The flamingo's smile

4.2 avg 2467 votes 84 reviews 2379 want to read

About this book

"THE FLAMINGO'S SMILE is about history," writes the author in this volume of essays, "...and about what it means to say that life is the product of a contingent past, not the inevitable and predictable result of simple, timeless laws of nature. Quirkiness and meaning are my two not-so-contradictory themes." Flamingos that feed upside down; flowers and snails that change from male to female; the probability that an errant asteroid sounded the death knell of the dinosaurs and ushered in the evolution of mankind...these are only a few of the things that open our eyes to the endless delights of Gould's subject...evolutionary theory.

4.2 ★★★★☆ average of 2 sources · 2467 votes
Open Library 3.0 1
Goodreads 4.2 2467
1★2★3★4★5★

84 reviews · 2,379 want to read · 120 reading now

Reader Profile

Enjoyment84Difficulty60Influence37Popularity43Classic41

4.2/5 · 2467 readers · 476 pages · ≈ 8 h 49 m · Moderate

How long does it take to read The flamingo's smile?

About ≈ 8 h 49 m — 476 pages, assuming roughly 250 words per page at 225 words per minute.Typical novel≈ 5 h 56 mThe flamingo's smile~8 h 49 m

How many pages is The flamingo's smile?

476 pages in its most-read edition.Typical novel320The flamingo's smile476

What genre is The flamingo's smile?

It sits on the Essays, Science, History shelves.

Is The flamingo's smile in the public domain?

No — it is still under copyright.

Who wrote The flamingo's smile?

Stephen Jay Gould.

The flamingo's smile ★ 4.2 · 2 sources Check price →