The Malay Archipelago [Paperback]

Alfred Russel Wallace (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 15, 2000 | ISBN-10: 9625936459 | ISBN-13: 978-9625936451

A work of astounding scope and originality that provides some of the first evidence of the modern theory of evolution. Wallace, a contemporary of Charles Darwin, spent nearly a decade cataloging the plant and animal species which inhabited the unique geographical area of the Malay Archipelago, and remains to this day one of the most extensive works of natural history ever written.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"One of the great classics of travel literature. It is indeed good news that Oxford University Press has now made available a handsome new edition of the book . . . . Natural scientists and anthropologists, in addition to being entertained, will find a vast store of scientific facts, many of which can no longer be observed firsthand." --Science Books and Films

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From the Publisher

--This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 544 pages
• Publisher: Periplus Editions (July 15, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 9625936459
• ISBN-13: 978-9625936451
• Product Dimensions: 7.8 x 5.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,323,015 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #19 in Books > History > Asia > Malaysia

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 24 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Hugely entertaining July 15, 2001

By A. J. Watson

Format:Paperback

Although the author himself says he is no writer, he is patently wrong - this book is full of wonderful descriptive, poetic passages, which underline this charming man's love of nature and dedication to the truth of scientific study, as opposed to the accepted 'truths' of the day.

An interesting insight into the groundwork that helped to develop the Theory of Evolution by Natural Selection, it also compares the British and the Dutch methods of colonisation, and controversially comes out on the side of the Dutch - against all current (and our received) perceptions of the Dutch as ruthless, money-grubbing opportunists.

Wallace was also unusual in using geographic and geological features combined with population spreads (human & biological) to support the new theories of continental drift and a world older than the Biblical model.

I'm lost in adsmiration for the way he managed to survive depravation, lack of company, housing, support, money and produce the finest collection of birds and insects that the world had ever seen; make comparative studies of the linguistic traits of all the major tribes; keep a detailed diary of all his travels ... all this in a known area of cannibals and head-hunters with only 3 or 4 assistants and he the only white person for hundreds of miles. Compare this to other explorers like Richard Burton who needed an entourage of several hundred for all their 'essentials'.

This book is a very readable profile of an enignatic Victorian naturalist at a crucial period in scientific history - would that I could have met him!

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars This is a great book, but... March 23, 2009

By Richard L. Nelson

Format:Paperback

First off, the content is terrific. It's the definitive story of Wallace's time in Indonesia. There is a lot of fascinating material, about the science, the culture, and the view of those things from the perspective of an English scientist. Much of it is just riveting, but some parts drag a bit.

In many ways, I found the descriptions of the process more interesting than the descriptions of the items and specimens he collected. Late in the book, the descriptions of sailing small boats through difficult waters are quite compelling, as are descriptions of the process of collecting itself. (For example, he really wanted to learn about orangutans in Borneo, so they went out and shot a bunch of them.)

A couple of editorial comments about the narrative thread are needed:

Wallace arranges the material geographically, not temporally. That is, he takes the islands and regions more-or-less West-to-East, which is *not* the order in which he visited them. As such, the narrative flow is quite odd at times, causing him to refer back and forward in the text, and also requiring him to repeat some material.

I should also mention that Wallace often refers to plants and animals only by their "scientific" names, sometimes because he's discussing the classifications, but often just because. That really interrupts the flow for a reader unfamiliar with the names. I didn't have a problem with it, but sometimes the lists do go on a bit.

Now, some comments about this particular edition:

1. It appears to be a reprint of a previous edition. Instead of resetting the text in a newer typeface and format (with corrections and such), it's just a reprint. That might not be too back, except for the fact that the typeface is Very Small, making it a bit difficult to read. The material is dense enough; it would be helpful to have a clearer, easier-to-read printing of the text.

2. Compounding that matter is the fact that the pages have HUGE margins. There is at least an inch of space wasted (blank) on the side and bottom of each page. That makes the book much bigger and heavier than it needs to be. If they wanted bigger pages, they could at least have printed the text bigger to take advantage.

I guess if you want to take copious notes in the margins, this might be great for you. Otherwise, I would look for another edition that isn't both wasteful and hard-to-read.

It's still absolutely worth reading, but I would look around for a different edition if I were shopping again.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Enigmatic Victorian exploration May 16, 2002

By A. J. Watson

Format:Paperback

Although the author himself says he is no writer, he is patently wrong - this book is full of wonderful descriptive, poetic passages, which underline this charming man's love of nature and dedication to the truth of scientific study, as opposed to the accepted 'truths' of the day.

An interesting insight into the groundwork that helped to develop the Theory of Evolution by Natural Selection, it also compares the British and the Dutch methods of colonisation, and controversially comes out on the side of the Dutch - against all current (and our received) perceptions of the Dutch as ruthless, money-grubbing opportunists.

Wallace was also unusual in using geographic and geological features combined with population spreads (human & biological) to support the new theories of continental drift and a world older than the Biblical model.

I'm lost in adsmiration for the way he managed to survive deprivation, lack of company, housing, support, money and produce the finest collection of birds and insects that the world had ever seen; make comparative studies of the linguistic traits of all the major tribes; keep a detailed diary of all his travels ... all this in a known area of cannibals and head-hunters with only 3 or 4 assistants and he the only white person for hundreds of miles.
Compare this to other explorers like Richard Burton who needed an entourage of several hundred for all their 'essentials'.

This book is a very readable profile of an enigmatic Victorian naturalist at a crucial period in scintific history - would that I could have met him!