In the Footsteps of Eve: The Mystery of Human Origins

by Lee Berger

A dramatic, illustrated study of the mysteries of human genesis traces the origins and evolution of humankind, documenting the discovery of the 117,000-year-old fossilized footprints of a modern female human in South Africa and assessing the implications of this find on determining how, when, and where modern humans came into being. Reprint. 15,000 first printing.

Genres: Science, Anthropology, Nonfiction, History, Palaeontology, Biology, Evolution

336 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2000

About the author

Lee Berger is a palaeoanthropologist and explorer, he is is the author of Almost Human: The Astonishing Tale of Homo Naledi

Reviews

[Kevin · Rating 5 out of 5]

2000 – The linear view of hominid evolution is no more. The notion of the two dimensional human family tree has evolved into a three dimensional family “bush” full of offshoots, intertwines, and countless dead ends. Trying to figure out where a particular primate fossil fragment fits in our ancestral matrix takes a good bit of comparative osteology, forensic paleontology, and intellectual conjecture. And then, after all the measurements and analysis and research, there is still the oft’ political hurdle of peer review and critique. The task is daunting, even for the most seasoned anthropologist.

Enter Lee R. Berger, stage right. In 1994, at the age of 28, Berger completed his doctoral thesis on the functional morphology of the hominoid shoulder, past and present. Shortly thereafter, he set the anthropological establishment on its collective ear by proposing that Australopithecus africanus was not a descendant of Australopithecus afarensis as popularly thought, but was in fact a ‘sister species’ that shared an as yet undiscovered common ancestor and may have, at some point in time, coexisted.

Let the festivities begin…

Professor Berger’s book, like all paleoanthropological undertakings, must be taken in the context of its time. Physical anthropology is nothing if not kinetic. While every new piece of evidence reinforces the FACT of evolution, it may also force an alteration in our conceptualization of the mechanisms of that evolution. In the Footsteps of Eve is an accounting of just such an alteration, and it is fascinating stuff!

[Elentarri · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a combination history/memoir of South African paleontology of archaic hominids ending (and starting) with the discovery of 117000-year-old fossilized footprints of an anatomically modern human on the west coast of South Africa, in 1995. The book not only includes fossil finds and their significance, but also includes international politics and petty squabbles between various scientists, including those working on fossil sites in East Africa. Reading about the discoveries and their implications was exciting, the human drama less so. The book also could really have done with a lot more graphics - maps, illustrations and photographs - especially when more technical aspects of the skeletons are discussed.

Note 1: An updated book similar to this that carries on the story with new finds and discoveries over the last 20+ years would be welcome. Berger's subsequent books, Almost Human and Cave of Bones, may cover this.

Note 2: The publishers of this book (National Geographic) really lost the ball in terms of copy editing the hard cover edition I read. There was a chapter in the middle with repeated lines and a missing line at the end of the page. I hope subsequent editions fixed this error!

[Gerald Thomson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Berger, a paleoanthropologist working in South Africa, provides an amazingly honest history of the fossil records found in Africa in support of the evolution of man. It is all here: the gaps, the egos, the deceptions. I have been looking for a book that would simply state what was known about human evolution, not trying to persuade the reader one way or the other about how irrefutable the facts are. The author assumes there is enough evidence to back human evolution, though he does believe the model will change over time as more evidence is found. What I found compelling was how little solid evidence there is and the egos that control the flow of information. Berger paints a bleak picture of people being pressured to find “significant” fossils to keep funding coming. He shows how much disagreement there is about each finding among this small group of scientists that control the information coming out of Africa. He also recounts an amazing incident where he is strong armed, in a scene right out of The Godfather, into changing his description of a bone by a group of scientist that included Tim “Great White Shark” White, one of the two discoverers of the Lucy fossils. This book will open your eyes to how “un-pure” this science really is.

[Rebekah · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked this a lot, but I think A) Berger struggled with his audience (sometimes carefully explaining as one would to a freshman in college, sometimes sparking ahead to vigorous academic debates understandable only to a senior in the field, or at least someone who has taken rigorous anatomy courses, which I have not) and B) The publishers really screwed Berger over. I counted at least six times where a line would "Repeat," and then there were two instances where a sentence was cut off--no end at all. The National Geographic Society needs to employ more copyeditors!

[Anne · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel that I have to give this book 2 stars instead of three for two main reasons, one of which is not the author's fault. The edition that I just finished reading, which was a first edition hardcover, had a great many editing and printing errors, which really detracted from my ability to enjoy the text. This is not the author's fault, I understand that, but frankly I would've expected more from a book published by the National Geographic Society. I only hope that they've fixed the errors in subsequent editions. The other reason is that, despite writing an extensive but understandable history of paleoanthropology in South Africa over the past century, I felt that Dr. Berger spent too much time talking about the politics of science and academia. Scientists and academics are apparently an extremely petty bunch! In many cases, when Dr. Berger was directly involved in the disagreement, he cast himself as an innocent victim who was being unfairly ganged-up on. Rather than making himself look ingenuous, Dr. Berger only succeeded in making himself look ungenuine.

[Trish · Rating 3 out of 5]

The main purpose of the book was to bring readers up to date (at time of publication, 2000) with the changing scene of paleoanthropology. The springboard of hominids is in Africa but with the Years of Apartheid, little was known about the South African connection. I loved the fossil forensic chapter.
I must agree with a previous reviewer that this book was poorly edited with many errors, surprising for a National Geographic sponsored publication. I also expected to find more and better maps.
Now I need to update the last 20 years on this subject.

[Joe Dang · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good review of our understanding of human evolution up to the time the book was published in 2000. Several new discoveries of more species of hominids and our greater understanding of human evolution through DNA studies make this book seem like a snapshot in time. A good read overall.

[Guy Lenk · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fascinating account of the discovery of fossil hominins and some of the personalities and drama that are involved in this high-profile side of archeology. It is well written and an entertaining and educational read. I highly recommend it!

[Mike · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book tells the story of Astrlopithicus in South Africa. It is full of anthropology, science, colorful imaginings of prehumans, and the backstabbing world of science. Worth a read.

[Magdelanye · Rating 3 out of 5]

Proof may always be elusive, as each now discovery throws up as many questions as it does answers about the nature of early hominids and the relationships between them. Future discoveries have as much potential for creating gaps in the fossil record as they do in providing a more complete record of early humanity. p29

Considering that this admission is made early in the book, and that it was published almost 20 years ago, does not necessarily render it obsolete. Rather, it is a fascinating look behind the scenes of the museum, and a good example of how easily science is led astray. It seems that so much of what we have been taught is based on the flimsiest of evidence. No where is this more shocking than in the field of archaeology.

Just because everyone believes that something is true doesn't make it so. p150

Politics, the zeitgeist, intense rivalry between colleagues, circumstantial evidence, and funding all play their part in determining the dominant theory of the day. Having chosen 'the road less travelled' by choosing to do his graduate work in South Africa when it was still being shunned for its racist apartheid policies, if LB sometimes comes across as belligerent and self-aggrandizing, quite driven by his almost missionary zeal to unravel the mysteries revealed by each discovery, his commitment is unquestionable. His conclusions are sobering if obvious.

In attaining control of our environment, we have depleted the planets resources and developed the capacity to destroy ourselves several times over. p265

If we want the evolution of our species to be more than just a blip on the fossil record, we would do well to learn from the past instead of trying to reconfigure it and/or make it fit in with our pre-conceived notions.

...accepting new ideas even if they impinge on the comfort zones of our understanding. 305

[Georgia · Rating 4 out of 5]

The origins of being are still being discovered and pieced together. The mystery remains a fascination for me and how we came to be is something that the greatest minds in the world continue to uncover.

[Manda Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

My father bought me this book for my birthday as a teenager. I was raised Pagan/Atheist and enjoy reading about religion. It is interesting. This book brings science and the Christian Bible together with Berger's interesting theory of the origin of Eve.

[Richard · Rating 2 out of 5]

Occasionally interesting book that gives insight into the day-to-day life of a paleoanthropologist, looking at the challenges of piecing together the past and the thrill of making new discoveries. There's also a fair amount of dishy gossip about some of the big names among African paleoanthropologists. I suspect that the more you already know about this subject and the people involved, the more you'll enjoy this book. For me... eh. This is a subject that I have some interest in, but not enough, apparently, that I wasn't frequently confused about the different varieties of pre-human hominids. I don't know the significance of different parts of the arm and leg bones, and Berger's book didn't make much of an attempt to explain the concepts to the more casual reader. Better writing and more diagrams would have been very helpful.

Also, and this is no fault of the author's, the edition I was reading had trouble with transitions between pages. (This is something that most book publishers figured out a long time ago.) Often the last line of one page would be repeated as the first line on the next page. And sometimes what should have been the first line of the page was omitted entirely. This is a great way to interrupt the flow of the text and, as a bonus, annoy the reader.


Unless you're really really interested in paleoanthropology of African hominids, skip this book.

This was the seventh of a projected 19 consecutive Africa-related books that I plan to read this year.

[Kristin · Rating 1 out of 5]

The book itself was an interesting look at paleoanthropology in South Africa. Unfortunately, this is probably the most poorly edited book I've ever come across - apart from plenty of glaring typos, sentences at the bottom of one page are repeated at the top of another, not once but every few pages. The second-to-last chapter, where the author is drawing his ideas together in what seems to be an important conclusion, ends with an incomplete sentence - I turned the page to read the rest and found a new chapter beginning. I googled these errors and found an academic review of the book which is absolutely scathing, claiming that its problems extend to content errors and misspellings of most of the names of important people and places. The review claims that the book damages the reputations of its authors, editor, the National Geographic Society (who published it) and the University of Witwatersrand (where the author is employed). The reviewer advises academics to steer their non-academic friends and colleagues away from this book, which he clearly views as an embarrassment to the field. Also, he and I are both skeptical of the author's presentation of himself as an academic wunderkind, persecuted by his colleagues who insist on clinging to outdated theories. The fact that every one of his discoveries is presented this way is suspicious, to say the least.

In conclusion, here are other nice books on this subject. Maybe read one of them instead.

[Janet · Rating 2 out of 5]

I just started this book. The first chapter was very good. The secind chapter was pretty much an autobiography. It was interesting how Berger started his career, but that is not what I want to read about. I want ot know more about the Mystery of Human Origins. I am into chapter 3 now and it has gone back to the history of homo sapiens sapiens. I will keep reading and let you know how the book turns out.

[Ansie de Swardt]

I enjoyed this book very much, and found that bits read more like a novel than anything else. The early days of Berger's career in South Africa is very pertinent and interesting in the light of his team's recent discoveries and publications.
I do agree with some reviewers that it is one of the worst edited books I have ever read. All the points of criticism hold. It is as though an early draft got published by accident.
I do recommend it freely though.

[Kevin R · Rating 3 out of 5]

Need a good editor!