The Evolution of Charles Darwin: The Epic Voyage of the Beagle That Forever Changed Our View of Life on Earth

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In the introduction to this book, Diana Preston wrote, "Like many of his contemporaries, Darwin was cheerfully and unashamedly racist, chauvinistic, nationalistic, and sexist." I almost put this book down right then and there thinking, "Oh great, another anachronistic excoriation of a major historical figure." Fortunately, after this obligatory nod to the woke mob, Preston managed to get down to the business of writing an excellent biography of Darwin with a focus on how his time aboard the Beagle impacted his evolving views on natural selection and evolution. In Patagonia he witnessed the war of extermination waged by the authorities against the indigenous peoples of the pampas. In Brazil, the widespread ownership and ill-treatment of slaves appalled him as a committed abolitionist.

Darwin never left Britain again after his return in 1836, though his mind journeyed far and wide to develop the theories that were first revealed, after great delay and with trepidation about their reception, in 1859 with the publication of his epochal book On the Origin of Species . Offering a unique portrait of one of history's most consequential figures, The Evolution of Charles Darwin is a vital contribution to our understanding of life on Earth. Such a hobby needed money and—as he would into adulthood—Charles used his sisters as a conduit to obtain it from their formidable father, of whom he seems to have been a little afraid. Darwin recalled his father was easily angered and somewhat unjust to him in his youth. Dr. Darwin was physically imposing— the largest man I ever saw—broad-shouldered, six foot two, and weighing well over twenty-four stone (296 pounds). Though by other accounts inclined to be distant and given to intimidating brooding silences, he seems to have had his son’s interests at heart and the transmitted requests for money usually succeeded. From the Los Angeles Times Book Prize-winning historian, the colorful, dramatic story of Charles Darwin's journey on HMS Beagle that inspired the evolutionary theories in his path-breaking books On the Origin of Species and The Descent of Man Lively and nuanced . . . Shrewd on the main personalities . . . Preston goes beyond the horse-trading of three old men, with vivid scene-setting of the tsarist palaces where the conference took place.”— Times (UK)Charles Darwin and Robert FitzRoy met for the first time in Beaufort’s offices in the Admiralty on September 5, 1831. Darwin found the handsome, fine-featured, aquiline-nosed captain courtesy itself. No one could have been more open and kind, he wrote the same day to his sister Susan. Though FitzRoy did not immediately say the vacancy had been filled, he was at first politely discouraging, pointing out every likely difficulty, danger, and discomfort of the coming voyage and warning Darwin that should he need more time to complete his South American survey he would not return across the Pacific to determine longitudes as currently planned. An engaging narrative . . . Rich in detail and texture.” — San Diego Union Tribune, on Before the Fallout: From Marie Curie to Hiroshima

A colorful chronicle of high-stakes negotiations and a study in human frailties, missteps, and ideological blunders.”— Washington Post From the Los Angeles Times Book Prize–winning historian, the colorful, dramatic story of Charles Darwin's journey on HMS Beagle that inspired the evolutionary theories in his path-breaking books On the Origin of Species and The Descent of Man

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As majestic as its subject . . . Extraordinarily readable."-- Chicago Sun-Times, on Lusitania: An Epic Tragedy The voyage of the Beagle was about discovery in every sense, at every level, from self-discovery through detailed broadening of knowledge to the widest scientific revelation. This book belongs to all who sailed, but especially to Darwin, without whom the voyage would have been a footnote, albeit quite an important one, in the history of marine charting and meteorology. As he himself wrote, it was by far the most important event in my life and … determined my whole career. Diana studied Modern History at St. Hilda’s College, Oxford. Her book tracing the development of atomic science from Marie Curie to Hiroshima, Before the Fallout, won the Los Angeles Times Prize for Science and Technology and her last book, Eight Days at Yalta, about the 1945 Yalta Conference, was honoured in 2021 by the United States Society of Presidential Descendants. Diana has written Historia features on two controversial subjects, Finding empathy – the complexities of writing Robert Clive and Mutiny on the Bounty. Exactly 163 years later, and in the very same venue, historian Diana Preston will discuss the dramatic debate and the key events leading up to it; part of the subject of her new book, The Evolution of Charles Darwin: The Epic Voyage of the 'Beagle'.

At first Darwin relied almost exclusively on the company of his brother, four years his senior. However, when Erasmus left Edinburgh the following year, Charles made efforts to broaden his circle. His interest in the natural sciences was growing, and he made friends with several like-minded young men. He also began attending lectures on zoology given by the thirty-three-year-old Dr. Robert Grant, a well-traveled polymath who, while originally qualifying as a medical doctor, now lectured on invertebrate animals. Grant was interested in the connections between plants and animals and, in particular, whether primitive organisms might have the characteristics of both. Preston's] books are always entertaining . . . This book fits that mould; it's an adventure story . . . The author has chosen the perfect topic. It's nearly impossible to write a dull book about Darwin . . . The real attraction of this book lies in the way it turns the development of evolutionary theory into a personal story."-- Gerald DeGroot, Times (UK) Deciding to write about Charles Darwin himself was a natural progression. Just as Dampier’s transition from pirate to pioneer of descriptive zoology and botany intrigued me, so did Darwin’s personal evolution during the Beagle voyage. The more I read – especially Darwin’s shipboard diary, the small notebooks he filled during those five years and his many letters home – the clearer the impact of the voyage became. Drawing on a rich range of revealing letters, diary entries, recollections of those who encountered him, and Darwin’s and FitzRoy’s own accounts of what transpired, Diana Preston chronicles the epic voyage as it unfolded, tracing Darwin’s growth from untested young man to accomplished adventurer and natural scientist in his own right.It wasn’t the usual travel guide – no recommendations about places to sleep or eat – nor the usual sort of travel writer. The author was Charles Darwin and the guide was the diary he kept during the voyage of HMS Beagle, sending it home to England in instalments and worrying what his family would make of it. A highly readable, highly detailed account of the historic meetings and often difficult and contentious negotiations between Churchill, Roosevelt, Stalin, and their staffs, and a vivid description of the once ornate Tsarist palaces and their much deteriorated wartime condition that served as the setting for meetings, dinners, and private talks."-- New York Journal of Books

How a young man, fussed over by adoring sisters in a wealthy middle-class Shrewsbury home, coped during the voyage intrigued me. In his diary Darwin admits frankly that before the Beagle sailed he fretted over whether he could live in the ship’s cramped crowded conditions – the Beagle was a mere ninety feet long. Yet the diary also reveals how curiosity and excitement overcame his misgivings. Eight years ago, her decision to write "popular" history led her to The Road to Culloden Moor: Bonnie Prince Charlie and the '45 Rebellion (Constable UK, 1995). It was followed by A First Rate Tragedy: Robert Falcon Scott and the Race to the South Pole (Houghton Mifflin, 1998), The Boxer Rebellion (Walker & Company, 2000), Lusitania: An Epic Tragedy (Walker & Company, 2002) and now, Before The Fallout: From Marie Curie to Hiroshima. Born and raised in London, Diana Preston studied Modern History at Oxford University, where she first became involved in journalism. After earning her degree, she became a freelance writer of feature and travel articles for national UK newspapers and magazines and has subsequently reviewed books for a number of publications, including The Wall Street Journal and The Los Angeles Times. She has also been a broadcaster for the BBC and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, and has been featured in various television documentaries. A highly readable, highly detailed account of the historic meetings and often difficult and contentious negotiations between Churchill, Roosevelt, Stalin, and their staffs, and a vivid description of the once ornate Tsarist palaces and their much deteriorated wartime condition that served as the setting for meetings, dinners, and private talks.”— New York Journal of Books

Unforgettable . . . The definitive account of the Lusitania.”— Philadelphia Inquirer, on Lusitania: An Epic Tragedy During his final year at Cambridge, guided by Henslow, Darwin read voraciously about natural history. Two books particularly impressed him—Alexander von Humboldt’s massive, multivolume Personal Narrative, detailing his scientific travels, especially in South America, and Sir John Hershel’s Introduction to the Study of Natural Philosophy. Humboldt mingled vivid but accurate descriptions of the tropics with observations on how geography and climate influenced nature. His account of the jungles and volcanoes of Tenerife, where he observed a meteor shower, so excited Darwin that he tried to persuade Henslow and others to join him on a scientific expedition there and even began inquiring about chartering ships. A] meticulously researched compelling narrative . . . Diana Preston’s vibrant reconstruction of Darwin’s extraordinary journey, world-changing work and the consequences he experienced makes it all accessible and new in her telling.”— Janet Somerville, Toronto Star