lewcharl's reviews
59 reviews

The Jesuit and the Skull: Teilhard de Chardin, Evolution, and the Search for Peking Man by Amir D. Aczel

adventurous hopeful informative inspiring mysterious medium-paced

4.75

Very interesting read, not only in the ways it shows the politics behind paleontological digs but also in the way they illustrated the life and struggles of Teilhard. You will get very invested in his battles with the church and I have come away inspired by his life. The book also provides a great overview of the history of evolution and human taxonomy, the only issue is that some of this is now out of date due to more recent discoveries. Other than that, I would recommend. 

Other Minds: The Octopus and the Evolution of Intelligent Life by Peter Godfrey-Smith

adventurous challenging informative reflective slow-paced

5.0

Brilliantly written and gives a great overview of the early evolution of animals and nervous systems, noting all the key scientists that have built up the field. He takes you on a journey through the live of cephalopods and has a good grip on evolutionary theory keeping all his ideas deeply rooted in it. I would recommend to anyone interested in evolutionary biology, marine biology or neuroscience. 

Evolution: A Very Short Introduction by Brian Charlesworth, Deborah Charlesworth

informative reflective slow-paced

3.0

An okay overview but I feel that that the explanations could have been clearer and more to the point 

Animal Behaviour: A Very Short Introduction by Tristram D. Wyatt

informative reflective medium-paced

3.0

Good overview of the different aspects of behavioural biology 

Harrow County Library Edition Volume 1 by Cullen Bunn

adventurous dark mysterious fast-paced

3.5

The story is engaging with many interesting characters and I’m looking forward to getting the next volume. In terms of the edition itself it is a fantastic format with many extras at the back. The illustrations are gorgeous and I would recommend to anyone wanting a dark fantasy comic to read 

The Book of Humans: A Brief History of Culture, Sex, War and the Evolution of Us by Adam Rutherford

hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted medium-paced

5.0

Really good book discussing the cultural aspects of humanity and how they relate to the natural world around us. 

The Guermantes Way by Marcel Proust

challenging reflective slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? N/A
• Diverse cast of characters? No
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

The Universe Within: A Scientific Adventure. by Neil Shubin by Neil Shubin

informative reflective medium-paced

3.0

The narrative structure felt like it was all over the place and rushed. The information itself isn’t wrong but it isn’t really compelling, just showing a broad whistle stop tour of concepts like the Big Bang, Continental drift and sedimentology. If you have taken an intro class for these in school or university you aren’t going to learn anything new here. 

Ancient Bones: Unearthing the Astonishing New Story of How We Became Human by Madelaine Böhme

adventurous informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

Really interesting read and great overview of human evolution all the back from great apes. Also really interesting to hear about how the more recent finds of Graecopithicus have challenged the scientific consensus about the out of Africa theory. Would definitely recommend. 

Human Evolution: A Very Short Introduction by Bernard Wood

informative reflective medium-paced

5.0

Great intro to the different aspects of palaeoanthropology