The Genesis Quest

Marshall has rounded up all the past and current thinking about this profound and puzzling question - how did life begin? - into a neat, enthralling and highly digestible package. - Philip Ball, author of How To Grow a Human Prepare yourself for a dazzling intellectual journey: the science is fascinating, the cast of characters all-too-human, and the philosophical insights deep. Written in clear and entertaining prose, like a Sherlock Holmes story, this is the best book I know for general readers about the quest to solve one of our most enduring mysteries: how and where, in a seemingly purposeless universe, life began on planet earth. - Oren Harman, author of Evolutions: Fifteen Myths that Explain Our World The Genesis Quest recounts remarkable episodes in the history of attempts to scientifically understand the origin of life. Combining exceptionally clear expositions of what is scientifically at stake, distinctive humor, and a roving eye for the telling anecdote, this is anything but a tedious scientific genealogy. Marshall has a flair and talent for explaining each individual experiment and its intellectual context. The Genesis Quest offers a well-done romp through some fascinating and complicated terrain. - Luis A. Campos, author of Radium and the Secret of Life