Rating: 
Summary: Still a classic.
Review: This book was an instant classic two decades ago when it first came out, and if anything, it is more of a classic now. As Matt Ridley points out in his recent book, _Genome_, Dawkins' ideas have not only withstood the test of time, but gained more support, until what was controversial then is accepted now. In a time when our genes are increasingly being understood, you owe it to yourself to learn some of the key concepts. Read this book.Technical note: As it turns out, contrary to Donald W. Mitchell's review, humans do get half their DNA from each parent. To his credit, what might have confused him is mitochondrial inheritance, which is solely maternal. The mitochondria, which are organelles vital to metabolism, have their own DNA; less than what's in the nucleus and concerned only with mitochondrial development. Since the sperm's mitochondria never make it into the egg, all of your mitochondria come from your mother.
Rating:
Summary: Thought-Provoking and Well-Written
Review: Richard Dawkins certainly has a genius for witty explanations of complex phenomena. "The Selfish Gene" is among the best and most fascinating books on evolution ever written (and remains so today!). Dawkins may not be the first or the only proponent of the selfish gene theory, but he's certainly the most eloquent and captivating. If the intellectual aha! experience of seeing that selection works at the genetic level isn't enough, read the last few chapters, where Dawkins hides a brilliant idea everyone else would die for. It is here that Dawkins proposes the revolutionary idea of the meme, or the "unit of imitation" (p192 in my copy) - in other words, the replicator responsible for cultural evolution. Since he first proposed the idea, the meme meme has really spread far and wide, which is a testament to its excellence...this is a great example of reformulating an old idea in a new way and ending up with something radically different. This is the book that first introduced me to evolutionary theory as a study in its own right, and I hope it will stimulate your mind as much as it did mine. I've been a big supporter of Dawkins ever since!
Rating: 
Summary: Bypassed by science
Review: I first read this book when it came out in 1976. It had a certain appeal then. However, since then science has faslsified essentially all the scientific claims in the book. For example, gene sequencing of dozens of species has shown that the Darwinian straight-line descent of species from an original cell is wrong, that instead of a 'tree of life' there is a 'web of life' (see Scientific American, February 2000). This and other advances in chemistry and biology nullify the arguments about gene inheritance that the author attempts to make. Further the pop psychology underlying the author's treatment of human behavior is no longer in favor in that profession. This leaves the book as a useful guide to Dr. Dawkins's religious beliefs. I would recommend the book to anyone for whom that is an interesting subject.
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Summary: Should be titled "The New Bible"
Review: No other work has ever explained so much so clearly and so convincingly about how we humans have come to exist. Finally there's a book that a person of scientific, rational mind can point to (and share with others) and say, "This explains everything. I know how we humans got here and I know what makes us do what we do." The great mystery is over. [Ok, there's a few mysteries left, but if you read Dennett's 'Consciousness Explained' - it'll clear those up as well.] I bought my first copy of 'Selfish Gene' in '93 and find that I review it every year or two - as a refresher, and each time I take something new from it. This should be must reading for everyone. At the very least, it would allow us all to have rational discussions about things like politics, sex, and religion.
Rating:
Summary: Highly recommended!
Review: This is truely one of the most extrodinary science books of the 20th century. It's well written. And though at times a bit technical, it's still a great read for the lay person. Dawkins is one of the most brilliant thinkers of our time. If you have any interest in science or biology, READ THIS BOOK!
Rating:
Summary: I highly recommend this book
Review: This book, written by the famous English zoologist Richard Dawkins, explains how evolution acts, according to him, at gene level, and not at group ("group selection") or individual level. With lots of examples taken from nature, Dawkins proves his theory, giving extremely interesting insights into the natural world. He explains in clear ways hard concepts, which helps even the layman to understand the book, without a lot of background knowledge. Addressing topics such as ("unconscious") family planning, game theory, aggression, altruism, and of course selfishness, this book will teach you a lot about some very interesting aspects of nature and its ways. This book was a really "eye-opener" for me.
Rating: 
Summary: Words mean things
Review: To those who say don't sweat the semantics, words are all we have in this argument. Getting them right is all important. No, genes aren't selfish. No genes aren't independent. No genes do not have behavior. Genes translate into behavior, through nonlinear dynamics. The basic postulate of evolutionary stable strategies that Dawkins invokes is now in question in the scientific literature -- in peer reviewed journal papers -- read them. But if you'd rather steep yourself in pseudointellectualism, accepting arguments from authority, then don't bother and give this book 5 stars.
Rating:
Summary: Great book for those who love Psychology and Genetics
Review: I orginally read this book as part of a project in my freshman year in high school. When I read the book it really opened my mind as to how humans react and helped me explain things I once never could. I must admit that this is a highly controversial view to hold, that genes control the person, but for me it is the most appropriate and fitting. Long live the sciences and especially Geneic Theoretics
Rating:
Summary: A Close Shave With Occam's Razor
Review: The rule of Occam's Razor is that the simplest explanation that fits the facts is usually the correct one. Although no one can yet know whether Dawkins is right in his neo-Darwinian view of the gene, his argument certainly seems simpler and more consistent than those he argues against. Basically, his point is that evolution must be analyzed from the perspective of what is likely to have facilitated or discouraged the continued reproduction of a given bit of DNA. Most alternative theorists favor looking from the perspective of the individual carrying the DNA or the group the individual belongs to. On the eve of the deciphering of the human genome, this is a terrific time to read this thought-provoking book. Basically, the book repeatedly looks at observed plant and animal behavior in terms of whether it furthers reproduction of a particular gene or set of genes. In most cases, Dawkins can construct a mathematical argument that is reasonably plausible to support his thesis. The only places where you may be uncomfortable is that the conclusions often depend on the assumptions that go into the models used. Those cited by Dawkins work. Others would not in many cases. That's where the room for doubt arises. I was especially impressed when he took the same arguments into the realm of conscious behavior, looking at classic problems like the Prisoner's Dilemma and explaining it from a genetic reproduction perspective. He also built some very nice arguments for why altruism can turn out to be an appropriate form of positive genetic selection. The main thing that bothered me as I read the book is that I was under the impression that in humans the female's genes account for 2/3rds of the offspring's total genes, while the male's genes account for 1/3. If that is true, then I am left at sea by the fact that all of the examples assume equal amounts of genes from the male and the female. I was left wondering if other species are typically 50-50, so that humans are the exception. I don't know how to account for this because I lack that knowledge. The introduction says that the publisher would not let there be a wholesale rewrite of the book in the new edition. Perhaps this is something that Dawkins wanted to revise and could not. There are two new chapters, and they are both quite interesting. If most mammalian species are 2/3 to 1/3, then many of the examples involving mammals are miscalculated. It would be worth redoing them if that is the case. I suspect that the conclusions would still be robust, however, directionally. Any work of speculation will always be subject to refinement and revision. I hope Dawkins keeps working on this one. His thinking has great potential for outlining new questions for research. One of the delights of this book is finding about plant and animal behaviors that I had never known about before. My favorite was the irresistible cuckoo gape. Apparently, a baby cuckoo in a next with its beak open begging for food is somehow so compelling that other birds carrying food back to another nest will stop by and give the food instead to the baby cuckoo. The book is full of thought-provoking examples like this that will keep me thinking for years. Dawkins is a very fine writer, and employs a number of simple, but compelling stories and analogies to carry forth complicated mathematical arguments. Even if you hate math, you will follow and enjoy his writing. Unlike many popular science books, he writes to his reader rather than down to his reader. Another benefit you will get from this book is a methodology for thinking through why behavior may make sense that otherwise looks foolish from the perspective of the individual (like bees dying to defend the hive). You will never look at behavior in quite the same way again. Enjoy!
Rating: 
Summary: Makes you think -- which IS the point, after all...
Review: Dawkins' book "The Selfish Gene" is an attempt to explain how evolution, development, and animal behavior all contribute to the kinds of living things around us. The main theme of the book is that genes are the units that are in control, and in order for them to perpetuate themselves (to their own selfish ends), they have combined and cooperated with other selfish genes to produce large structurally complex biological machines that have only one driving force -- to replicate themselves, thereby allowing the selfish genes that produced them to also be replicated. Much of the explanation of things follows suit. I did not, however, swallow it all hook line and sinker. The main point of the book is designed to get you to think about how genes may not only have worked to generate the physical bodies that organisms have, but their various behaviors as well. I believe that Dawkins' point goes a bit too far on the gene driven side, and doesn't allow enough allowance for environmental considerations during an organism's life span in explaining the origin of animal behavior. I read this book with a group of undergraduate students last fall. While most of them didn't buy into the whole story completely, the book did get them to THINK about things. And that, in my opinion, is what the book is all about. Whatever you do, make sure that you read the book AND the endnotes for each chapter as you go. It'll make more sense that way, and the end notes let you see how some of his thoughts developed, and how some of them were eventually discarded by him. By the way, I enjoyed the two new chapters Dawkins added at the end of the 1989 edition, though the last chapter was basically an advertisement for another of his books, "The Extended Phenotype." Worth a deliberate read.
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