Review: The 10,000-Year Explosion by Gregory Cochran & Henry Harpending

Posted on October 21st, 2012

Overall, good read. They provide a compelling argument for why human evolution has continued throughout the past several thousand years, and identifies some of the selective pressures that continue to act on us today.

In addition, this book includes an extensive resource list for additional reading and data that supports their conclusions.

While I personally would have liked a little more meat in the identification of specific genes responsible for changes in human DNA, or the selection pressures the authors believe will shape humanity’s future, this book is an accessible resource for armchair scientists.

Full disclosure: where did I obtain this book?

Purchased myself

To buy this yourself from Amazon, click on the image below!

Please note that I make a small percentage of the sales resulting from this link, but this did not influence my review.


Review: The Secret Underground – Natalie Bahm

Posted on October 12th, 2012


What a fun read!

Intense, suspenseful novel for middle grade readers–and adults will enjoy it too! I had so much fun with this book, and didn’t want to put it down, even for dinner!

What did I like? The mystery and suspense introduced by the tunnels, and the wonderful characterization of the main character, Ally, and her female friends. The Gauze Men made wonderful villains, and I loved the conflict surrounding the bank robberies, keeping secrets from parents, and early relationships.

My only issue is that many of the boy characters were difficult to remember–many of them, with the exception of Paul, Eric, and Jake, were pretty interchangeable. I would have liked to see more identifiable characteristics early on. That said, by the second two-thirds of the book, I completely hooked.

Can’t wait to read another book by Ms. Bahm. Well done!

Full disclosure: where did I obtain this book?

Purchased myself

To buy this yourself from Amazon, click on the image below!

Please note that I make a small percentage of the sales resulting from this link, but this did not influence my review.