Eight Little Piggies: Reflections in Natural History [Hardcover]

Stephen Jay Gould (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1993

What story lies behind the bent tail of an ichthyosaur? How did hearing bones evolve? Is it possible that our five fingers and toes just happened to be and were not ordained? Here are Gould's thoughts on extinction and on the ecological crisis, as he proposes a Golden Rule of our Earth: we should treat all species as we would ourselves. Drawings.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In his latest collection of essays originally published in Natural History magazine, paleontologist Gould examines diverse and diverting topics. The title piece refers to toes, and we learn that five is not necessarily the optimum number. Gould re-examines the work of astronomer Edmund Halley and 16th-century Irish Archbishop James Ussher, who pinpointed the moment of creation (Oct. 23, 4004 B.C.); Gould finds an "invisible hand" connecting William Paley, Charles Darwin and Adam Smith. His recollection of an incident in his childhood leads to a discussion of selective memory. Other topics are the extinction of land snails on Moorea, development of the tiny bones of the ear, romanticism about the past and Gould's own ecological "Golden Rule" for our planet. He writes about the threatened red squirrel of Arizona and the "evolution" of old tires into sandals. This collection, easily equal to The Panda's Thumb and Bully for Brontosaurus , will not disappoint Gould's fans. Illustrations. BOMC, QPB and History Book Club selections.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

With expected wit, insight, and erudition, Harvard geopaleontologist Stephen Jay Gould ( Bully for Brontosaurus , LJ 5/15/91) has written 31 engaging essays on the disparate but related issues of time, change, and organic evolution. Gould critically explores a cascade of ideas that shed new light on ecology, human nature, vertebrate anatomy, neo-Darwinism, and mass extinctions; he even includes personal musings. Of special interest are the essays that deal with William Paley's natural theology, Archbishop James Ussher's biblical chronology, Miocene fossil apes, the Darwinian interpretation of life's struggle for existence, and a reexamination of the Cambrian onychophoran Hallucigenia . Gould respects the scientific quest but has disdain for human intolerance. His own model of organic evolution permeates these analyses (see Wonderful Life , LJ 9/1/89). Rich in thoughts and perspectives, Eight Little Piggies is recommended for all academic and public libraries. BOMC, Quality Paperback Book Club, and History Book Club selections.
- H. James Birx, Canisius Coll., Buffalo, N.Y.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 480 pages
• Publisher: W. W. Norton; 1st edition (January 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 039303416X
• ISBN-13: 978-0393034165
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.8 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,335,523 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Stephen Jay Gould (1941-2002) was the Alexander Agassiz Professor of Zoology and Professor of Geology at Harvard University. He published over twenty books, received the National Book and National Book Critics Circle Awards, and a MacArthur Fellowship.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Another superb collection, August 25, 2000

By 

M164239 (Hampshire United Kingdom) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Eight Little Piggies: Reflections in Natural History (Norton Paperback) (Paperback)

This is a mid-point Gould. As his essay style progressed, his essays lengthened, his topics widened and the books kept selling more and more. This is a collection of beautifully written essays, which even with the passage of time lose none of their freshness - the eight little piggies of the title are even more important now with all the recent research on early tetrapods. A good place to start for anyone who's not read Gould before

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent collection of essays on evolution and the envir, July 29, 1998

By 

Mark Myers ([e-mail]) (Houston, Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Eight Little Piggies: Reflections in Natural History (Norton Paperback) (Paperback)

Gould's essays provide a new viewpoint highly accessible to the scientist and layperson alike concerning the evolution of animal body design, mass extinctions, and human hubris concerning our role in the ecosystem. Gould's tone is at times condescending and pompous, and I, as a biologist, find the certainty he lends his conclusions to be disquieting, but overall it is an enjoyable and informative read that will answer many of the layperson's questions about evolution. I read it as an undergraduate and it influenced me to focus on evolutionary and developmental biology.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Eight Little Piggies: Reflections in Natural History, June 28, 2002

By 

Joe Zika "Khemprof" (Cincinnati, Ohio) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: Eight Little Piggies: Reflections in Natural History (Hardcover)

Eight Little Piggies: Reflections in Natural History by Stephan Jay Gould is pure Gold or is that Gould. This is the sixth in a series of books on Gould's essays found in "Natural History."

We find Gould in a more contemplative mood within these pages, being reflective and personal as he speaks about the importance within our lives of the connections to our past and ancestral generations. But as Gould would put it, " a theme of supreme importance to evolutionists who study a world in which extinction is the ultimate fate of all and prolonged persistence the only meaningful measure of success."

There are essays on extenction, fishtails and frog calls, the coloration of pigeons, the eyes of mole rats, and an in depth personal essay about his maternal grandfather. This last essay brought some fond memories back to me, as I was growing up... yet time waits for no man.

For variety, range, depth and a refinement in writing style, this tome is one of Gould's best, as you read, Gould hits his stride and leads you toward his conclusions, just like my grandfather taught me to be observent and not take things for granted. But to question, the way things are as they seem, just like Gould does to his readers, bringing information to them and through observation and a brilliant mind making things clear.

This is an eductional book, as well, as you read, Gould makes the reader learn painlessly... a good storyteller of thirty-one essays that are truly fascinating.

Read and enjoy this well thought out collection of essays.