From the publisher: "The Cincinnati area has yielded some of the world's most abundant and best-preserved fossils of invertebrate animals such as trilobites, bryozoans, brachiopods, molluscs, echinoderms, and graptolites. So famous are the Ordovician fossils and rocks of the Cincinnati region that geologists use the term 'Cincinnatian' for strata of the same age all over North America. This book synthesizes more than 150 years of research on this fossil treasure-trove, describing and illustrating the fossils, the life habits of the animals represented, their communities, and living relatives, as well as the nature of the rock strata in which they are found and the environmental conditions of the ancient sea."

A short but thorough guide to the invertebrate phyla, Moore's textbook emphasizes evolution throughout, with introductory chapters on "The process of evolution: Natural selection" and "The pattern of evolution: Molecular evidence" as well as a final chapter on "Invertebrate evolutionary history". The reviewer for the Quarterly Review of Biology commented, "Survival is a mark of success, as every biologist knows. The fact that this 'little book' has a second edition indicates that it has found a welcome place as an introductory guide to the invertebrates." Janet Moore is former Director of Studies in Biological Sciences at New Hall, Cambridge.

"This book chronicles an amazing breakthrough in biologic and geologic science," Schopf writes, "the discovery of a vast, ancient, missing fossil record that extends life's roots to the most remote reaches of the geologic past. At long last, after a century of unrewarded search, the earliest 85% of the history of life on Earth has been uncovered to forever change our understanding of how evolution works." Writes the reviewer for Scientific American, "Schopf ... has a good deal to say about scientists and the way science is done. It all makes for a book that bears out his assertion that 'science is enormously good fun!'"

To the question of where Precambrian fossils were, Darwin lamented, "I can give no satisfactory answer." Darwin's Lost World, as the reviewer for Library Journal comments, provides "[a] rollicking account of [Brasier's] adventures seeking an answer to a question that vexed Charles Darwin." At once a travelogue, ranging from China, Mongolia, and Siberia to Oman, Newfoundland, and Scotland, and a review of what is now known about the emergence of complex multicellular life, Darwin's Lost World is a spirited introduction to the biota of the late Precambrian and early Cambrian. Brasier is Professor of Paleobiology at Oxford University.

"Our aim in this book," the authors explain, "is to introduce examples of the more common fossil invertebrates from around the world, as well as some rarer but scientifically significant fossils. We have set out to highlight the appreciation of fossils as the remains of once living animals, not merely as oddly shaped stones." The reviewer for Library Journal comments, "The authors provide a comprehensive compendium of information regarding every aspect relating to invertebrate fossils: history, general descriptions, and specifics related to all types of shells and fossils discovered. Numerous plates augment the text and provide visual reference points for readers."

From the origin of life to the Cambrian explosion, Knoll draws not only on paleontology but also on the latest insights from molecular biology, ecology, and the earth sciences to produce a broad understanding of the emergence of biological diversity. Sean Carroll (the author of Endless Forms Most Beautiful) writes, "This is a truly great book. It is a remarkably readable synthesis of many diverse ideas selected from a breathaking array of disciplines. The narrative is engaging and entertaining — a travelogue through time that incorporates amusing and informative anecdotes from Knoll's travels to many far-off places." Knoll is Fisher Professor of Natural History at Harvard University.

The first book in the English language on the Chengjiang biota, The Cambrian Fossils of Chengjiang, China succeeds in doing justice to both their scientific importance and -- with scores of color plates -- their wondrous beauty. Reviewing the book for New Scientist, Douglas Palmer writes, "Mainly intended for professional palaeontologists, this spotter's guide details the amazing fossils, 525 million years old, that have been shaking the tree of life for the past 10 years. Chengjiang's hundred species, from algae to chordates, challenge North America's Burgess Shale fauna for the quality and amount of new information they provide."

"Located in the west of Canada, the Burgess Shale contains a unique collection of fossil remains, and has become an icon for those studying the history of life," writes the publisher. "This remarkable book takes us on a fresh journey back in time through the Burgess Shale and its astonishing collection of Cambrian creatures. Simon Conway Morris paints a vivid picture of the critical period which saw the diversification of all the major animal groups, and takes a controversial stance on current evolutionary theories." Conway Morris is Professor in the Department of Earth Sciences at Cambridge University.

"This book," Tom Fenchel explains, "is about the development of life from its origin and until multicellular plants, fungi, and animals arose — corresponding approximately to the time period from 4 to 0.6 billion years ago." The reviewer for BioEssays writes, "The classical, recurrent themes are treated in a clear and interesting style of writing. The scope of the book is broad enough to be useful to advanced undergraduate or graduate students as well as to any reader possessing a college scientific background." A glossary and suggestions for further reading are included.

"The main aim of this book is to highlight one part of the immense sweep of time called the Precambrian -- the Proterozoic -- and, in fact, only a part of that Eon -- the time when the first animals appeared -- in a wide variety of places on Earth," the authors explains. "The first animals will always be of profound interest to scientist and layperson alike." With a foreword by the late Arthur C. Clarke. The reviewer for Science writes, "The Rise of Animals offers a much-needed avenue to communicate to the general public the past decade's exciting discoveries of Ediacaran fossils."

Reviewing Trilobite! for RNCSE, Kevin Padian wrote, "Fortey has a lot to teach about trilobite structure, diversity, and evolution, but his book is far less pedestrian and far more engaging than a more text-like treatment would have been. Rather, he has used trilobites as a vehicle to explain a great many aspects of evolution, geologic history, and how we know what we know about these ancient animals and the problems that they illuminate. Besides, his prose is genial and knowledgeable ... We in the field of evolution are lucky to have a great many fine writers, and Richard Fortey is one of the best."

In Wonderful Life, Gould tells the story of the reinterpretation of the unusual fossils of the Burgess Shale: "a grand and wonderful story of the highest intellectual merit — with no one killed, no one even injured or scratched, but a new world revealed." Reviewing Wonderful Life for Nature, Richard A. Fortey wrote, "There is no question about the historical importance of the Burgess Shale, and Gould is right when he says that it deserves a place in the public consciousness along with big bangs and black holes .... A compelling story, told with characteristic verve."