What's Darwin Got to Do with It?: A Friendly Discussion about Evolution

by Robert C. Newman

What's Darwin got to do with it?When it comes to evolution, quite a bit! But many people don't understand Darwin, creationism and intelligent design. Here's a book that makes sense of it all!A group of scholars, teachers, writers and illustrators have teamed up to create an easy-to-read introduction and critique to this important issue. You'll enjoy the lively and funny conversation that unfolds between two professors and they explore what science...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0830822496
• ISBN13: 9780830822492
• Release Date: January 2000
• Publisher: IVP Books
• Length: 152 Pages
• Weight: 0.48 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 5.5" x 8.2"

Customer Reviews

Persuasion through confusion

What a great book for brainwashing the youngsters. Hopefully soon all American middle schools will carry this book, then biology class will be as simple as saying 'God did it!' 'Recess!' and us Americans can finally have our children get better grades then those other snobby countries with all that fancy evolution jibber jabber that requires students to 'study'. Children study?! - what nonsense!

Only a Genius Can Explain the Complex in Simple Terms...

which makes this book a "must read" for both teens and adults. High school and college students will especially find this book invaluable as their professors (sometimes) unfairly attack their foundational beliefs of Creationism or Intelligent Design.This book should be required reading by everyone -- not as a religious, but as a *philosophical* -- exercise to see how the person on the other side of the chasm views the ultimate question of "How did we get here?". A respectful and dignified book, and because of it's comic-book format, it is both enjoyable and easy to read.

Philosophical Tennis Game

& #65279;A quick look easily could fool a dilettante because of the quaint characters concerned about conveying their views connected with issues of origins. After a brief Introduction on competing ideas, the illustrated adventure leads to the meeting of Professor Teller and Professor Questor, two biologists who challenge each other's views regarding origins questions. From page to page the banter flies rapidly like a tennis ball going back and forth, thus forcing the observer-readers of the book to see both sides.Both players score philosophical points, but creationist Questor tends to have the final "word". What's the outcome? In this game the reader of the book wins because he/she (whether evolutionist or creationist) will be challenged to reconsider the strengths and weaknesses of the performance of players on both sides.

Logic and Evolution

When this book was recommended to me, I cringed inwardly -- another creation/evolution book. And in cartoon style? Give me a break...It was a delightful surprise. "What's Darwin Got to Do With It?" is not a rehash of the same old stuff. The cartoon format keeps the presentation succinct and clear. No long philosophical essays -- just sharp, clear points. But the authors did not stop with that. They have shown, step by step, the logical errors involved with Darwinism. Interjected at a few points are pages pointing out both pitfalls where definitions are concerned and logical errors in arguments we have all heard dozens of times. Encompassing it all is the cartoonist's skill, which had me smiling most of the time and chuckling out loud a few times. This book is not only enjoyable, it is thought-provoking and a substantive addition to the material available dealing with the controversy surrounding evolution.

A clear, enjoyable treatment of a frequently murky subject.

This is a delightful book. It's cartoon format makes it appropriate for junior high kids, but it's content is substantial enough to be beneficial to adults. The authors set out to clarify just what is at stake between those who claim that life is wholly the result of chance and mechanism--orthodox Darwinists--and those who argue that life bears evidence of intelligent design. In so doing, they present the recent insights of "design theorists" such as Michael Behe, William Dembski and others, in a light and accessible way.Their treatment is winsome and avoids villifying either side in the debate. The authors also avoid specifically theological and biblical disputes, focusing instead on publically available evidence, primarily from developmental and molecular biology and paleontology. They also distinguish between an argument for intelligent design generically and the more specific arguments for creationism. This illustrates what may be the book's greatest virtue: it provides the important distinctions necessary to discern what is really at stake in the controversy over the origin and nature of life. I highly recommend this book for students young and old, for teachers and school librarians, and for parents who want a quick summary of the debate between Darwinism and design.