Rating: 
Summary: absolutely first-rate science journalism
Review: Weiner has written a great book on evolutionary science. Instead of a frozen doctrine whose outlines are generally agreed upon as a quasi-religion, Weiner demonstrates how the modalities of evolution - how it actually occurs in nature - are still under investigation. It is a snapshot of an evolving science, carried out over a lifetime of research by two distinguished scientists. One of the particular things they are attempting to observe directly is a speciation event - the creation of a new species of finch - which we long assumed must take place over geologic time and hence is unobservable. But in the process, Weiner reviews the notion of evolution, with fascinating tidbits from Darwin's original research and thoughts on these same finches of the Galopagos. It is a brilliant portrait of the cutting edge in science as well as a detailed review of many basic notions of evolution. It is also a beautifully written book, indeed a masterpiece of elucidation. And it is all hard science, rather than the pseudo-scientific pap that passes for it in so many popular magazines today. While its rigor makes the book a challenge to read, it is well worth the effort. Recommended, one of the best pieces of scientific journalism I ever read.
Rating:
Summary: Turn around! Evolution is happening NOW!
Review: Weiner sets the reader down with the ghost of Darwin, on the Galapagos Islands where the Grants have been studying since 1973. He introduces us to 'Darwin's finches,' the same birds Darwin observed and wrote about in "Origin of the Species". We're introduced to a populationg that is perfect for evolutionary studies--a limited number of species in a closed ecosystem on an isolated island. Darwin couldn't have known what his observations would lead to so many years later, but Weiner shares with us the Grants meticulous study of over 20 generations of finches. Thousands of individual birds were measured, and their progeny tracked. Through this book, we see what they saw--evolution in action.
Weiner weaves facts into a nice story. The book is engaging and reads like a novel, so much so that my 13 year-old daughter is now reading it. The conclusions (and no, this isn't a spoiler) are that evolution by natural selection occurs and that selection can occur quickly (it's not always a slow process). Weiner (and the Grants) also touches on speciation in fish populations, and bacterial and viral evolution. This was required reading in an introductory evolution class in college. I hope, someday, students in high school will be assigned this book. It was excellent, and will probably be wrapped up as Christmas gifts for a few of my friends and family.
Rating:
Summary: A superb read. The most accessible book on evolution.
Review: Weiner's book is thoroughly researched, is superbly written and is easily the most accessible book on the subject of evolution currently available. The book gives a beautiful illustration of the scientific process in action together with all its trials and tribulations. The book answers the absurd arguments of the creationists and other cranks who still cannot see the wood for the trees and refuse to believe in the fact of evolution. An essential read for any lay person interested in science in general and in evolution in particular.
Rating:
Summary: Positively Brilliant
Review: Weiner's The Beak of the Finch is a positively brilliant work on the topic of evolution. A great introduction for the student of evolutionary biology, or the layman. Weiner's book destroys two of the greatest myths about evolution. 1. It's slow. 2. It can't be observed. The study of the Galapagos Finches not only proves the importance of evolution as a contemporary subject but as one that can be observed RIGHT NOW in the world around us. It's almost astonishing to see how simple evolution truly is, how it occurs in quantifiable baby steps that we can see, if we only take the time to carefully observe. Weiner not only demystifies evolution, but makes it as a topic, thoroughly accessible to the interested layman. His prose is neither dry nor technical and in fact, makes for quite an enjoyable read. I wholeheartedly recommend this book.
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant exposition of evolutionary biology for the layman
Review: Writing about science, scientists, and history in a way that keeps an educated layman absorbed is an extremely difficult craft. This writer is so adept at it that his Pulitzer Prize was almost inevitable; and I'll now read everything he writes. The Beak of the Finch is about what Darwin deduced from limited observations, which only in the past couple of decades has been confirmed and better understood by biologists. The book focuses on the work of Peter and Rosemary Grant and their students in the Galapagos Islands, which Darwin visited on the Beagle. I picked up this book before going to the Galapagos--as should everyone lucky enough to do that--but it would be just as fascinating for the armchair traveler and the would-be or wannabe biologist. I marked numerous passages to read to wife and teenaged kids on our trip, and even the most cynical and anti-school of the kids rated it extremely interesting and beautifully written. The shocking punch line: "Nearly half of all Americans say they don't believe the theory of evolution."
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