The Fragile Species

Rating:
Summary: Excellent material but some is a retread
Review: In my opinion, Lewis Thomas is the best there is at describing the wonder and beauty of biology. His first book, "The Lives of a Cell" , set the standard against which all other popular writers in biology should be measured. The elegant simplicity of his descriptions of how organisms interact remain as interesting and valid today as when "Lives .. " was first published in 1974. I recently re-read it and found it just as interesting now as I did the first time.
That description also holds for this book, with Thomas once again waxing eloquent, particularly about the absurdity of "limited" nuclear war. His story about the development of Hawaiian Creole is also particularly thought-provoking. The islands were opened up for sugar plantations after 1880 and there was an enormous influx of laborers from many different language backgrounds. They came from China, Japan, Korea, Puerto Rico and the United States and none of these groups could understand any of the others. However, a pidgin language rapidly developed among the children of all groups. This hybrid language was almost completely unintelligible to the adults. Thomas uses this to argue his point that language originated among the children of early humans. The point is highly plausible, as only the minds of children seem to possess the necessary malleability to learn languages quickly.
While I found the book interesting, it is not the page-turning classic that "Lives . . " is. The problem is that so much of this material already appeared in that book. This is unfortunate, for when Thomas is original he is so engaging a writer. Given the ongoing advances in biology, there certainly is no lack of material to write about.

Rating:
Summary: Amazingly readable!
Review: Thomas's collection of essays on life, the universe and pretty darn much everything is suprisingly readable. He puts his theories into poetic prose and makes valid scientific points available in laymen's terms. More than a scientific paper, though, this is a deep peice of philosophy and offers much insight to the human soul. Definately worth reading!