The Incredible Unlikeliness of Being

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What to expect

The presenter of the BBC's The Incredible Human Journey gives us a new and highly accessible look at our own bodies and into the past to uncover the evolutionary secrets hidden in all of us.

'From your brain to your fingertips, you emerge from her book entertained and with a deeper understanding of yourself' Richard Dawkins

'A masterful account of why our bodies are the way they are . . . this book really shines . . . Roberts's lightness of touch is joyous, and celebratory' Observer

'Witty, personal and above all informed by passion and deep knowledge, this is the story of you, not just from conception onwards but from the millions of years of evolution that have shaped the way we are today' Adam Rutherford

***SHORTLISTED FOR THE WELLCOME BOOK PRIZE***

Alice Roberts takes you on the most incredible journey, revealing your path from a single cell to a complex embryo to a living, breathing, thinking person. It's a story that connects us with our distant ancestors and an extraordinary, unlikely chain of events that shaped human development and left a mark on all of us. Alice Roberts uses the latest research to uncover the evolutionary history hidden in all of us, from the secrets found only in our embryos and genes - including why as embroyos we have what look like gills - to those visible in your anatomy. This is a tale of discovery, exploring why and how we have developed as we have. This is your story, told as never before.

(P)2023 Quercus Editions Limited

Critics Review

Alice Roberts tells us about the most amazing story on the planet – the creation of the human animal. Nothing is more extraordinary and her guided tour of the human body takes us on a fascinating journey of self-discovery

A masterful account of why our bodies are the way they are … Roberts skilfully and knowledgeably weaves embryology, genetics, anatomy, evolution and zoology to tell the incredible story of the human body … It is in comparative anatomy that this book really shines … Roberts’s anatomical expertise is seductive … Roberts’s lightness of touch is joyous, and celebratory

Observer

Roberts’s engagingly personal style connects you to your ancestors, to your own personal beginnings as a single cell and, in a most attractive way, to herself as an author of great charm. From your brain to your fingertips, you emerge from her book entertained and with a deeper understanding of yourself

A brilliant account of how a single cell transforms itself into a living, breathing, thinking person. The book exudes physicality, it is like having an intellectual massage of every muscle in your body – afterwards you are keenly aware of your body and feel like a different person

author of The Genius of Invention

The biggest gap in biology is that between DNA . . . and living creatures . . . Alice Roberts has set out to find it. With wit and enthusiasm, she succeeds

Geneticist and author of The Single Helix

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