The Ancestor’s Tale: A Pilgrimage to the Dawn of Life?
This is a thick book. It is over 600 pages long and it is filled with facts, and some of these are mildly dense. If you manage to finish it, back to back of course, you will be enchanted by the processes via which we humans came into being through myriad awe-inspiring “stages” (I know I should avoid this word), right back to the beginning from some simple and tiny self-replicating molecules. It also demonstrates satisfyingly how we are related to all extant (and extinct) organisms on earth.
On top of that, Richard Dawkins uses this wonderful story of life on earth as a pretext to introduce, illustrate and illuminate a gigantic amount of biological, geological and even political ideas. These actually constitute a main bulk of the book. You will learn about tectonics, genetics, cladistics, and even mathematics. They appear random at first sight but can be woven into an all encompassing tapestry. The chapter on race (page 397-414) is particularly inspiring.
The penultimate chapter (“Canterbury”) is slightly weak. It is, I think, very important to consider the second law of thermodynamics in explaining the concept of enzyme/catalyst. It is also crucial in contemplating on the origin of life. For this, I recommend the first chapter of Life Ascending: The Ten Great Inventions of Evolution.
I find it interesting that biblical allusions abound: Noah (pages 248-252 and 405); Manna (p. 397); Ezekiel (p. 559 – this particular one I find slightly gratuitous); Leviticus/Deutoronomy & Proverbs (p. 221); Leviticus again (p. 250)
Depending on your personal taste, the last chapter may be the most rewarding one. While it probably is not Dawkins’ primary intention, this chapter to me portrays how beautiful and MEANINGFUL life is. As a “religious person” that he refers to (page 614), I can attest that I agree with him (read page 614; you’ll know what I mean).
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