Comments on: Book review – Wallace, Darwin, and the Origin of Species

By: Jac. Keizer

Jac. Keizer — Thu, 30 Jan 2025 18:04:51 +0000

Thnx-Yes..pretty hefty price tag on the ¨organic law of change¨ one ..but then again…they really do seem to make a nice pair : )

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By: inquisitivebiologist

inquisitivebiologist — Wed, 29 Jan 2025 22:17:18 +0000

In reply to Jac. Keizer.

Hi Jac, relevant question, thanks for asking!

I would read them in the order reviewed here. Start with Costa’s biography, “Radical by Nature” to get a broad (and very enjoyable) overview of Wallace’s life and then read “On the Organic Law of Change” and “Wallace, Darwin, and the Origin of Species” to zoom in on this specific episode in the history of science (i.e. how did these two men independently hit on the same idea, but why is only one of them remembered?)

As mentioned at the end of this review, there is little point reading “On the Organic Law of Change” by itself. To get the most out of it you need this book. The reverse is not true, so you could just read “Wallace, Darwin, and the Origin of Species” and skip “On the Organic Law of Change” if you’re short on time or money. The former is mostly self-contained.

So, in principle you could limit yourself to just two books “Radical by Nature” followed by “Wallace, Darwin, and the Origin of Species”. Though you might just as well immerse yourself fully while you’re here : )

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By: Jac. Keizer

Jac. Keizer — Wed, 29 Jan 2025 21:57:11 +0000

in what order do you recommend to read the three books?

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By: Book review – Dinosaurs – 10 Things You Should Know: 230 Million Years for People Short on Time | The Inquisitive Biologist

Sat, 25 Nov 2023 19:39:54 +0000

[…] reproducing” (p. 98). And he acknowledges that Alfred Russell Wallace arrived at this idea around the same time as Darwin did. Thus, in just two sentences, he hits the nail on the head regarding two aspects of […]

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By: Book review – On the Origin of Evolution: Tracing ‘Darwin’s Dangerous Idea’ from Aristotle to DNA | The Inquisitive Biologist

Sat, 25 Nov 2023 19:37:35 +0000

[…] how Charles Lyell and Joseph Hooker presented both their work at a meeting of the Linnean Society, is well-known. What the Gribbins here clarify is that, if it seems strange to us now that Wallace’s letter […]

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By: Book review – The Story of Evolution in 25 Discoveries: The Evidence and the People Who Found It | The Inquisitive Biologist

Sat, 25 Nov 2023 19:31:21 +0000

[…] coverage. He highlights the contribution of the historically overlooked Alfred Russel Wallace who independently hit on the idea of natural selection after Darwin had already been labouring on it for decades. And while Ernst Haeckel was accused of […]

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By: Book review – Too Big to Walk: The New Science of Dinosaurs | The Inquisitive Biologist

Sat, 25 Nov 2023 19:27:50 +0000

[…] largely forgotten Alfred RussellRussel Wallace was a wrong righted by amongst others Costa’s Wallace, Darwin, and the Origin of Species. And much has been written about Alfred Wegener and the history of plate tectonics, I will just […]

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By: Book review – Radical by Nature: The Revolutionary Life of Alfred Russel Wallace | The Inquisitive Biologist

Fri, 24 Nov 2023 16:53:03 +0000

[…] studied Wallace’s life and work since 2010, resulting in On the Organic Law of Change (2013); Wallace, Darwin, and the Origin of Species (2014); and co-editorship on An Alfred Russel Wallace Companion (2019); not to mention numerous […]

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By: Book review – On the Organic Law of Change: A Facsimile Edition and Annotated Transcription of Alfred Russel Wallace’s Species Notebook of 1855-1859 | The Inquisitive Biologist

Fri, 24 Nov 2023 12:54:14 +0000

[…] You are getting a two-for-one, as I am reviewing this book simultaneously with its companion book Wallace, Darwin, and the Origin of Species, a book I have long been meaning to […]

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