MEANING OF LIFE DEMONSTRATED IN THE FOSSIL RECORD.

Stephen Jay Gould was nothing less than an inspired evolutionary biologist. His writings draw references from far afield to illuminate his interpretations of why biology can have real meaning in our lives. In Wonderful Life: The Burgess Shale & the Nature of History he illustrates how the evolution of the lineage leading to human beings was but one of many paths that nature undertook in the Cambrian Explosion. We are here because of a little annelid worm called Pikaia. This is at the same time humbling and awe-inspiring!

This book spends a great deal of time detailing the Burgess Shale and the scientists who studied it. This can seem daunting but the detail and description that Gould uses will draw you in. The Burgess Shale is home to one of the best fossil records of the Cambrian Explosion - the largest and most important event in evolution - giving rise to all of the phyla that exist today (and those who went extinct). I loved this book because it was so informative about the creatures of the Cambrian and Gould's descriptions will have you adoring and cheering for these little "pioneering experiments". As a student of evolution I had read before many things that fed my fascination with the history of life but never before had I read something the could articulate precisely why we should be so endeared before.

p.s. If you really want to skip the descriptions and get to the good stuff just read the last two chapters. It might just make you go back and read the whole book!