Darwin’s Universe: Evolution from A to Z
Milner R. 2009. Darwin’s Universe: Evolution from A to Z. University of California Press, London. 488 pp. ISBN 978-0-520-24376-7
This reincarnation of Milner’s previous Encyclopaedia of Evolution has grown in length and scope, but still remains a delight. Retitled no doubt to celebrate its publication in the 200th year anniversary of Darwin’s birth, it opens with an enthusiastic Foreward by Ian Tattersall and Preface to the previous version by Stephen Jay Gould. The encyclopaedia itself consists of short entries/essays on a wide range of topics, from elaborations on some of the most famous (and infamous) people in the history of evolutionary enterprise, to depictions of evolution in popular culture (e.g. Planet of the Apes). Many of the entries are unsurprising (e.g. Uniformitarianism, Punctuated Equilibrium, Australopithecine), but there are also numerous entries that will undoubtedly introduce even the best-informed readers to new topics. Many of the less well-known entries involve the lives of people, such as Julia Patrana, the Victorian “gorilla woman” from Mexico whose hirsute appearance became a scientific curiosity, or Marie Stopes, the paleobotanist and early proponent of birth control. The field of human evolution is well-covered, with entries on important sites, people, hominins, primates, and the like. Although few people will sit down and read this extensive volume from cover to cover, it is a pleasure to flip through the volume and stop for a good read when an entry title or remarkable picture/illustration (of which there are many) catches your fancy.
