On the Origin of Species

De: Charles Darwin

Narrado por: Richard Dawkins

"On the Origin of Species must be high on any serious list of the most important and influential books ever written. On its first publication in 1859, Thomas Henry Huxley exclaimed 'How extremely stupid of me not to have thought of that.' Charles Darwin's revolutionary idea is, indeed, an astoundingly simple one, especially when you measure it against the magnitude of what it explains - every fact that we know about life on Earth.

Listen to On the Origin of Species, and you immediately find yourself ushered into the presence of one of the finest minds ever to grace this planet. In this recording, which was a true labour of love, I made no attempt to act the part of Darwin, but instead worked hard, as a modern follower of Darwin, to convey the true meaning of every sentence. I even surprised myself: the exercise of reading Darwin's words aloud and identifying in very phrase the syllable that needed to be stressed, revealed to me subtleties and depths of meaning that I had missed when reading quietly to myself. I hope listeners will be enlightened in the same way.

Of Darwin's six editions, I chose to abridge from the first. Surprisingly, and in many ways it is the most modern. Moreover, it is of the greatest historical interest, as being the one that actually hit the Victorian solar plexus and drove out the wind of centuries. In abridging the book, my priority was to cut those passages that are now known to be wrong, notably those concerned with genetics. I believe it is what Darwin himself would have wished. What takes my breath away as a modern biologist is how much Darwin got right. It has been well said that he worked a century and more ahead of his time."

Richard Dawkins, renowned evolutionist and scholar, is the reader of this audiobook.

Reseñas de la Crítica

"Dawkins reads engagingly and the whole effect is like David Attenborough without the pictures."

"The listener is left aghast at just how much Darwin got right."

There's no excuse not to listen to this book

If you were ever curious to read this book because of it's astounding fame but never got around to buying the heavy, dense paperback version then this is just for you. This abridged but comprehensive version of On the Origin of the Species is enough to make you feel like you can cross it off your list while knowing the time you spent listening to it was worth it. This book is truly an impressive piece of work with one of the most important ideas mankind has ever had and it is expressed in artful language and backed up with fascinating evidence.

Richard Dawkins does a good job reading this baby. He's a little cold in his narration and even robotic at times but the text stands up for itself.

You won't regret it.

Simple, Elegant and Enlightening

What did you love best about On the Origin of Species?

The simple elegance, and the numerous examples of what he was talking about. You didn't need to trust him, because he provided examples of everything.

What other book might you compare On the Origin of Species to and why?

Richard Dawkins "The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution". It covers the sam esubject but with more modern research and examples.

Which character – as performed by Richard Dawkins – was your favorite?

There is only one- Mr. Darwin.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The discussion of the Slave ants. Intriguing.

Any additional comments?

I highly recommend this book. It answered so many questions I had. Now mind, it is a bit outdated now. While all the general ground rules remain the same there is a plethora of new research that you will find covered in more detail in Mr. Dawkins "The Greatest Show on Earth: The Evidence for Evolution".

Very approachable and absorbable

Really enjoyed listening to Richard Dawkins. A fine pairing. It was wonderful to finally ‘read’ this foundational book. I marveled at the extent to which Darwin was ahead of his time re several of the hypotheses he made in the absence of modern molecular biology knowledge.

150+ years later

After 150+ years, astoundingly, there are very few editors notes added to update the content of this book , that's amazing. Charles Darwin was way ahead of his time. Nice job narrating from Richard Dawkins.

Excellent Telling of a Classic

To me this may be the definitive version as Richard Dawkins' voice melds perfectly with the telling of On the Origin of Species.