyone interested in biology, is Sturtevant's "A History Of Genetics", an important work by one of the fathers of experimental genetics.#: Posted by on 12/07 at 09:37 AM -
I can heartily second any recommendations for books by Richard Fortey. He must be the finest pop sci writer there is. His most recent book, 'Earth; An Intimate History', is a masterpiece.
I've always liked Stringer and Gamble, 'In Search of Neanderthals' and also by Clive Gamble 'Timewalkers; the Prehistory of Global Colonization.' Chris Stringer's latest is a great introduction to human evolution; Stringer and Andrews 'The Complete World of Human Evolution.'#: Posted by on 12/07 at 09:53 AM -
Well done for recommending D'Arcy Thompson - I'd put On Growth and Form second only to Darwin's books in the pantheon of biological writings - and Thompson was the better writer, although lots of his science was a bit off-beam (although by no means a creationist, he had little time for evolution by natural selection or genetics). I've biographized him and his science in my own book out next year from the Joseph Henry Press In the Beat of a Heart: The search for a Unity of Nature.
From about the same time, Alfred Russel Wallace was also an excellent writer - a lighter prose style than Darwin. And of 20th century scientists writing about evolution, you could do a lot worse than read stuff by JBS Haldane and Peter Medawar - science writing didn't start with The Selfish Gene.#: Posted by John Whitfield on 12/07 at 10:51 AM -
Your list is a wonderful resource, PZ. I knew few of these works beyond Gould and Dawkins. For a change, being behind on my reading is a pleasant prospect. Though I won't be reading them [in public view?] I think the list of books for young readers is your greatest service: I was ga ga for "All-About" books on paleontology until I picked up "Our friend the atom" in 6th grade. It is regarded as nuke propaganda now but it was spark enough to ignite a strong interest in physics, an interest that carried me all the way to a BS in physics. Get 'em young, before the video games bleach and numb all the curiosity out of kids. (and you know, we physicists aren't dealing with a lot of interference from parties whose willful ignorance of quantum mechanics gets them in a huff about uncertainty being ungodly ;)
I am dating myself by this recommendation and of course he was an astrophysicist/exobiologist rather than an evoltuionary biologist an read more for his speculations than his proven theories but...for shear enthusiasm at the civilizing power of science and for his capacity to communicate the poet's reach that lurks within the scientist's grasp, I still like books by Carl Sagan, e.g. Dragons of Eden#: Posted by greensmile on 12/07 at 11:37 AM - Oh, I remember My Friend The Atom - a wonderful book for a kid growing up at that time!
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Do you know professor and poet Philip Appleman's evolution related work? Edited the Norton Critical Edition, Darwin, and wrote the novel Apes and Angels.
If you haven't read his poem whose first line is "O Karma, Dharma, Pudding and Pie" ... do. -
Thanks, PZ et al for sharing their wisdom.
I too have long lists of books, but they are all scattered throughout my website as appropriate. Most of them are linked to off the professional influences page, as there I have files that detail my entire library. (Hey, I'm young, I can do this while I still have a sane number of books.
) Categorized by subject matter, one liner reviews (sorry, not more detailed) and links to amazon.com.
#: Posted by Keith Douglas on 12/07 at 12:18 PM -
The historian of biology in me wants more history on this list...of course.
I'm not familiar with Zimmer's book, but Ruse 'Darwinian Revolution' is widely regarded as the best starting point for any history of Darwin study, at least in the Anglo tradition. And the nice thing about Ruse's book is that it's very accessible and entertaining. Probably straddles the line between layperson and 'advanced' or whatever.
For a more general history of evolution, Peter Bowler's "Evolution: The History of an Idea" is also well respected in the field, but probably more text-bookish than Ruse or Zimmer.
For people who want a ridiculously detailed and academic history of the development of Darwin's ideas in the first edition of the Origin, pick up Dov Ospovat's 'The Development of Darwin's Theory: Natural History, Natural Theology, and Natural Selection, 1838-1859'. Incredible book for it's shear intellectual prowess and insightful reconstruction of Darwin's thinking. Definately in the 'advanced' section because you would have to be very interested in Darwin or the history of biology in general to read the whole thing.
And again, I tghink the Desmond and Moore Darwin biography is much more approachable than the Browne biography mainly because it is half the length, still big at over 800 pages though. - Oh, also, I'm not sure what edition of the Origin is included in the 4 volume sets being put out by Wilson and Watson, but I'd strongly recommend reading the first edition, 1859, first. Harvard has a cool facsimile edition edited by Mayr. The later editions stray so far from the first that they're hardly recognizable as 'Darwinism'.
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Matt Dunn:
You can get a good idea of how Carl Zimmer writes up science on his blog. [and, no surprise, reviews of his books are linked there]#: Posted by greensmile on 12/07 at 01:35 PM - Ah, many thanks! My family asked what I wanted for Christmas, and I just sorta shrugged and said, "Stuff about evolution's always fun." This is a much more helpful resource than my shrug was. Thanks for the list, Dr. Myers et al!
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When I was in kindergarten and elementary school I loved Zoobooks, and the Prehistoric Zoobooks set in particular. It starts with the scientific method, deductive reasoning, and basic chemistry; proceeds up through the formation of multicellular organisms, jaws and teeth, and life on land; and finishes up with flying animals and mammals. The text is succinct and every page is covered in lovely pictures.
The complete set is out of print, but I see it on eBay and the like sometimes, and think it's well worth chasing down for the excellent grounding it provides. When I took biology and chemistry in high school and paleontology in college, I would often get flashbacks to specific Zoobook illustrations and realize I already knew the concepts that were just being introduced.
And for presents, how about the Royal Ontario Museum's replicas of Burgess Shale critters? $20 US for Laggania, Opabinia, Wiwaxia, Pikaia, and Oleonoides:
http://www.rom.on.ca/explore/cr/palaeo/primeval.php#: Posted by flyingcamel on 12/07 at 02:06 PM -
Just in time for Christmas! A while back, I presented a book list for evolutionists.
Don't you mean Just in time for the Holidays? Pretty soon, you'll be on O'Reilly's gift list if you don't watch your step!#: Posted by on 12/07 at 02:42 PM -
Is there a reason why you didn't list any Dawkins? He has been fairly influential on evolutionary thought, whether you agree with him or not. Therefore, he should be on any "evolution book list."
#: Posted by Martin Striz on 12/07 at 03:19 PM
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Ah, nevermind, I guess I skipped those two entries as I was scrolling.
#: Posted by Martin Striz on 12/07 at 03:20 PM
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#52694: Martin Striz — 12/07 at 03:19 PM
Is there a reason why you didn't list any Dawkins?
Maybe they disagree about which god they don't believe in.#: Posted by on 12/07 at 03:25 PM -
I think your blog software needs a wee bit o tuning. I am now on "Page 3 of 2 pages".
I am truly a man ahead of my time.#: Posted by on 12/07 at 03:43 PM - I haven't read it yet, but the new Zimmer book Smithsonian Intimate Guide to Human Origins looked beautiful when I petted it and skimmed it at Powells last weekend. I wasn't sure which audience it was best suited for, so it didn't make its way into my basket, but I hope someone finds a good coffee table to buy it for.
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Here are some that I like, from my virtual bookshelf, which shows the cover illustrations:
"Fallacies of Creationism" by Willard Young. I highly recommend this book. It's a detailed and respectful analysis of why creationism is religion in disguise and why it is all wrong as science. Interestingly, many of the arguments that have been made recently were made, and debunked, over 60 years ago. http://www.bookcrossing.com/journal/619170
For children or laymen: "Darwin for Beginners," by Jonathan Miller, illustrated by Borin Van Loon: Darwin's life and theory are explained with many cartoon illustrations. The book describes the kinds of evidence that convinced Darwin. The author includes a list for further reading.
http://www.bookcrossing.com/journal/1012630
"A Dictionary of Creation Myths," by David Adams Leeming describess creation myths from different cultures. Useful for giving Scientific Creationism equal time in the classroom: in the Comparative Religions class.
http://www.bookcrossing.com/journal/720127#: Posted by on 12/07 at 10:22 PM -
Reading 'Endless Forms' right now (following PZ's recommendation) and it's cool as! Leads me to ask, though -
Does anyone know a good, detailed, and up-to-date primer on genetics which explains how it all actually works (at the molecular level, esp.), starts at Total Ignoramus level, and has lots and lots of pretty pictures?
'Endless forms' is readable and making many things clear but it's big-picture stuff... and if I studied any biology at school I can't remember it.#: Posted by on 12/08 at 04:27 AM -
Does anyone know a good, detailed, and up-to-date primer on genetics which explains how it all actually works (at the molecular level, esp.), starts at Total Ignoramus level, and has lots and lots of pretty pictures?
Did someone ask for the Cartoon Guide to Genetics by Larry Gonick, ISBN: 0062730991 ?
or maybe
Molecular Biology Made Simple and Fun by David P. Clark and Lonnie Dee Russell, ISBN: 1889899046 ?#: Posted by on 12/08 at 08:34 AM -
"A Natural History of the Carnivores" by David Macdonald. This is a nice solid book about the evolution of Carnivora. Once again, it demonstrates that evolution is not a ladder but a bush that sprouts and is pruned, sprouts and is pruned again. Lots of illustrations.
http://www.bookcrossing.com/journal/784832
The link is to a cover illustration on my virtual bookshelf. The bookshelf includes a link to a précis.#: Posted by on 12/08 at 11:51 AM -
Oops! That should have been "The Velvet Claw: A Natural History of the Carnivores."
#: Posted by on 01/21 at 08:20 PM