Fossils: A Very Short Introduction by
Keith Stewart Thomson

---

Most
Very Short Introductions employ a style, sometimes with quirky examples or
expansive commentary, to make it more than just a bland introduction to a
topic.

Early in this book, Thomson, an Emeritus Professor from Oxford,
offers a chapter "A Cultural Phenomenon" which oozes erudition and charm. Its
  constrained, suffer no fools, style is ideal for this topic and reminiscent of
  some leading lights in science. He admits a focus on vertebrate fossils, his
  specialty, although this does not seem to detract from the book. Thomson
  continues with a history of fossil collection and interpretation in Western
  society, then a discussion of Earth's geology and the symbiosis between its
  study and that of fossils. The key chapter, Against the Odds, focuses on the
  formation of fossils and the day-to-day work of finding, preparing and
  interpreting them. This chapter covers some of the information for which many
  readers would have chosen the book, while the other chapters provide important
  contextual understanding and convey the inexact 'detective work' nature of
palaeontology. There is not scope in this volume to prepare the potential
collector to take up his or her hammer and start lifting rocks, but the
background will make further research more useful.

Thomson
then examines fossils in an evolutionary context. His discussion of punctuated
equilibrium is balanced and a reasonably accessible contribution on a complex
topic. He then moves on to hominid fossils and discusses current
interpretations. Interestingly, he points out the contradiction, accountable
only in terms of the error for estimation methods, between the age of the last
common ancestor for non-African humans of 52,000 years and the influx of humans
into Australia 60,000 years ago. Thomson concludes with some mention of fossil
frauds, importantly considering the motivation for such schemes, and the future
of fossil hunting. This Very Short Introduction provides a useful background for
the study of the various aspects fossil science, enabling the reader to consult
more specialist literature on fossil collection. The bibliography and index are
adequate.