Life: A Natural History of the First Four Billion Years of Life on Earth (Hardcover)

There are parts of this book that I found slow and unconvincing, but this might be because our knowledge is deficient or confused in these areas - like when life first ventured onto dry land. But maybe this is exactly where Mr Fortey could have made the story more exciting, more questioning.

Perhaps I missed it, but it seemed to me that there was little reference to the breakup of Pangaea/Gondwanaland - both of which are well described early in the book. Australians are aware of the impact of the creation of Bass Strait separating mainland Australia from Tasmania. After this happened (but well before European colonisation) there was second (at least second) wave of immigrants (presumably now immersed in the Aboriginal population, but it is possible they displaced the earlier immigrants) and these people brought with them dingoes - the first dogs on the continent. Because these new invaders did not reach Tasmania (or at least didn't take their dogs) the island state kept some of its native fauna - the Tasmanian tiger (thylacine) which didn't disappear until Europeans hunted it to extinction, and the Tasmanian devil which thrives today - but these are gone from the mainland because of the impact of the native dogs. So changes in geography certainly effect life. And yet this is not discussed much in the book.

And then we come to the extinction of the dinosaurs. We all know too much about this. We all have prejudices and opinions. I loved the way Mr Fortey approached it from film impressions - 'Fantasia' and 'Jurassic Park' - comparing the way we view dinoaurs as time passes and scholarship improves. But here are some questions that no-one has ever considered for me. Perhaps one day a palaeontologist-writer will venture here? Perhaps you have your pet questions too?

1. It is stated that a world-wide iridium-rich ash is deposited as a result of the K-T boundary impact. But how much iridium would the object have to be carrying to do this? And why do meteors, asteroids etc have this iridium anyway? Could it be that the planet was impacted by a cloud of iridium that has left a covering on other solar objects? I have read some astronomical books that describe the formation of the elements in supernova, but nowhere has iridium been especially mentioned. Perhaps there is a clue to something here.

2. I understand that some animals/plants actually did survive the K-T boundary event; little furry mammals that were to evolve even into ourselves, but also larger reptiles such as crocodiles and turtles. If we forget the animals rendered extinct for a moment, perhaps a study of the survivors will give us some further insights. How did they get through the event when so many others - not individuals, but species - died.

This is a very colourful, educative and entertaining read. I like Mr Fortey's style very much and recommend it wholeheartedly for all those who are not looking for a text book.