Lucy: The Beginnings of Humankind by Donald Johanson  (12)  $12.75

Smithsonian Intimate Guide to Human Origins by Carl Zimmer  (18)  $7.99

The Fossil Trail: How We Know What We Think We Know About Human Evolution by Ian Tattersall  (14)  $15.56

Origins Reconsidered: In Search of What Makes Us Human by Richard E. Leakey  (13)  $12.21

Extinct Humans by Ian Tattersall  (17)  $30.00

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Amazon.com
In recent decades new fossil discoveries have redefined perceptions of human evolution at a remarkable pace, making it nearly impossible for the general reader to find an up-to-date account of the subject. This large-format book by science writer Edgar and paleoanthropologist Johanson--discoverer of the famous partial skeleton of "Lucy," a female hominid who lived 3.2 million years ago--gives as complete a picture as is presently known. Much mystery remains, but the earlier view of human evolution as a linear progression from apes through the hominids to the various homo species has been replaced by a more treelike analogue, one with many branches of upright-walking hominids. Truly a photo album of hominid history, the volume includes more than 200 color pictures of the major fossil discoveries, each with explanatory text.

From Publishers Weekly
No serious student of paleoanthropology can afford to miss this magnificent, encyclopedic survey of human origins. It combines a lucid, meticulous text by noted American paleontologist Johanson (well known for his discovery of Lucy, a 3.2-million-year-old hominid skeleton from Ethiopia) and freelancer Edgar with more than 200 stunning color photographs of fossils, artifacts and prehistoric art by National Geographic chief staff photographer Brill. The book's first half succinctly yet comprehensively explores dozens of issues and controversies, among them our genetic similarity to our closest living relatives, African apes; what early humans looked like; Homo's probable beginnings in Africa and migrations therefrom; and the latest evidence regarding hominid lifestyles, diet, shelter, art, burial practices. The second half contains arguably the fullest systematic survey to date for the nonspecialist of fossil hominids, ranging from the earliest such find, in 1921, to the most recent specimens from Kenya and Ethiopia, unearthed in 1994-95 and dated to more than four million years. Johanson forcefully argues that race is a superficial cultural construct without any solid genetic basis, and he theorizes that language, a survival mechanism that evolved through natural selection, is intimately linked to our brain's evolution.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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First Sentence:
A HUMAN is any member of the species Homo sapiens ("wise man"), the only living representative of the family Hominidae. Read the first page Key Phrases - Statistically Improbable Phrases (SIPs): (learn more)
suprainiac fossa, stone tool cut marks, estimated cranial capacity, hominid specimens, canine dimorphism, partial cranium, robust australopithecines, adult cranium, single species hypothesis, projecting face, complete cranium, supraorbital torus, muscle markings, zoological family, postcranial bones, human fossil record, australopithecine fossils, paleolithic technology, hominid footprints, multiregional model, striking platform, sagittal crest, dental wear, dental anatomy, hominid fossils Key Phrases - Capitalized Phrases (CAPs): (learn more)
David Brill, Upper Paleolithic, South Africa, Olduvai Gorge, Koobi Fora, East Africa, Lake Turkana, Kow Swamp, Louis Leakey, Black Skull, Robert Broom, Transvaal Museum, Institute of Human Origins, Near East, Peking Man, Broken Hill, National Museums of Kenya, John Reader, Middle Paleolithic, Photo Researchers, Science Source, Mary Leakey, Middle Pleistocene, National Museum of Ethiopia, American Museum of Natural History New!
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