Peter J. Bowler is Professor Emeritus of the History of Science at Queen's University Belfast, a fellow of the British Academy, a member of the Royal Irish Academy and a past president of the British Society for the History of Science.

'Peter Bowler is today's most distinguished historian of evolutionary theory. Every time you think there can be no more to say, he guides us through the huge literature around evolutionary biology, as he produces yet another fascinating, well-written account of some hitherto-unexplored area of interest and importance. This time, in Evolution for the People, relating discussion to everyday issues of the present, Bowler sees how people like George Bernard Shaw and Julian Huxley explored the new vision of the past, particularly as found in Charles Darwin's Origin of Species. Very highly recommended.' Michael Ruse, University of Guelph

• 1. Bridging the gap; 2. Before Darwin; 3. Reacting to the Origin; 4. Human ancestry; 5. Evolutionary epics; 6. Challenging Darwinism; 7. Reconfiguring the ascent of life; 8. Social evolutionism; 9. The evolutionary synthesis; 10. Toward the modern world.

Peter J. Bowler is Professor Emeritus of the History of Science at Queen's University Belfast, a fellow of the British Academy, a member of the Royal Irish Academy and a past president of the British Society for the History of Science.

'Peter Bowler is today's most distinguished historian of evolutionary theory. Every time you think there can be no more to say, he guides us through the huge literature around evolutionary biology, as he produces yet another fascinating, well-written account of some hitherto-unexplored area of interest and importance. This time, in Evolution for the People, relating discussion to everyday issues of the present, Bowler sees how people like George Bernard Shaw and Julian Huxley explored the new vision of the past, particularly as found in Charles Darwin's Origin of Species. Very highly recommended.' Michael Ruse, University of Guelph

• 1. Bridging the gap; 2. Before Darwin; 3. Reacting to the Origin; 4. Human ancestry; 5. Evolutionary epics; 6. Challenging Darwinism; 7. Reconfiguring the ascent of life; 8. Social evolutionism; 9. The evolutionary synthesis; 10. Toward the modern world.