Rating: 
Summary: Best Treatment of Darwin
Review: 'Origin' might be the most famous, least read book it history, but with this book as context, reading Darwin himself becomes much easier.
Rating:
Summary: A Superb Biography
Review: Charles Darwin and the theory of evolution that he advanced have become a major boon to the publishing trade. The sheer bulk of material in print related to Darwin and evolution is astonishing. With the thousands of books related to this subject out there, it is a daunting task for the interested reader to know where to start. I would suggest that this book is the ideal introduction to learning about Darwin and "Darwinism." The book is first and foremost a superb biography. It gives the reader a real sense of who Darwin was and what his time was like. Further, it explains the science of Darwin's era and puts the theory of natural selection into that context. It does a good job of explaining how the political, social, religious, economic and scientific context of nineteenth century Britain contributed to the development of Darwin's theory. In addition, Desmond and Moore show how Darwin's personal suffering contributed both to the development of his thinking as well as to two decades of delay in its publication. The style is readable and compelling. In short, I recommend it wholeheartedly both to the casual reader with no background in the area and to those with a serious interest in the subject matter.
Rating:
Summary: Complete, Unbiased and Utterly Enjoyable Masterpiece
Review: Darwin: the life of a tormented evolutionist, the title says it all. Desmond and Moore work around the idea of the tormented evolutionist as a central theme in this magnus opus of Darwins life. The reader is taken on a journey through Darwin as a young lad, collecting shells and minerals, to the debilitated, ailing old man who writes non-stop on many aspects of natural history from selection to a complete and still used encyclopedia on barnacles to orchids and earthworms. But this is not an essay merely about the life and accomplishments of Charles Darwin, it is a story about science and society in the 1800's England. Desmond and Moore create a scene of Darwin getting swept up in the events of Victorian England. They illustrate a man torn by his religious convictions and the interpretations of what all the evidence from his life's research points toward. I relished in getting to know other famous scientists such as Hooker, Wallace, Romanes, Spencer, Tyndall and Huxley, and many others from that time who were among Darwin's followers and critics (i.e. Owen, Agassiz, Duke of Argylle, Mivart, Wilberforce) A highly enjoyable book for people from all backgrounds and an absolute must read for anyone not so much interested in the complete biography of Darwin's life, but for people interested in the history and philosophy of Victorian England's science.
Rating:
Summary: The best work I've ever read on Darwin
Review: Desmond and Moore completely abolish the traditional way of doing historiography: they do away with the Internalist/Externalist dichotomy that either considers scientific knowledge as mere conceptual change, and thus regards historical reconstruction as internal to the theories, or considers science a strict social product, exempt from the theoretical biases. Desmond and Moore include everything that has a causal significance in the life of Darwin as both a scientist and man living in the 19th century. They manage to give the most complete reconstruction ever of biological history's most transcendental event: the development of Darwin's theory of Evolution. And believe me, as a biologist, I've read tons on Darwin. It is so masterfully written, that it is hard to limit myself to the five star rating: I would give it more!
Rating: 
Summary: Good but by no means great
Review: Desmond and Moore go beyond some of the "psycho-history" poularizers that seem to hang on to the fringes of evolutionary biology these days, but there is still a whiff of the analyst's couch in too much of this book. The title gives away the bias from the first, so we can't say we weren't warned, but it is odd that Desmond and Moore seem to ignore the enormous amount of evidence (often in his own words) of Darwin the Contented Naturalist, Darwin the Excited Traveller (I strongly encourage anyone really interested in Darwin to go look at Phil Darlington's delightful cartoon of "Chas" Darwin "Hanging Out" at Cambridge in Darlington's wonderful "Evolution for Naturalists") Darwin the Family Man (read Raverat's Period Piece, etc.) The chapters continue in the same vein (Paradise & Punishment, Mental Rioting, Murder, Ugly Facts, etc.) and while they draw heavily on one side of Darwin and darwiniana it is only the one side. For my money Janet Browne's biography is head and shoulders above this -if only she would finish it!
Rating:
Summary: Good but by no means great
Review: Desmond and Moore go beyond some of the "psycho-history" poularizers that seem to hang on to the fringes of evolutionary biology these days, but there is still a whiff of the analyst's couch in too much of this book. The title gives away the bias from the first, so we can't say we weren't warned, but it is odd that Desmond and Moore seem to ignore the enormous amount of evidence (often in his own words) of Darwin the Contented Naturalist, Darwin the Excited Traveller (I strongly encourage anyone really interested in Darwin to go look at Phil Darlington's delightful cartoon of "Chas" Darwin "Hanging Out" at Cambridge in Darlington's wonderful "Evolution for Naturalists") Darwin the Family Man (read Raverat's Period Piece, etc.) The chapters continue in the same vein (Paradise & Punishment, Mental Rioting, Murder, Ugly Facts, etc.) and while they draw heavily on one side of Darwin and darwiniana it is only the one side. For my money Janet Browne's biography is head and shoulders above this -if only she would finish it!
Rating:
Summary: My favorite Darwin biography
Review: Having read a few Darwin biographies, I've decided that this one is my favorite. The account is objective enough to keep my skepticism from acting up, and I actually agree with most of the analysis that usually prompts reviewers' complaints. If you've read Desmond's biography of T. H. Huxley, then count on this biography of Darwin to present less of the analyst's perspective and more the reporting flavor for which one would hope in reading a book collaboratively produced by Mr. Desmond and James Moore, a self-proclaimed "Darwin Biographer." The wealth of information in this book about Darwin's life lent a great deal of insight to my perception, as a student of natural science and as someone who is interested in the history of science, of Darwinism, its origins, and its large-scale effects on biological thought as a whole. I heartily recommend this book to anyone who is interested in evolutionary biology and its history, and certainly to anyone who wants to better appreciate the life of a man whose work changed the way we understand life.
Rating:
Summary: An exceptional work!
Review: I chose to read this book because I had never read anything about Charles Darwin other than textbook accounts and biased works by anti-evolutionist authors. This book not only changed my views about evolution, but left me with a profound respect for Mr. Darwin. I am going to continue on with reading Origin of Species! This book is well worth the time it takes to read it!
Rating:
Summary: ONE OF THE BETTER DARWIN BIOGRAPHIES
Review: I just completed my second reading of this work. I do feel it is one of the better Darwin biographies. It certainly is not in the same league with Janet Browne's to volume work, but if you cannot get Browne, then this one will certainly do. This work is well researched and certainly presents us with a good look at not only Darwin the man, but of his science. I had to agree with another reviewer who made the observation that reading Charles Darwin's work is much easier after reading this work on his life and times. I also enjoyed the insightful look into the Victorian mind...it was an added bonus. Unfortunately, I have noticed that the anti-evolution folks go through these reviews bashing anything said positive about any of the Darwin Biographies. The study of the man, Darwin, is not necessarily an endorsement of his theory. On the other hand, Darwin and his contemporaries did change the way we look at our world and we do owe them a debt for that, and anyone that can produce such a profound work, indeed, needs to be studied. Any one who denies this simply has their head in the sand. Highly recommend this one. Good biography and good history. Well written!
Rating:
Summary: Brilliant biography for a brilliant scientist
Review: This is one hell of a riveting biography. I've often read biographies of really interesting people, but the writing is so turgid or lackluster, that I find myself wishing a better writer would tackle this story and do it right. Not so with this one, this is a phenomenal book.
|
