River Out of Eden: A Darwinian View of Life (Science Masters Series) Reprint Edition

by Richard Dawkins (Author)

81 customer reviews

ISBN-13: 978-1857994056

ISBN-10: 1857994051

Why is ISBN important?

Have one to sell? Sell on Amazon

Added to

Unable to add item to List. Please try again.

Share <Embed>

Condition: Used - Good

In Stock. Sold by Jkooz04, Fulfilled by Amazon

Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items.

107 Used from $5.00

FREE Shipping on orders over $25.

Deliver to Finland

In Stock.

Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.

This item ships to Finland. Get it by Friday, Sept. 6 Choose this date at checkout. Learn more

List Price: $16.99
Save: $1.70 (10%)

32 New from $15.29

Deliver to Finland

More Buying Choices

32 New from $15.29 107 Used from $5.00

139 used & new from $5.00

See All Buying Options

Free Two-Day Shipping for College Students with Amazon Student

How did the replication bomb we call ”life” begin and where in the world, or rather, in the universe, is it heading? Writing with characteristic wit and an ability to clarify complex phenomena (the New York Times described his style as ”the sort of science writing that makes the reader feel like a genius”), Richard Dawkins confronts this ancient mystery.

More items to explore

Page 1 of 1 Start overPage 1 of 1

This shopping feature will continue to load items. In order to navigate out of this carousel please use your heading shortcut key to navigate to the next or previous heading.

Ron Chernow

404

Paperback
$18.90
Sam Harris

602

Paperback
$10.37

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Nearly a century and a half after Charles Darwin formulated it, the theory of evolution is still the subject of considerable debate. Oxford scientist Richard Dawkins is among Darwin's chief defenders, and an able one indeed-- witty, literate, capable of turning a beautiful phrase. In River Out of Eden he introduces general readers to some fairly abstract problems in evolutionary biology, gently guiding us through the tangles of mitochondrial DNA and the survival-of-the- fittest ethos. (Superheroes need not apply: Dawkins writes, "The genes that survive . . . will be the ones that are good at surviving in the average environment of the species.") Dawkins argues for the essential unity of humanity, noting that "we are much closer cousins of one another than we normally realize, and we have many fewer ancestors than simple calculations suggest."

Review

"An excellent introduction to many important evolutionary ideas." -- --Nature

See all Editorial Reviews

Product details

Series: Science Masters Series
Paperback: 192 pages
Publisher: Basic Books; Reprint edition (August 23, 1996)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1857994051
ISBN-13: 978-1857994056
ASIN: 0465069908
Product Dimensions: 5.1 x 0.5 x 8.1 inches
Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 81 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #50,196 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #109 in Genetics (Books)
- #702 in Biology & Life Sciences

Would you like to tell us about a lower price?
If you are a seller for this product, would you like to suggest updates through seller support?

Be the first video

Your name here

81 customer reviews

Review this product

Write a customer review

Showing 1-8 of 81 reviews

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Cover to Cover in Boston

It isn't YOU that's eternal! It's your DNA!!!

January 9, 2014

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I finally get him!!! Guess what? Your DNA is eternal, not you. It flows like a river through us (and all creatures) and we are merely the banks (of the river) that house the DNA for its continuation into next generation, and the next (or not).

I have read many of Dawkins' books and articles and this is a winner! If you're interested in learning exactly what Dawkins means by "The Selfish Gene" or the DNA river - this is the read & it's a quickie! The concepts are not as difficult in this book as in many others. Rather, it's a layman's explanation of our beginnings from the replication bombs in space to the biological zygote (or previous bacteria) and on to our own technological replication bombs. Now, I get why he was lead to the next step: memes.
A fun read about the river of DNA that flows in all of us! And, it was particularly interesting to learn about Mitochondrial eve and the importance of the female line as it is always a pure line (no mixing of DNA there!), making it much easier for scientists to study.

6 people found this helpful

Helpful

Comment

Yash Shah

It has been life-changing

April 4, 2019

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

I picked this book up BY ACCIDENT as it was part of the list recommended by Ray Dalio and I wanted to finish the list. There are some ideas that you don't quite fully appreciate until they sit in the mind for a while. Darwinism is one of them. This was my introduction to Darwin (yes, I curse my high school for keeping me totally ignorant of what is the greatest idea anyone ever had, 'survival of the fittest' and 'man from apes' my foot). At first read (on a 14 hour flight), I found a sense of thrill at it's mechanism and the way Dawkins explains it. I was at that point already inclined towards naturalism although I didn't know that's what it was called. As I mulled over it the next few months, I started to realize it's mind-boggling implications. It really changes everything. A universal acid that dissolves every other philosophical speculation. I have probably read a dozen books on the subject since but this book sparked the initial thrill. I remember scribbling on the last page 'the theory is beautiful'. Some people start with the Selfish Gene but I find it too long when you're looking for an introduction. This delivers the poetry of Darwinism quickly.

PS - It doesn't address the idea of no progress in evolution which is a major theme. You have to read Gould for that.

Helpful

Comment

Craig K.

I F’n Love Science

October 23, 2017

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Nice run through the principles of how life formed on this planet and progressed to its current state. As a novice, I at times found hard to read but I figured out enough to have a simple understanding of evolution.

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

Comment

David T.

Good and concise introduction to Dawkins

December 28, 2011

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

After the blind watchmaker, I wasn't going to read any more Dawkins until I read the Selfish Gene, but I found this book in a dollar bin and because its so short I went ahead and read it. This book really benefits from its short length, for once Dawkins seems to really stay on track and not ramble on. I sometimes feel that the other of his book are filled with 30% fluff just to make them longer. The book follows a digital river (DNA), and uses that to follow first bacteria type of cells, then multi-part cells, then complex life. I can see people rating this book lower because it often references The Selfish Gene, The Extended Phenotype and The Blind Watchmaker, and I assume that everything included in this book is included in those books with much more detail, so after reading those books this one might become redundant, but I think this one is likely a good introduction to Dawkins thought and writing.

6 people found this helpful

Helpful

Comment

double_H

The best short book on biology that you can buy

September 21, 2014

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

This is a short little book that really explains how DNA and evolution work. It is aimed at a general audience, and it succeeds very well, in my opinion. I bought this book for my son in 1995, to help him in biology, and I was very pleased with it. It was my introduction to the works of Dawkins, and since then I have read "the Selfish Gene" and many others. So many people have borrowed my tattered old copy that I decided to buy this one for a loaner! It would make a nice gift to any high school student who has a lousy biology teacher!

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Comment

K. Witten-hannah

Thoughtful and Interesting

January 3, 2017

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Richard Dawkins presents clear and insightful arguments supported by examples to show that we do not need a god to explain the development of life on earth. Some speculation about where to from here.
An enjoyable read. I would have liked it to be longer.

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Comment

D. S. Heersink

Not Dawkins' Best

September 26, 2005

Format: PaperbackVerified Purchase

This is not Dawkins at his best, although he means well. It starts off on an inspirational note, but then devolves into variegated ruminations. Much of the territory covered in the first-two chapters presupposes much antecedent information that naive readers may find baffling or confusing. He also takes a dismissive, rather than explanatory, attitude toward vitalism in the third chapter. I agree that vitalism is no longer viable, but this needs demonstration, not just derision. His chapter on Design answers the critics, except for one critical point: How did the difference sexes evolve, which to me is the truest difficulty, not the evolution of the eyes (see Matt Ridley's "Red Queen" for the answer). The fourth chapter, concerning nature's utility, is the least interesting. Dawkins spends way too much time on population genetics rather than answer directly the question that Aristotle posed: What is it for? Since Aristotle, natural philosophy has been concerned with material, formal, efficient, and final causes, although all but efficient causality has fallen by the wayside in modernity, except for Creationists. For them, a residue of final causality still exists, What is something for, or what is its function? This is an intelligible question when asked of human production and artefacts, but quite useless when asked of nature, unless one gives Dawkins' pithy response: DNA replication. But it doesn't take a whole chapter to answer the question that forthrightly. This is Dawkins' most patronizing and unflattering work; he's always tendentious, but capable of much better.

5 people found this helpful

Helpful

Comment

Set up an Amazon Giveaway

Amazon Giveaway allows you to run promotional giveaways in order to create buzz, reward your audience, and attract new followers and customers. Learn more about Amazon Giveaway

This item: River Out of Eden: A Darwinian View of Life (Science Masters Series)

Set up a giveaway

Pages with related products. See and discover other items: Science 1 Master Books

Amazon Music Stream millions of songs	Amazon Advertising Find, attract, and engage customers	Amazon Drive Cloud storage from Amazon	6pm Score deals on fashion brands	AbeBooks Books, art & collectibles	ACX Audiobook Publishing Made Easy

Alexa Actionable Analytics for the Web	Sell on Amazon Start a Selling Account	Amazon Business Everything For Your Business	AmazonGlobal Ship Orders Internationally	Home Services Handpicked Pros Happiness Guarantee	Amazon Inspire Digital Educational Resources

Amazon Rapids Fun stories for kids on the go	Amazon Web Services Scalable Cloud Computing Services	Audible Listen to Books & Original Audio Performances	Book Depository Books With Free Delivery Worldwide	Box Office Mojo Find Movie Box Office Data	ComiXology Thousands of Digital Comics

CreateSpace Indie Print Publishing Made Easy	DPReview Digital Photography	East Dane Designer Men's Fashion	Fabric Sewing, Quilting & Knitting	Goodreads Book reviews & recommendations	IMDb Movies, TV & Celebrities

IMDbPro Get Info Entertainment Professionals Need	Kindle Direct Publishing Indie Digital Publishing Made Easy	Prime Video Direct Video Distribution Made Easy	Shopbop Designer Fashion Brands	Woot! Deals and Shenanigans	Zappos Shoes & Clothing

Ring Smart Home Security Systems	eero WiFi Stream 4K Video in Every Room	Neighbors App Real-Time Crime & Safety Alerts	Subscribe with Amazon Discover & try subscription services	PillPack Pharmacy Simplified	Amazon Second Chance Pass it on, trade it in, give it a second life

River Out of Eden: A Darwinian View of Life (Science Masters Series) Reprint Edition

More items to explore