Jacob's Ladder: The History of the Human Genome

by Henry Gee

What makes us as humans all alike and yet as individuals so different? Jacob's Ladder delivers a remarkably lucid explanation of what the sequencing of the human genome really tells us. Decoding the sequence, evolutionary biologist Henry Gee shows, is just the beginning: seeing the letters and words. The next frontier is in understanding snatches of conversation between genes―how they interact to direct the growth of an organism. Gee takes us into the heart of that conversation, illuminating how genes govern a single egg cell's miraculous transformation into a human being, and how they continue to direct that person's day-by-day development throughout a lifetime.

Gee tells the story of what we know about the genome today and what we are likely to discover tomorrow. As our knowledge advances, we will be able to direct with increasing authority the conversations between genes: not only performing medical interventions but also creating whole scripts directing birth, ancestry, and diversity in a brave new world.

Genres: Nonfiction, Science, Biology, Popular Science

352 pages, Hardcover

First published July 17, 2004

About the author

Henry Gee's next book The Wonder of Life on earth, illustrated by Raxenne Maniquiz, is out on 5 February 2026. His other books include The Decline and Fall of the Human Empire, A (Very) Short History of Life on Earth (winner of the 2022 Royal Society Science Book Prize) and The Science of Middle earth. His books have been translated into more than 25 languages. He is represented by Jill Grinberg Literary Management and lives in Cromer, England.

Reviews

[Bob · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent.

[Luis · Rating 3 out of 5]

Henry Gee presenta un libro bastante interesante sobre el genoma. Está dividido en tres partes - tres para mí, aunque el libro sólo separe dos - y que dan un enfoque bastante completo y ameno de la temática: la primera parte es historia de las teorías evolutivas y del descubrimiento del genoma; la segunda se centra en la historia de lo molecular, del ADN, sus mecanismos de regulación y sus mutaciones; y se cierra el ensayo tomando la esencia de lo visto anteriormente para construir la más probable evolución que ha llevado a que existan tanto la vida como el hombre en el planeta Tierra.

Este ensayo me ha aportado algunas cosas que ya sabía y algunas otras muy interesantes. Es una bien encaminada síntesis, aunque lejos de perfecta, de establecer una continuidad del pensamiento pre-científico hasta nuestros días. Y es que, qué queréis que os diga, pues me enamora que se siga hablando de la filosofía de la naturaleza y de Goethe durante todo el libro. También resulta útil al diseñar el posible origen de la vida en la tierra, aunque parece que intentó pasar muy rápido con el tema, si bien en otros puntos se enrolla excesivamente, como en el desarrollo embrionario y la obsesión por los monstruos.

En contra, pesan dos cosas: una involuntaria, que es el inevitable desfase de los datos que da el libro y que plaga el libro de notas actualizadas; y otra voluntaria, que es el estilo del autor y que resulta bastante soporífero a veces, pese a contar anécdotas, descubrimientos y especulaciones apasionantes que deberían hacer este texto mucho más atractivo. En cuanto a si el libro es demasiado duro para el público general, creo que está en el punto intermedio de un experto y un mero novato, así que presten mucha atención y vayan muy atentos ambos tipos de lectores.

[Kristin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Interesting book, well kind of...

To begin with it is very informative. If I read this for research, I might get some thing I needed out of it. It was interesting how Henry Gee created a time line of the events. For my personal reading, there were a few interesting points made. I remember thinking it was interesting how people centuries ago thought about information we now know to be true.

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book covers a fascinating topic (the understanding of genetics) in incredible historical depth. Unfortunately, it makes for a very slow, dry read because the author can't decide if he's a science historian or a science journalist. Toward the end, he also dabbles in unsolicited opinion-sharing and wanton prediction-making. Still... His book, his rules. It's a good read if you care about the history of the development of genetic science. Otherwise, you can do better.

[Zuhaib Hassan]

still reading

[Aileen Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quick and easy read; the history reads like a novel.