Richard Dawkins has never been content to be 'merely' a scientist.
His writing has always had a personal edge - often more philosophy
than biology. It's no surprise then that this is no ordinary
collection of academic essays and learned theses. Instead, what we
are presented with is a selection of very intimate articles and
critical commentaries written by Dawkins over a 25-year period. The
title comes from a letter written by Charles Darwin, in which he
debated how an omnipotent and just God could have designed such an
intolerably cruel and violent process as natural selection. This is
the type of subject which those familiar with Dawkins's previous
works (The Selfish Gene, The Blind Watchmaker) will know is his
meat and drink. Here, however, we have a chance to view a much
broader selection of his writings. Dawkins is, as his fans will
know, a man with an axe to grind, and in this selection he happily
holds forth on a wide range of topics, from Douglas Adams to
religion. Most of these essays are written for the non-scientist.
Many are deeply personal. But all are written with Dawkins's
unmistakable passion, irritation and humour. Of course, these
essays are not new, but they have been selected so carefully and
thoughtfully that together they form a highly readable
retrospective of not just Dawkins's work but also his life. More
importantly, what people may have missed in Dawkins's writing
previously shines out here - namely, that while he subscribes to
Darwinism as a scientist, he fiercely rejects it as a human being,
demanding again and again that we aspire to greater things. (Kirkus
UK)
A reviewer wrote of "The Selfish Gene" that it was 'rich with
metaphor, passionate arguments, wry humour, colourful examples and
unexpected connections'. This selection of Richard Dawkins large
output of articles, lectures, individual chapters and reviews
demonstrates the breadth of his interests, the sheer quality of his
writing and the challenging nature of his trenchantly held views.
Whether writing on the many aspects of evolution or on science in
general, the importance of science, the poetry of science, the fact
that science is inspiring (or ought to be), he is often
provocative, sometimes outrageous, never less than highly
influential.
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