Infinite Life: The Revolutionary Story of Eggs, Evolution, and Life on Earth

by Jules Howard

An expansive investigation into the most unifying and enduring structure in the history of life—and a story of biological richness at a moment when so much of our precious biodiversity hangs in the balance.Eggs are the origins of ninety percent of the Earth’s organisms. They can be found as far apart as deep-sea volcanoes and in space. Yet despite their fundamental importance, eggs often find themselves an afterthought in the discussion of evolution of life on Earth as the interests of scientists congregate around the things that emerge from eggs rather than the eggs themselves. In his new book Infinite The Revolutionary Story of Eggs, Evolution, and Life on Earth, Jules Howard explains—with great passion, authority, expertise, and infectious enthusiasm—why it’s time to give eggs their moment in the it is the eggs that can teach us new and surprising lessons about Earth’s history, the trials of life, and the exceptional ways in which natural selection operates to propagate the survival of individual species. Infinite The Revolutionary Story of Eggs, Evolution, and Life on Earth, offers a wholly new perspective on the animal kingdom, and, indeed, life on Earth. By examining eggs from their earliest histories to the very latest fossilized discoveries—encompassing the myriad changes and mutations of eggs from the evolution of yolk, to the hard eggshells of lost dinosaurs, to the animals that have evolved to simultaneously give birth to eggs and live young—Howard reveals untold stories of great diversity and majesty to shed light on the huge impact that egg science has on our lives.

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, Evolution, Biology, Nature, History, Audiobook

272 pages, Hardcover

Published September 3, 2024

Reviews

[Jason · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a proper interesting book, well written in a way that makes it easy to follow for somebody with very little knowledge in this area. How interesting exactly you ask? Well, interesting enough that nobody fell asleep when I explained all the many new things I learnt, two people have actually ordered themselves copies because I didn’t bore them enough…a huge success story for my nerdiness.

The thing that makes this book so successful is the story telling blended in with the facts. The chapters are split into periods of time, Jurassic, Cambrian, Devonian, etc and Howard first sets the scene, explains what is going on, who the big players and what role the egg plays at this time. You can easily picture the subject doing exactly as Howard describes, from fish moving from sea to land, or mammals waiting for their chance to steal a dino egg and to an insect making that first flight to find a safe place to lay eggs. Whilst there are a lot of dates and scientific terms and names used here, you don’t get overwhelmed because Howard does a clever thing by having intervals, once you read those you feel refreshed and ready to learn more.

Things I learnt: I found the way a bird makes an egg very interesting, the body is built like a factory and each stage it goes through was mind boggling. There were some areas I felt I was already quite knowledgeable about but it turns out cuckoos have a more complex relationship to other birds than I realised. I think all the important questions get answered here, chicken and egg riddle…answered! Why does the T-Rex always seem to be roaring into the sky?…answered! Why are headlice harder to get out of your kids hair than chewing gum?…answered! Some of the writing is amusing too, once we reach the Jurassic period Howard struggles to keep his enthusiasm under control and goes off on tangents about what is clearly a favourite subject. This has to be one of my favourite books about evolution and I feel much wiser having read it, a book that will get you thinking and makes for some interesting discussions. I’ll be reading again for sure as I will have missed loads of information this time around. Highly recommended.

Blog Review: https://felcherman.wordpress.com/2024...

[kylie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Beautifully written. The author takes us through a scenic history of varying landscapes all home to egg-layers and their broods. These eggs come in different sizes, colors, and textures. They reside in numerous places - including inside their mothers. They tell stories of hardship, resilience, balance, and adaptation.

**I received my copy from Netgalley.

[Tim Martin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely delightful in-depth popular science book on eggs written and read by Jules Howard. Not bird eggs per se though they are covered, but all form of animal egg going back to the earliest things that can even be called an egg. Essentially, it is an evolutionary history of life on Earth told through the story of the egg, with the history while covering eggs also covering the broad sweep of evolution of all animal life on Earth. Though occasionally a little technical, I was never lost and I appreciated the author’s enthusiasm, knowledge, and writing skill. He included the latest research (the book is copyright 2024) and I learned a number of new things.

The scope of the book is impressive, covering everything from the Proterozoic Era (ended 540 million years ago) and the cysts of dinoflagellates, the first vaguely egg-like biological structures in the fossil record, all the way up to aspects of human reproductive biology that are still very much relevant to everyday life. Along the way the author covered major steps in evolution revolving around the egg including why in the Ediacaran sexual reproduction evolved, how in the Cambrian animals started experimenting with sizes and numbers of eggs, how in the Silurian eggs evolved that could tackle life on land, the appearance of live-bearing fish in the Devonian (the placoderm Materpiscis – Latin for “mother fish” – known from the Gogo Formation of Late Devonian Western Australia about 380 million years ago), the evolution of the serosa (a membrane that surrounds the yolk and embryo of insect eggs) in the Carboniferous as well as the appearance in the Carboniferous of amniotic eggs, the advent of complete metamorphosis in insects in the Permian and why this was important (as well as a fascinating section on parasitoid wasp reproductive biology and also the eggs of fairy shrimp), the evolution of frogs (and tadpoles) in the Triassic, the appearance of placental and marsupial mammals in the Jurassic and the reasons for their different evolutionary strategies, why egg-laying monotreme mammals still exist in Australia, a fascinating section on bird eggs and dinosaur eggs in the Cretaceous (and why bird eggs and theropod eggs were colored as well as how we know theropod lineage eggs were colored and patterned), and quite a bit on the evolutionary history of the placenta and human reproductive biology.

Other physical books I can recommend include _Planet of the Bugs: Evolution and the Rise of Insects_ by Scott Richard Shaw, a popular science book that would go well along with this one as a fascinating view of the evolution of life on Earth (as insect evolution is discussed a number of times in _Infinite Life_). Also, _Life on a Young Planet: The First Three Billion Years of Evolution on Earth_ by Andrew H. Knoll is another good, well-written, accessible popular science book I read that I can recommend, as _Infinite Life_ discussed the first animal eggs and egg-like structures in the Proterozoic Eon and that book would provide additional information, particularly on the fascinating Doushantuo fossil formation (between 635 and 551 million years old) with its famous fossil eggs and embryos.

This was definitely a book on science, not popular culture or human history, though there was one brief mention of the role of oak galls and ink for writing and publishing that I found fascinating.

[Ana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thank you to NetGalley and Elliot and Thompson for the opportunity to read an e-copy. The opinion is my own.
This is a well written book that I found both engaging and full of information. That it stretches from the beginning of life to nowadays and how reproduction evolved without dragging but instead compeeling the reader to see how the author sees, how interesting some tiny findings could have in our understanding of what the general populace will consider 'just an egg'.
I also appreciated the long list of further reading at the end, I gave a quick look only but it seems great for those readers who got their interest peaked by this book.
All in all, a good and informative read with compelling writing.

[Megan Cano · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mr. Howard,

My regards for writing about this subject matter in such a genuinely enjoyable way. I couldn’t stop pausing my reading to tell my husband factoids I was learning and it was all such a journey to learn. ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

[Lily Castle · Rating 2 out of 5]

Not impressed by the research, writing, or organisation of this book. There are good egg facts in here but everything is over-explained and it jumps around topics at random. I'm no paleontologist but I am a biologist and several statements made me go "hmm...I'm not sure thats right."

[Sarah Jane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love when you can tell the author is excited about what he’s writing about :) I learned a lot !

[Ivan · Rating 3 out of 5]

I learnt a lot about eggs from this book. The book would be even better if there are some pictures but not just pure descriptions.

[Dave Clarke · Rating 3 out of 5]

Nice bit of pop science centred on the egg, from its origins in those sulphurous pools of a nascent Earth, to some of its forms today, written in an engaging manner, I found it entertaining, mostly, but having read a bit of Stephen J Gould, I heard that man’s ghost when ever this author discussed form function and evolution… it’s pedantic as I kinda get the artistic licence, and the author does like his licence, as he splashed it in other areas too, not just this, and presuming that it was used of course, as a literary device, it’s still jars in a book so plainly seeking to be educational and informative,but evolution and natural selection are not goal orientated, and to allude to such is misleading IMHO.

[Rosh (read in the A.M.) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thank you to Netgalley and Elliot & Thompson for an e-arc!

• Whenever I read a good book, such as this, I am reminded of my love of biology. This was a well written at times funny but definitely engaging thorough account of how the evolution of different eggs led to the success of each animal group and the species that comprise them.
• I highly recommend for the evolutionary biology enthusiasts out there such as myself. More specifically to those who enjoyed Eve by Cat Bohannon last year (even though I did have some critics of that text as well) If you needed just a little more expansion on the mammalian front this would a good next read.
• Personally would have liked a little bit more expansion on the mammalian front because it felt a little rushed in the end. I am aware that this could just be because that evolution is still on going but I'm sure there must be some way to talk on it. I don't think the human impact segwaying into climate change bit was necessary. Only because again it felt not well thought out.
• If the book was going to speak about how the success of the mammalian egg led to the proliferation of the group as a whole I would have loved it if it went all in on explaining the environmental impact this has had. I know climate change is a hot topic right now and maybe the book feared that the readers were already fatigued with this topic but I'm a say it with your whole chest kind of girl.
• The biggest detractor to my enjoying this more than I did was the lack of pictures, diagrams etc. The visual elements would have elevated this reading experience and made me more engaged at parts when fossils were being discussed. Hopefully this is something that is provided in the final print version seeing as I read the arc because pictures are a must for me when dealing with topics in Biology. I like to see what's being stated instead of just taking the books word for it.
• In the end this was a good time and the author has a solid backlist that I might be perusing in the future.

[Rama Rao · Rating 4 out of 5]

The song of the egg

This book is a biography narrating the history of the biological egg. The author calls this the most unifying and resilient life structure that this planet has ever produced. He narrates the Cambrian explosion (539 – 485 million years ago) when animal life surged into the species. In the earliest period, when eggs were first nursed and cradled, the eggs started forming from water to land through the ancestors of spiders and scorpions, insects, and fish that first walked the shores. This historical journey takes in Triassic ponds (252 - 201 million years ago), and later birds, and early mammals. The history has evolved to the mating amphibians; the rise of maggots and other insect larvae; the marsupials thriving in newly evolved pouches and the rise of the most diminutive egg of a mammal. In spite of all this, the eggs - devoid of the brain are incapable of an instructive thought. Eggs are incapable of knowing their journey, but a full species, even a single-celled organism has the basic instinct to survive, find food (prey), avoid predators, and reproduce.

The author explores how evolutionary changes in the egg produced animals and their eco-systems through time. Before the Cambrian Period, before animals as we know them today existed, through the Silurian Period (444 – 419 million years ago) and Devonian Period (419 – 359 million years ago), when coastlines shifted and climates see-sawed; into the Carboniferous (359 – 259 million years ago) era, when bony land animals made advancements across continents. The author hopes that this is re-framing the story of animal evolution through the lens of the egg. Part of the book is the imagination of the author of the ancient palaeobiological times, here the author reminisces how the eggs and possibly earl life forms were evolving in the early Cambrian rivers and lakes. The writing style of the author is engaging; I recommend this book to readers who are interested in evolutionary biology, and the life in the deep past.

[Melissa Rochelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting journey following the evolution of eggs and creatures that lay eggs.

I am a nerd and to learn about birds I started drawing a card a week from this oracle deck I found at Bookmans in May: Bird Signs: Guidance and Wisdom from Our Feathered Friends. Then I collect info about that species, find books that relate, or random pop culture tidbits and make a collage. It gives me a way to focus on a single species, otherwise I get way too overwhelmed. In the deck are these non-bird cards, one was about eggs. I never would've known about this book had it not been for drawing the birth/egg card.

Jules Howard specifically calls out Tim Birkhead's The Most Perfect Thing: Inside and Outside a Bird's Egg as his inspiration so I'm moving that higher up my TBR along with Eve: How the Female Body Drove 200 Million Years of Human Evolution which has been quoted in at least three books I've read recently or I've thought while reading, "I should really get to Eve".

[Zoe · Rating 5 out of 5]

A love letter to, of all things, eggs. The book takes us on a journey from the creation of Earth to the current climate crisis, through the lens of egg evolution and development. The subject matter comes with a dire risk of tedium, but Howard's prose is smooth, entertaining, and at times, sardonic. Despite the moments of brevity, I found a certain melancholic air in the whole narrative. There's certainly something optimistic about the millions of species that have experimented with and perfected different forms of reproduction, yet thinking about any of these organisms on an individual level leaves me feeling deeply inconsequential.

As for the science, explaining evolution in metaphors of contract negotiations, crime sprees, and star-crossed lovers manages to simplify incredibly complex concepts without coming across as reductive or condescending. The book easily could have been double the length, and I am deeply grateful that it was not. The brevity was well-executed - each chapter provided a solid overview of each era without droning. Howard was great about refreshing the reader on previously-explained science when needed, but never edging into the repetitive.

TLDR: The science was interesting, the length was perfect, and the author's voice is compelling.

Also, thank you to Elliott & Thompson publishing house for allowing me to read this ahead of publication.

[Peter Corrigan · Rating 4 out of 5]

'Infinite Life' is a broad evolutionary history of life on Earth told through the prism of the egg in all its varieties and characteristics. It is a pretty well-written, engaging and not too technical account. A few criticisms: 1) could have used a chart of the timelines; 2) also no diagrams or drawings of any of the myriad biological entities discussed; 3) key scientists and their work is discussed in several places but no books or journal articles pertaining were found in the chapter references. There are no footnotes per se but that feels ok as it is sort of a conversational format, almost like an extended magazine piece. Each chapter covers a bloc of geologic time with catchy titles, 'Dust from Dust', 'The Garden of Mortality', 'A Tale of Two Fishes', etc. The five recognized major extinction events of course play a large role in the story but the focus is not really on the mechanics these events, evidence is often scanty anyway. Nonetheless, I would have preferred more.

One minor highlight I recommend is the discussion on the 1965 short documentary 'The Birth of the Red Kangaroo'. Watched it--amazing! Overall 3.5 stars, I'll round up because it is really a pretty fascinating story, even with the obligatory warnings about the Anthropocene calamity now besetting the earth and its eggs. I get it, but just so depressing.

[Brian Clegg · Rating 4 out of 5]

There's been something of a trend for 'big picture' books that trace a feature of life, the universe or whatever from billions of years ago to the present day, arguably started by Henry Gee's excellent A (Very) Short History of Life on Earth. The new book by Jules Howard follows this trend in tracing eggs back to their earliest origins and following them step by step through to (biologically) recent times.

I was a bit wary about this one. It felt in danger of being a lengthy catalogue of eggs that would only appeal to the ovoid equivalent of a trainspotter. But I had very much enjoyed Howard's Wonderdog and found it hard to believe he wouldn't have found a way to make the story of the egg much more interesting - which on the whole he has. The slight reservation here is that there are an awful lot of species described and many variants of the egg concept. But Howard's excellent storytelling skills allow him to get away with this by giving us a series of scenarios from different eras... and also because the egg is a quite remarkable thing.

We get water-based eggs, soft shelled and hard shelled eggs on land, live birth followups to the egg and a lot of material on the quite remarkable organ that is the placenta. There are fish, amphibians, dinosaurs, insects, mammals, birds and more, all busily engaged in egg production, egg care and general eggy wonder. Sometimes it's the small details that fascinate - for example, the dark machinations of the newly hatched cuckoo in kicking its rivals out of the nest.

The one thing I was a bit surprised by was a lack of consideration of the eggs of non-egg laying mammals like us. There was lots about foetuses and the placenta - and the remarkable progress of newborn marsupials to the pouch. But hardly a mention of mammalian (and within mammals, human) eggs themselves. This seemed a strange omission. If I'm going to be picky, I would also suggest that Howard sticks to biology - early on he describes the Sun in the early years of the Earth as 'just part of a constellation' - given that a constellation is just a pattern of stars in the night sky imagined by human beings, it's hard to see how the Sun could ever have been that.

If I'm going to be really picky, I'd also query the title? Why 'infinite'? There's nothing infinity related here. Overall, though, a thoroughly enjoyable exploration of eggs through the history of life. And, of course, we now know the answer to that age old question. The egg definitely came before the chicken.

[Joanna Bagniewska · Rating 5 out of 5]

To people who normally encounter them in culinary form, the structure of eggs may seem rather basic: yolk, white, shell, plus these pesky bits of membrane that make peeling difficult. But in Infinite Life: A revolutionary story of eggs, evolution and life on earth, Jules Howard demonstrates that eggs are anything but simple. Their production is a feat of engineering (the detailed descriptions of “nozzles”, “chemical treatment”, calcium “applied to the egg” and so on, evoke images of a car factory). They come in an incredible array of shapes, colours, formats, durabilities and origins. And they are one of the key reasons for why life on Earth is so diverse.

Read the full review for the TLS here: https://www.the-tls.co.uk/science-tec...

[Kate · Rating 5 out of 5]

A captivating read with some gorgeous moments of poetic description. Perfectly fitting for this weird & wonderful evolutionary story that Howard is telling.

Her scientific descriptions are digestible, and her musings on the nature of life and eggs themselves are insightful - and at points poignantly beautiful.

She makes a clear argument, and each chapter feels as though it adds a crucial link to the chain. I am not a scientist, but she brought out an inner fascination in me about the inner workings of birds, the importance of fossil dust, and the textures of dinosaur eggs.

Truly great. Picked this up for the cover and I am so glad I did! It captures the aesthetic of this book perfectly. Howard clearly had something to say, share, and teach with this work. I am glad to have learned it!

[Marl · Rating 5 out of 5]

[5 stars]

Beautifully written, Infinite Life runs through era by era the history of eggs (and sperm!). The descriptions within the book are lively and blend fact with storytelling together so well (though this is definitely a fact-heavy book). The author takes care to explain terms/theories/ideas as they are brought up which makes this a very easy first biology/ecology nonfiction book for someone to pick up. The inclusion of storytelling mixed with known facts, exploration of how we know these facts, and dives into old and new theories regarding eggs and reproduction creates such a wonderful collection of information. That’s not to say that this book is juvenile or surface level in any way, of course not. Rather, it is testament to the author’s skill in both writing and sharing information.

I loved the intermissions spaced throughout the book. They give a moment for the reader to really see the physical outcome of all the biology, cell, and evolutionary stuff that has been described to us prior and lets us sit back and see the “why” in its importance. Beautiful moments of rest and catharsis in between long discussions of theories and animal cells.

It’s obvious the author loves evolution and eggs. It comes through so clearly in every paragraph and deep-dive into a hyper-specific niche of egg evolution. From discussion on the coloring and patterns of dinosaur eggs to looking into the collection of egg fossils, nothing is left unturned. Every time the author mentioned something I had the thought: “oh I hope he talks about this more later!” he always circled back to it. Life is really breathed into the book and the story of eggs and lets the reader come out with more than just new knowledge but a new appreciation for a stage of life that is so easily overlooked. Criminally underrated.

[Nick Dunken · Rating 4 out of 5]

8/10

Fun trip through the different eras of multicellular life. Of course like in every non-fiction book, everything is strongly looked at through the lens of the main topic (this time eggs) but the author does not overdo it. Easy to read for non-scientists, but even with a PhD in biology it made me think about a few concepts in a fresh way.

[Suzyn Ornstein · Rating 5 out of 5]

fascinating

I never thought much about eggs. Now I have a new respect for how they have adapted over millennia. And, I’m pretty sure that one upshot of this evolution is that the egg came before the chicken!

[Sookie · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is so much about this book that at times made me squeamish, its also entertaining in the way facts are explored and explained.

Thank you to Netgalley and Elliott & Thompson for providing me with a free copy of this e-book in exchange for an honest review.

[Richard D. · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good read on the evolution of the egg from the beginning of life on Earth to the present day. Writing style is not too academic and Howard ties it all together nicely.

[Antonis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Boring! DNF

[Josh · Rating 4 out of 5]

Humbling and awe inspiring

[Tom · Rating 4 out of 5]

A brilliant evolutionary history, clearly and engagingly written, packed with interesting details and comprehensible to this (very) lay reader. A vast improvement on his previous books.

[Max · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book but the writing sometimes comes off as trying too hard to be poetic.

[Nicole Sweeney · Rating 3 out of 5]

June nf book club: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f0gnr...

[The Inquisitive Biologist · Rating 5 out of 5]

Focusing on the oology in zoology, Infinite Life makes for a fascinating retelling of life's evolutionary history by adding eggs to the mix. Read my full review at https://inquisitivebiologist.com/2024...