Every Living Thing

About Every Living Thing

In "Every Living Thing," Jason Roberts masterfully explores the compelling 18th-century scientific rivalry between Carl Linnaeus and Georges-Louis de Buffon. These two exact contemporaries, despite their vastly different backgrounds and philosophies, shared the monumental ambition of identifying and describing all life on Earth. Linnaeus, a pious Swedish doctor, championed a system of static, hierarchical categories, giving us foundational concepts like mammal and Homo sapiens, though his work also included now-discredited pseudoscience. In stark contrast, Buffon, an aristocratic French polymath, viewed life as a dynamic, evolving complexity, foreshadowing modern ideas of evolution and genetics, and even warning against global climate change.

Roberts weaves a sweeping narrative that delves into their intertwined lives and legacies, as well as the often perilous adventures of their acolytes. This captivating non-fiction work traces an arc of insight and discovery that spans three centuries, revealing how their conflicting worldviews shaped the emerging science of biology. It offers a rich historical perspective on the enduring human quest to comprehend the natural world, making it a must-read for anyone interested in the history of science, biology, and the natural world.

Key Details

• Author: Jason Roberts
• Publisher: Random House
• Format: Paperback, 432 pages
• Language: English
• Published: 2024
• ISBN: 9781529400489

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