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The magic of Reality by Richard Dawkins

Ebook

Rating 3/5

The audio book has a listening Length of around 6 hours; I finished reading this in less than 3!

Starts with how atom is the smallest part of the matter and then proton and neutron

Then taking about the myths of things like night and day with a couple of Greek and aboriginal stories thrown around (I actually liked those Stories to be Frank!)

Then how earth revolves around the sun!

The an entire chapter on Sun! Starting with the tales about sun and moon of course!

He talks about the epic of Gilgamesh! And then how rainbows are formed the he describes what is light?

The spectrum of light the visible rays to the invisible rays!

The evening primrose flower apparently looks yellow to us with a pattern but with a photograph in ultraviolet light you can certainly see a starburst of stripes!

What is the surprising is that the light we see as the spectrum of rainbow between the slightly higher pitched violet in the slightly lower pitched red is a very tiny band in the middle of a huge spectrum ranging from gamma rays in a high-pitched end to radio waves at the low pitch and almost the whole of the spectrum is invisible to our eyes! We cannot see the ultraviolet and infrared though we do feel the Infared as heat!

He talks about how everything began with some myths from Africa, China and India (the Indian one is told so wrong that I can assume that the others are also told With the mind of an atheist!)

He then talks about spectroscopy and how each element has a bar code; this has been repeated in his other books and also bats and also rainbow and many things!

Too much over lap between this one and his previous book. Also in parallel I was listening to Carl Sagan’s books and the overlap increased! So much so that I had to stop listening to Carl to avoid getting confused!

Are we alone is an often Repeated topic in his books and in Carl’s. Dawkins describes how in California in March 1997 a religious cult called Heaven’s Gate came to a sudden end when all 39 of its members took poison that killed everyone because they believe that a UFO from outer space would take the soul to another world. Of course that bright Dot In The sky which they thought to be an UFO was a comet called the Hale Bopp!

He gives Information about sleep paralysis, false memories, suucubus or incubus!
Then there is a chapter on what we don’t know in science like whether there is a life out there in a Goldilocks planet!

Then a chapter on what is earthquake which reminded me of Bill Brysons book!

One section was my favourite since he was discussing Dhoni and cricket! And the law of averages and coin toss!
He tells about Pollyanna and Sod’s law and Murphy’s law and also pink panther! He tells you to watch the original! (Taking that cue I would tell you to read the original of this book that is Carl Sagan’s Cosmos!)

He talks about auto immunity, about allergy and about cancers! How miracles and coincidences can be explained very well though he had touched upon this point in his previous books as well!

Read it for completion though you will have déjà vu all around!

That’s the tragic reality!

Cosmos by Carl Sagan

Narrated by Le Var Burton, Seth Mc Farlane, Neil deGrasse Tyson and Ann Fruyan

Audio book

Rating 4.5/5

Running length 14 hours

Disclaimer- This review has been written by voice typing since it’s an audio book! So any errors which might have crept in is regretted!

Genre Non fiction

The book is based on the TV show Cosmos which was apparently produced by BBC
So there are so many similarities between the TV show and the book there are some things which are found in the book and there are some facts which are shown in the TV show

Basically this means that though the premise is the same; they are both are mutually exclusive.

After going through a horde of books by Richard Dawkins; Carl’s cosmos was a nice change in pace!

Though the narration and narrators change in many chapters it somehow feel that author is talking to you through them and the audiobook gives you feel of the innermost thoughts of the author.

Starting from the big bang the author explores the development the evolution the progress it has seen in science and civilisation and in our understanding of the universe.

The language is made simple so that even a layman can understand and there very few technical words used and if they are used they are explained very nicely by the author and his team

Since this is an audiobook and his latest there is also the forward by Neil Degrasse Tyson which was there in the later edition of the book.

Neil Degrasse Tyson is now was a familiar figure because of his association with the series called ‘the big bang theory’

Just like a voyage the novel also goes through different chapters (13 to be exact) and starting from the solar system it is like a spacecraft which goes away and away from the sun which travels crossing each and every planet going on to the empty vacuum of space and beyond!

An approximate time line is put during which a spacecraft would traverse each planet and things and structures the craft would experience including the gravitational force or pull and the asteroids and the rings or satellites and so on!

In between the author also talks about many scientists and inventors with a big chapter dedicated at first to Aristotle including others

He talks about Plato he talks about Pythagorean’s he talks about the Netherlands in the 17th century he talks about library of Alexandria and of Leonardo da Vinci!

He talks about the Tunguska effect and lunar impact and how!

Just like Richard he talks about the Heiki crab and Charles Darwin though he does not go to veneration level of Richard!

He talks about the changes that undergo in the constellation and universe over time

The Doppler effect and Einstein’s theory of relativity and its importance

Any talks about how the human brain is also like a history. How is the oldest part of the brain like the brainstem is inside while the newest the latest development like the cerebral cortex Are all outside just like a city in development!

He also gives an example how modern develop civilisation met a less developed civilisation and the result was most of the time catastrophic
In the same way he also opined how an advance civilisation if it comes in contact with human beings or earth may act in the same way though for them we are all the same!

He talks about how we have in nuclear weapons the power to destroy the earth in our hands and if we are not careful then there will be no earth to save! He says how the budget for development of weapons several billion dollars while the budget for disarmament of nuclear weapons is just a few thousand!

The book ends in a note for the future where we are just a small speck in the whole big universe and that there may not be in life in any other part of the universe and it is better to save the life what we already have!

This is an already very famous book and a very famous TV series so does not need my opinion but it does feel nice to give one anyway!

If you have not read it before grab those headphones and go! The narration is smooth and the diction is really good!

Enjoy the cosmic journey!

Ramayana The game of life
Book 6

Think Big to win by Shubha Vilas

Ebook by Kindle

Book Review

Genre Retelling of epic

Rating 3.5/5 (As compared to his books one to five!)

I have mentioned this many times but I am again repeating it for the sake of it! Very first rendition of Ramayana was which blew my mind was C Rajagopalachari’s Added by of course the Amar Chitra Katha Ramayana and Tulsidas Ramayana which was a pretty decent job especially the extended Ramayana addition with Had about 4 to 6 volumes and each and every episode was mentioned in detail.

Then I read Devdutt Pattanaik’s Sita and that was also a very detailed retelling of Ramayan specially from different sources and it was also very well researched book thOugh I don’t have much hope for the author especially after going through his toxic twitter profile (if it’s fake then I retract this!)

Of course that’s as you would have realised by now the book number six starts where the book number five ends! The search party has found Seetha and now they reach the end of the ocean and now they’re staring at the ocean to cross and reach Lanka.

Now most of his previous books stuck to the epic by Valmiki and deviated only a little to give some news stories and side stories on the origin of that particular character in the book. Though this book also received similar treatment somehow there is a lack of continuity which was not seen in any of us his other books.

Some stories are interesting and some side stories are also nice but somehow there is lack of flow. Also there are more elaborate stories in other sources.

This may be because the first two books in the series and also the previous book had very elaborate stories with lots of side notes and no loss of continuity.

I feel like the author was in a hurry to get this over

This maybe because I have read many other novels which have an update on these things and the stories are ones which we already know!

The best part of the novel is of course not the stories or the depiction of events but the morals and sayings of what we can learn from each and every episode!
These are given as subtexts in the end which are really nice And then I realise that the author is a TED speaker and he uses these stories and incidents to make his point across.
You can read the book just for the critical analysis and the final interpretation of a particular incident and what we can learn from them!

Of course if you read the first five novels in the series then there is no question about it that you read this for the closure! A much-needed closure!Though of course he does not mention the Uttarakhand which I am guessing may be another novel.

For now enjoy this series and try to incorporate the teachings in your life!

Jai Sri Ram!

The magicians of Mazda by Ashwin Sanghi

Book review

Ebook via kindle

Fictional thriller

Rating 4/5 (if I can give that to Dan Brown then Ashwin definitely deserves it with the amount of research and details thrown in!)

The book starts with a bang and ends with another one!

No spoilers here since Ashwin’s book unlike his private series; the thrill is in the side notes!

After expansion of most Bharat stories Ashwin now takes on the Parsis or Persian religion or Zoroastrian or Zorathustra and how!

Every page is either a thrill ride or a religious history lesson with trivia thrown around like chocolate chips on a cookie!

The thrill you get when you read a Dan Brown like Angels and Demons or The Da Vinci Code is not the story as such but the different interpretations and almost magical examination of trivia and scriptures!
The thrill of a new rediscovery or a new interpretation of what we already know or the relation between two aspects!
Also how a known story is extrapolated to include the modern times! He did it in his previous books and now Ashwin does it again and how!

The novel starts with introduction speech which is itself a bomb! and then races on to a brave robbery attempt then races on to a kidnapping then goes on to another kidnapping and that kidnapping goes wrong and goes on to something more!

Then of course there is a rescue and the rest of the novel goes back and forth with history and thrill!

This is the second novel in recent times there I am listing or reading about the tense relationship between America and China And how the intelligence agencies in these countries operate

The previous one was a novel by Ken Follet which also had similar points to say

The crux of the novelist of course the history of the Persians or the Parsis or zoratrians or zorathusthra. Add in more points about their prophet Ahura Mazda and Humza Dara (mild spoiler here if you are clever!)

Then like always there is a priceless artefact which everyone wants to get their hands on. Then you can add the classic cross and double cross and triple cross and so many crosses than you don’t know the way across! But it creates a cross action stimulus in your brain and you want more!

The torture technique and the narration of the genocides makes sure that the gore is maintained at a high level even as the bodies keep piling up!

The narration is fast paced interrupted by the retelling of the stories of Parsis; many we knew while many are new! Even the fact about vultures and diclofnac piqued my interest and is very true!

The book is a page turner and the added fact that I was in a new place without Internet really made me jump into it full on and I enjoyed the ride!

There are many narratives and conclusions and point of views which are sure to raise some eye brows and it’s best to read the book and decide on that!

For those who can digest only the Dan Brown version they can wait for his next novel but this is more researched and more closer to you if only you broaden your mind and leave your Indian Author prejudices behind!

To be fair though even I read Ashwin’s first novel ‘The Rozabel line’ only because he had changed his name in the novel to Shawn Haigins! Which was an anagram to his actual name! And I thought it was some non Indian author! My eyes are open now! How’s your vision!?

Enjoy the magic!

Unweaving the rainbow by Richard Dawkins and Lalla ward

Audiobook

Genre- Non Fiction

Rating- 4/5 for matter, 3/5 for never ending soap opera like feeling!

Talking about how the poet WB Keats told that newtons forever spoiled his poetry for him by getting the scientific fact of rainbows And how they are formed

Richard here tries to use that analogy and tries to make his point that even scientific points can make nice poems. So after trying out all the avenues of his theory of evolution he now takes on poets and the abstracts!

So an already drab book about evolution which usually is instilled with facts is now filled with quotes and quotations and poems recited in alternate by the husband and wife duo!

Unfortunately people to read poems and poetry are not the ones who would try to read these type of books.

Then again like I had predicted in the previous book the Blind watchmaker that there will be similar books of these kinds written by Richard and narrated by him and I have been proven right!

So the very thing which he wanted to oppose like the sermon like nature of the religious books has now become a sermon of evolution in each and every book coming from the Richard Hawkins factory!

Mind you this is not a bad attempt; it’s a very nice book and if it was your first book of Richard Dawkins it would have been an amazing read but since this is like the fifth sixth book in the series it has become repetitive and definitely boring!

After the third of fourth book like the Blind watchmaker or the selfish Gene or the greatest show on Earth the individuality of each and every book has been lost to me and I am sure to the reader and now I am sure even the author has lost the individuality! So you have repetitions like the bad and the most commonly repeated animal that is the behaviour the cuckoo. I have a big urge of telling that the author has become cuckoo but then that’s not scientific!

Just make several important and good points throughout the book though.
Like the power of the brain it’s not what the eyes see but what the brain processes! He compares the system to a computer saying that you cannot use it like a direct comparison. But using the example of hollow mask which the brain perceives as solid he says that whatever we see is actually the virtual imaging done or made by the brain. Which is why when we see things which are not there or things which look like other things these are just tricks of light added to the imaging capacity of the brain!

This can very well be an imaginary monster which is at the end of the alley or it can be a dieting which you see in the sky or on the walls!

He also makes a very good point about coincidences since life is all about coincidences waiting to happen. He speaks about a true incident happened to his wife about how she got a watch and that had the inscription which was similar to the inscription of her grandmother or mother! Although that seemed amazing at first he by ways of calculating and by approximating and by prediction made the whole amazing incident quite possible albeit still rare!

The reason why this review is so short and simple is that I have simply lost track of which particular fact I read in this novel or work or the one before but then you would not miss anything much because it is literally the same thing stalled over and over again with different examples thats all!

The only thing which I noticed as an Otolaryngologist is that the author has an extreme case of laryngitis! In fact I had wondered about this in the previous books since the author had to speak non-stop for 10 to 15 hours and finally in this book it shows! The author’s voice is hoarse and not very clear in parts and he actually tries to put too much strain in his voice and as a speech specialist that was difficult for me to listen! For once I was happy when Lala took over once in a while!

Of course is no easy task to write books and to read about them and then read the whole book for 10 to 15 hours but I guess his first 4-5 books have already done the job so let us leave it at that Richard!

Of course the book talks about technology about computers about evolution about scientific facts and everything else which makes Richard Dawkins books quite readable so that’s there!

Read it (or listen to!) completion and just hope that there are no similar books! Since you don’t have to write a test about which particular fact you read in a particular book you are in safe territory!

Have fun and unweaving the rainbow! And then have fun trying to unweave which information was told in which book!

The blind watchmaker

By Richard Dawkins and Lalla ward

Rating 4/5

Audiobook

Non fiction genre

This is an old book written by Richard Dawkins and the audio is a new version since been recorded fairly recently so the book starts with the preface to old edition and also starts with introduction to the Audible or audiobook.

The premise of this novel like most of his other ones is to give evidence of evolution.

Every novel of his is an extension or answer to a question posed by either a critic or colleague or creationist is my personal opinion!

So while the selfish gene was an introduction to and an ode to Darwin, the God delusion set out to conquer theism, while then greatest show on Earth was the reply to the miracles in Bible and other books and this one is a premise that if evolution is a fact then it is like telling that a blind man made a very intricate working watch!

He actually starts the book with an ode to a creationist book who had done extensive research with examples all over the world to prove creation! Taking a leaf or page out of that book, Richard gives this one a similar treatment! Since It was an audiobook I got the name of that Creationist as Reverend Paily but it may not be the exact name!
He talks about how bat is an ecological Marvel and tells about how their echolocation is an evolutionary marvel. The whole idea of putting the echolocation of bats was to actually discuss whether it is an intelligent design or it is a matter of evolution. Richard here tries to elaborate on this point that it is not an intelligent design but an evolution.

Since the time period is limited for us to understand evolution and it is in the terms of millions he tries to get it in certain analogy suggest how a small difference in a fly is about 2 km while the whole evolution it is like travelling from Iraq to London.

Like almost all his other books this is also an ode to Charles Darwin and his theory of evolution.

In fact this and the other novels such as the greatest show on earth and the selfish Gene and all seem like an extension of each other and have facts which crossover with each other.

It is easy to get confused between this and the other books but this one is an extension of this previous book called the greatest show on Earth Which itself seems to be an extension of the selfish Gene which is an extension of his other books.

He talks about how he is a biologist and he looks at the problem or the whole problem of evolution in the viewpoint of a biologist and not like a physicist.

In between the narration is by his wife and in the same way as the other books it once you get used to the narration there is hardly any difference it is just like a routine audiobook

Then he talks about lungs and fishes and He talks about a computer simulation of evolution

He talks about the complexity of eyes and how even half eye or five percent eye is better than no eye! The same with wings with so many examples thrown around and how when you Look at the cloud and see that it resembles your deity or Jesus but while actually it is just clouds.

Of course each and every one of his books seems like an attempt to counteract the statements given by the creationists in support of their theory in the same way his books are and his points are a supporting block for supporting his theory of evolution.

Since this is a never-ending debate I am sure that there will be more books from Richard in such a way that when more points are raised he will come up with another book to contract those points.

Keeping up with the present or modern times since this was an audible which I heard the whole text which has been written in the review above which is written by me has been done by dictation! Of course some errors are bound to happen but it is fairly accurate and I had to just go through some errors otherwise it was a simple and smooth experience!

Like every other book this one also is laced with scientific facts and with his own experiences as a biologist and I am sure more of the other books will be in the same lines. It starts slowly but builds up a pace like every other book and when you finally get to the end of it you realise that it was not that long even at close to eleven to twelve hours of listening!

So keep keep your mind occupied is no small feat indeed in fact there are some sections in this book and in the other book of Richard where he explicitly mention is that if you are listening to this book at the end of the day and you are really tired then give it a rest and start again the next day so that you can understand what he is trying to convey better!

Read it for completion and you can expect more books of similar versions from Richard!

Have fun!

Noise i1 smart eyewear- Bluetooth sunglasses with open ear speakers!

Since the previous two Bluetooth sunglasses I bought were Square, this one I bought the round version. If you prefer square then that is also a good choice but round is good for some face shapes and it is Unisex.

The actual cost according to the company website is 12999 but the initial offer and discount is close to 53 percent so you can get these for 5999!

If I had bought these for 12999 then I would have not been very happy since that is very close to Bose Frames with discount and deals which you can get for around 16k! And the sound in Bose is really good! But like I mentioned in my earlier review, Bose battery back up is not very good and it does not gel for rough use.

Noise i1 though was a big surprise! The build and the appeal was very refined and the finish is too good! The frames are light and they come with a simple instruction booklet with some details of touch functions.

The best part of the sunglasses is that they come shipped with plain glasses and sun glasses which can be immediately replaced by yourself! If you wear prescription glasses then you can give the plastic lens to your optician and it can be made in the same way and used!

The charging takes very little time and the battery back up which of course depends on your use is really good. The charging cable feels a little flimsy and it is custom built to the frame so better not misplace it!

I have been using Noise products like the smart watches and the smart speakers for so many years now and after the initial efforts, I have seen the subsequent models are always better. My only problem with most Noise products has been the abysmal battery after two to three months of almost all products including the smart watch, the Bluetooth speaker radio and the noise buds. I hope the company has taken care of this in Frames but that is the two or two month use review!

The sound output is clear and good with obvious limitation that it cannot be very loud. If you listen wearing a helmet then it’s Loud enough. So if you are on a bike it may not be clear but car driving, it is a dream! The touch panel is really sensitive and once you get used to the controls it is very easy. You have specific controls for changing track and play and pause and getting up the assistant. Of course you must not expect the responsiveness of a mobile phone in that small plastic space and you are good to go!

The initial pairing is a breeze and the subsequent pairing is done without any issues.

Constantly listening to the music is not advisable since it is not that clear but if you are listening to an audiobook then this is the best. Unless it is full volume, the sound does not reach your neighbor and that is a great thing! Plus since the ears are open, you are fully aware of the ambient noise. Noise cancellation will not happen for obvious reasons but then you win some and lose some!

At 5999 this is a steal! Sits so comfortably and is a light weight technological marvel! Bluetooth frames or smart eye wears are the future and I am sure this is a step in the right direction! Just opening it makes it switch on while closing the frames switches it off!

Have fun!

The Greatest show on earth by Richard Dawkins

Book Review

Audiobook

Genre – Non Fictional book

Running length 14 hours 35 minutes

Narrated by Richard Dawkins and Lalla Ward

Rating- 4/5

I must say since this is my third successive audiobook narrated by Richard and Lalla, I have got used to the change in narration in between and it does not bother me so much! Also the majority of portion is being narrated by Richard which makes it even more better since then it is the Horse’s mouth.

The book is literally an extension of his previous two books and of course it is about Evolution which he calls as the greatest show on Earth and which is his bread and butter now!

With frequent reference to Charles Darwin and David Wallace and his origin of species and sometimes quoting verbatim from that book and the two scientists work.

The constant fight between creationist and evolutionary biologist is referred time and again just like the God Delusion and this is a never ending battle.

He starts by how the Evolution is called a Theory and not Law and how this is a constant fodder for the creationist and he then goes on to mention how many things such as how sun is so big or how earth is bigger than moon and round can actually be never proven for sure but we know this as fact. He changes the theory to theorem just like in mathematics since that according to the Oxford English Dictionary is a fact!

I think the fact of the matter is that if you believe in evolution which is a scientific fact then you will be do so no matter what since the evidence is so overwhelming and if you are a creationist you would not no matter what Dawkins or anyone else says!

He talks about the Gorilla suit experiment with visuals and how eye witness is very unreliable (this was mentioned in Daniel Kahneman book also)
He also talks about the different radioactive dating system and their pros and cons.

He talks about so many fascinating creatures and this is probably the best part of the book since the accompanying PDF has some amazing photos of these amazing feature of nature! The image number is referenced in a different tone and you must look into it when you can.

He talks about how both Charles Darwin and David had predicted that when they saw a flower with such a long receptacle for nectar; they predicted that there will be an insect or moth in this case which will have long tongue! They also showed these two images side by side and it was surreal!

He also mentions in this book and the selfish gene and this was mentioned even by BIll Bryson in his book of how in spite of being in the same time both Darwin and Mendel did not meet each other or discuss the relevance of each other’s work which would have been a big milestone in the study of evolution!

He also explains how if you think that we have evolved from chimps or from any other animal then that is not how evolution works! He states that you must imagine that both human and chimps have evolved from the same ancestor who had the features of both human and chimp and then like a fork on the road (his exact words!), the pathway split in such way that one path lead to human while the other to chimp! And the genetic mixing is not like mixing of two colours; its like the child getting half of his parent’s gene and one fourth of his grand parents and so on!

He talks of Overwhelming evidence which indicates that eukaryotic photosynthesis originated from endosymbiosis of cyanobacterial-like organisms, which ultimately became chloroplasts! So the evolutionary origin of photosynthesis is to be found in the bacterial domain. Significant evidence indicates that the current distribution of photosynthesis in bacteria is the result of substantial amounts of horizontal gene transfer! Imagine that bacteria is the ancestor of plant!

Even using predator and prey he states how evolution works! With a joke in the end! A gazelle is given the gift of nature to be consistent. To run for long and to run fast but it normally has a slow start! A cheetah can run fast and be quick! It’s chief power is the element of surprise! The sudden attack and the quick start! But if the chase continues then it stops since it cannot maintain the speed! That’s why the gazelle does not give hope though in the end the one gazelle which does not run that fast or is not persistent or is a little slower than the other gets eliminated. The joke is a famous one which goes like this, “Chased by a bear, a guy starts wearing the running shoe to which his friend says, “what’s the point? You cannot outrun a bear!?; He replies, “I only have to outrun you!”.

Another funny incident he narrated was about how unlike diseases, which are often named after their discoverers, new species are named by their discoverers but never after themselves. It is a nice opportunity for a biologist to honour the name of another, or, as in this case, a benefactor. WD Hamilton was once on a small boat on an expedition up the Amazon when he was stung by a wasp.
‘Bill, do you know the name of that wasp?’ His compatriot joked with him since he was a famous entomologist; does he have the satisfaction that he knew the name of this wasp!
‘Yes,’ Bill murmured gloomily in his most Eeyoreish voice. ‘As a matter of fact it’s named after me.’!!
He talks about long tails of spider monkey, he talks about the angler fish and about the phenomenon of how so many birds fly in a pattern!

The kākāpō, also known as owl parrot, is a species of large, flightless, nocturnal, ground-dwelling parrot! Richard states that, according to the evolutionary biologist Douglas Adams, these birds have wings but with such a stout and fat body, they really can’t fly! Apparently their ancestors could but these birds have forgotten that! The more interesting thing about this is that they have forgotten that they have forgotten to fly! So once in a while they jump down from a tree to soar up in the sky only to fall down on the bushy grass like a brick! And get up with whatever pride they have left till the Amnesia strikes again!

Heikea japonica is a crab which is seen in and around Japan. It is considered sacred and magical since the impression on its body closely resembles the Kabuki mask of a Japanese Samurai warrior! If you search these two in google images you will be amazed and awed at the unquestionable similarity! It’s like the crab literally carved the mask on its body as a mark of respect! According to Richard Dawkins, one explanation is that this perceived miracle could be attributed to the fact that whenever the fisherman sees a crab with a similar image, he would throw it back out of respect and over a period of time the population of similar crabs increased! Selective evolution to become original! Of course Richard does not believe this to be so straightforward and gives other equally compelling explanation!

He also gives big importance to an experiment carried out by biologist about E COLI which has been going on for decades which gives direct support to evolution due to the cell lines and their mutations and you can read the book just for this section!

He talks about how creationist are trying every trick in the world to make their opinions matter and how it has crept into our schools with support from everyone! In the end he also presents dismal statistics on how people believe in evolution is a very small way.

All in all this is a very entertaining book and much more fast paced and fluid than other books and a must read!

Check it out when you can!

The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins

Audiobook narrated by Richard Dawkins and Lalla Ward

Genre- non fiction

Rating- 4/5 for the conviction and for the matter 3/5 for the narration (will elaborate)

This is a review of the book and not any personal opinion since that will be controversial. This is a book on atheism, the title itself indicates that belief in god is a type of delusion or mental disorder according to the author.

Anyone having any crisis of faith can either read this book and convert or stay away and keep the faith! This book is the final bible (ironic!) of atheism and agnosticism though the author has gone on to elaborate the different types of atheists and so many classification including one involving Einstein and he goes to great length to try and prove that great scientists like Einstein was an atheist while the author gives lots of points in favour to prove that Hitler was religious!

The Hitler issue is a constant prick in the atheist balloon so it had to be taken out and how!

Every single point of a discussion between a believer and non believer is taken and the point of view of the atheist is elaborated with scientific acumen and points!

The flying tea pot to the Schrödinger’s cat; all the famous notes and points which athiests use all over can be traced to this book. Every single point and counter point has been discussed and in detail.

Since the author is primary born as a Christian, his chief point of contention is Bible and related scriptures and religions relation to the Abrahamic religion. He takes many different books and starts to pick them apart one by one.

In his scientific spirit he talks about the Big Bang or the multiverse or the quantum theory every time putting the view that no scientific evidence can point out to the evidence of God.
He talks about how even if the formation of life on earth is a once in a billion chance, it is still ok since there are a billion billion planets and once the first step is done then it is just progress from then on.

Like most of his books, this is an ode to the evolution by Darwin. It is the basis of most of his views and this is the driving force which made the author an Atheist.

Coming to the narration; in the previous book called the selfish gene, the author explained that there are two narrators to differentiate between old and new edition and end notes and so on. In this book the couple make a combined talk! Many times it is alright but in between the constant change in the tone and voice makes it confusing to say the least and occasionally irksome especially in one section akin to the irritating monologue of Atlas Shrugged, both the narrators go into an alternate uttering of the sayings and quotes from the Bible and that five to ten minutes gave me a severe headache!

Once you get used to the two voice which was unnecessary to begin with, it is smooth sailing in most places!

He also talks about famous atheists and also opines how many famous people would have been closet atheists which may be the deal even in modern times.

He talks about a similar novel to this one, the Da Vince code by Dan Brown but is not impressed with another fiction even if it treads similar lines as his book.
He talks about the abuses received by Atheists all over the world and how religion is actually violent. He talks about extremism bought by blind belief and the problems of not questioning the faith or for that matter questioning the faith.

He states how teaching kids about religion when they are actually having no opinion of their own is akin to harassment and must be stopped.
He talks about how many famous religious people holding positions of science is a big hypocrisy especially since many do not believe in evolution and think that the earth is only a few thousand years old. These descriptions are decorated by quotes in voice of Lala and that’s sometimes funny or irritating depending on your mood!
He also states and tries to prove that religion does not make you good or bad, it is not the only comfort and it is not the only choice in many words and chapter after chapter.

All in all it is a life changing book and something which will definitely make you think if nothing else!
All opinions and controversies aside, the author has made an earnest attempt and it shows. Whether it would make you hug your faith more or give it up altogether is entirely your choice!

Read it to either test your faith or keep your faith!

The selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins

Audio book from Audible

Narrated by Richard Dawkins and Lalla Ward

Rating- 4.5/5 for the book as such and 4/5 for the narration which is pretty smooth but when there is a change between the two narrators, there happens a stop in the flow of thoughts for a while!

Running length is around 16 hours which can be reduced to less than 13 hours or so with the narration speed of around 1.2 without any change in clarity or diction. In fact I would suggest you to do this since otherwise the narration is slow and the topic can be dull especially on the long drive home after a meal which has a big chance of putting you to sleep!

Since this is a fairly old book written in 1976, you can imagine the new discoveries which would have happened. This is why we have two narrators who alternate between the original book and the extended second edition and the end notes which tries to incorporate the new discoveries and findings! In that way this is a very challenging and praiseworthy task indeed!

Richard is known as the fact master and how! In a non fiction book there is no place for speculation and half truths! So in every other page, Richard either quotes a paper or a proper discovery to drive his point home.

Now, the one line summary of the book would be that it is an ode to Charles Darwin and his theory of evolution which has been extended t modern times and here the centre point is the replicator which ensures how any species survives or evolves! That replicator is GENE and Richard takes us on a journey between the balance between the survival capabilities or the Selfish nature of the gene and the altruistic nature!

It starts with the story of the primordial soup which finally gives rise to the Gene and then talks about cell division namely Mitosis and Meiosis. The distribution of the genetic matter between the offspring and the sibling is discussed in detail.

The selfish nature of the gene and many animals like the Praying Mantis and seagulls is compared with the altruism of many animal such as the mother and worker bees! He talks about the natural selfish tendency and the true altruism!

Did you know that there are some bad tasting butterflies!? The full deal according to Richard Dawkins and is that these bad tasting butterfly have a specific pattern on the wings! And normally the birds or other predators avoid them! Some other butterflies understand this and though they are tasty (for birds as of now!); They mimic the pattern to match the non tasty butterfly! It’s like potato looking like bitter gourd! Another mimic is how cuckoo birds eggs are so similar to crows eggs! The crow tries to make some marking but the cuckoo does the same! And the general rule for birds such as hen or crow is that if there is an egg like object in its nest then it will be taken care just as it’s own!
Also of how birds like Cuckoo with all the sweet voice and all lay eggs in the nest of other birds and the very first act of the baby cuckoo is to push the other egg down! Or how they blackmail!

Richard Dawkins states how a particularly diabolical form of child blackmail happens! We all know of the saying, the crying child gets the milk. It’s the same for birds! The young bird which screams the loudest gets the worm or food from the mother bird! But some blackmailing birds especially if it’s a cuckoo bird in a crow’s nest, it screams in such a way as to attract predators deliberately to the nest? The child is ‘saying’ ‘Fox, fox, come and get me.’!
The only way the parent can stop it screaming is to feed it! So the child gains more than its fair share of food, but at a cost of some risk to itself. But the mother bird here has more to lose so she will comply!

He talks about penguins standing on the edge of the cliff waiting for someone to jump!

He talks about care givers and helpers which is the broad functional classification of Mother or female and Father or Male of the species.

He mentions about how the essential difference between the gametes of male and females. Then he mentions about Phenotype which is the technical term for the external manifestation of a living being and the genetic make is called the Genotype.

One of the best things which is described in the book is about a very interesting thing called the Prisoner’s Dilemma. The author first explains it and then elaborates it further. Then the game is put to real life situations like the sea bass or the foster bird analogy. He even tries to quantify the contribution of each parent and the offspring. He talks about how antlers of a deer or the birds of a peacock or the fact that there was a bone in the external genitalia and the relevance of these in the modern times!

Then he mentions about Aphids and pack of lions and so many animals and insects thrown in the mix for good measure!

Prisoners dilemma is probably the best thing about this book and the way the author explains it further adding on a game taking about grudges and forgivers is simply super! All backed by research and thus there are multiple interpretations and he accepts that!

A non fiction book without any proper story is such a dull thing to read but books like this which is like a prequel to the Third chimpanzee by Jared Diamond is such a joy to listen! The author has made an earnest attempt to make it as simple as possible and he states that in the introduction.

The audio book also has a summary of his next book called the extended phenotype which is of course my next read (or more accurately; listen!)

Grab it with both hand or ears and listen one of the best audio books in this genre!