Lucy's Legacy: The Quest for Human Origins Paperback – June 1, 2010

Lucy's Legacy was written by the paleoanthropologist Donald Johanson who was involved in the discovery of the Lucy female skeleton. Kate Wong is listed as a co-author. Lucy is of the Australopithecus afarensis species. This species is dated to about 3.2 million years ago.Johanson provides an in depth narrative of the events that led up to the discovery of this specimen, and I found this narrative to be quite interesting. The first eight chapters are devoted to this story, but it is more than this. In these chapters, you will learn what it is like first hand to be a paleoanthropologist working in the field. It certainly does not seem to be a bed of roses. There is a lot of hard work, searing temperatures endured in tropical African areas, and many dangers encountered from rival ethnic clans engaged in constant fighting for whatever reasons they fight. While reading this account, you will also learn a bit about the lingo used in the field.The next section covers the dawn of humankind and some of the other early hominids prevalent in this same period such as, A. anamensis, the Robust australopithecines, Kenyanthropus platyops, and Australopithecus garhi. The front and back inside covers of the book display a nice chronological chart of all the hominid species and their relations. I found myself referring time and again to this chart as I read the book - a nice touch.The final section of the book discusses the homo genus including Homo habilis, Homo rudolfensis, and Homo ergaster. We learn about the population at Dmanisi (an area populated by hominids that left Africa), the hobbits of Flores (H. floresiensis) and the mysteries surrounding them, and, of course, no discussion of the subject is complete without talking about the Neandertals (H. neanderthalensis).I found the final chapter very interesting. It was about the rise of Homo sapiens. Johanson discussed the "big band" that occurred about 40,000 years ago when we see a sudden rise in sophisticated weapons, art, and music - a general intellectual burst of sorts. Johanson tries to make the point that some believe this may have more of a cultural revolution than a big bang. He provides many examples of advanced tool making and the use of substances such as red ocher used in body painting as evidence that humans displayed advanced skills prior to this. I think more study is needed in this area.Overall I found this book a good read. It gives an interesting insight into what Paleoanthropology is all about and the state of our knowledge base on the subject.

2nd book by this author, big thumbs up

It was quite long and not the page turner that I expected.Clearly the authors were very well educated in this field. The one annoying thing was every time - it seemed - they reached a conclusion they went to " ON THE OTHER HAND" . So for example, it seemed conclusive that hominids branches out from Chimps and Apes 28 Million years ago then he jumped to the school that argued it was perhaps more like 7-5 million years ago.This is not their fault since science by its nature is not established by consensus. But as a casual reader and aficionado of paleoanthrpology its,quite frustrating.Also the authors spend considerable time describing various discoveries. But, it would have been helpful to have visual representations of them . A picture is indeed worth a thousand words.Finally, where are the Denisovans in our hominid history. Nothing was said about them though I was pleased to read the insights,on the Hobbit and Flores. Thank You

"Lucy's Legacy, the Quest for Human Origins," is a book that everyone can (and should) read. Donald Johanson's newest work is a delightful combination of adventure and science.The first part of the book takes the reader on a journey to Africa, especially Ethiopia, to witness some of the greatest discoveries ever made. It is at once a travelogue and an exposition that inspires one to want to be there with Johanson. The detail makes you feel present in the Afar triangle as it takes place, and the style forces you to keep turning pages for more.Johanson and his co-author, Kate Wong, then tackle the difficult task of putting hominid fossils, and our current knowledge of them, in a context that allows a non-scientist, such as myself, to appreciate the present views of many scientists on topics old (did we blend sexually with Neanderthals) to new (what can we make of the homo floresiensis "hobbit").For anyone who has done some lay reading in the field, the account of paleoanthropological theory in "Lucy's Legacy" is fascinating and remarkably balanced. The book recounts all sides of issues (when there are sides) in a measured and thoughtful way. That is a rare find.Johanson takes lumps from some other scientists for publishing material that popularizes what he does. That it lifts the spirits of informed non-scientists, and inspires the younger set to new dreams, is viewed as of no importance. Moreover, some will claim that the title was "stolen" from Alison Jolly's insightful earlier work entitled "Lucy's Legacy, Sex and Intelligence in Human Evolution." But, anyone who actually reads them both will see that they are complementary parts of an intellectual search.This is a terrific book.

A great read and a good primer for what has been discovered over the last few years. I just wish that Tim White had published his findings on Ardi before Don wrote this book. I would like to read his take on it.I was in college in the early 70's and I must say that just about every course I ever took could be taught the same way today. Basic Chemistry, Math, English, etc. will never change. However, the course I took in Prehistory turns out to be at least 50% wrong! How delightful. They have discovered so much more since that time and there is so much more to be discovered. I wonder what that course will look like 100 years from now. Maybe 50% is wrong now. But it's fun to watch.My only disappointment was the number of photographs in the book. There was room for many more.Read this book, continue your education, and stay tuned. There is so much more to come.

Discovering Lucy and the implications, and then other fossil hominid discoveries. The amazing thing is how much can be learned from so little. The unsurprising thing is the inter scientist rivalry.