THE RED QUEEN Sex and the Evolution of Human Nature

Exploring the Red Queen Hypothesis (named after the Red Queen of Alice in Wonderland), Ridley’s book is executed in a sturdy English accent by Simon Prebble. With clear prose and excellent examples, Ridley explores the nuanced scientific debates on why many species (especially humans) have two sexes instead of one, three, or more. His discussion can be daunting and hard to follow unless one rewinds, but Prebble alleviates some mental exhaustion with great use of pause, emphasis, and deliberateness. His only shortcoming is his comedic delivery. Several times, Ridley drops in an amusing line that Prebble reads straight, causing the listener some confusion. L.E. © AudioFile 2011, Portland, Maine [Published: MAY 2011]