Come one, come all

Richard Dawkins is an articulate writer, yet The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution may be one of his easiest reads—which is more or less the point. The book is like an Idiot’s Guide to Evolution as Fact. Using examples such as dog breeding, cross-pollination of vegetables and human gestation to explain genetic development and mutation, Dawkins asserts that “Evolution is a fact. Beyond reasonable doubt, beyond serious doubt.” In fact, people, he says, misunderstand the definition of the word “theory” as a scientific term. The theory of evolution is not a mere idea, but a verifiable truth. Simply put, evolution is change—over hundreds of thousands or millions of years, which shouldn’t be impossible to comprehend since “you did it yourself in nine months.” Although the book may be directed toward a creationist audience, it seems more appealing for those who accept evolution but need ammunition for debate.