Richard Dawkins: How a Scientist Changed the Way We Think

Reading this volume, it is evident that The Selfish Gene-Richard Dawkins's seminal text that described how ""genes have evolved the means to transform the world's resources in ever more ingenious ways""-continues to have a powerful impact on the scientific community. These 26 essayists offer a glistening blend of praise and personal reflection on both the nature of the author and on the reach of his work. ""A phenomenon such as Dawkins' The Selfish Gene can be seen from many points of view and set in many contexts,"" notes co-editor Grafen. So, while Helena Cronin (The Ant and the Peacock) writes, ""Like Einstein's imagined ride on a beam of light, this is an invitation to journey into unreachable worlds for a clearer understanding of reality,"" Philip Pullman invokes Oscar Wilde, Charles Dickens and Sherlock Holmes in his rumination on why Dawkins's books are infectiously readable. Readers looking for a distilled regurgitation of Dawkins's life and works will be disappointed, as this book provides neither a complete biography nor a comprehensive appraisal of his science. This collection succeeds, however, as a tribute: Dawkins appears here majestically, if not prophetically.