The Ancestor's Tale by Richard Dawkins

Dawkins reconstructs the variation in species by the time when species diverged. He starts with Homo Sapiens and works backwards. As time gets deeper, we get a good review of genetics and evolution. Naturally, this view of life's history becomes largely a visit to the zoo, as the time-scaling biases the retelling towards mammals.

Keeping this in mind, Dawkins' story entertains with a grand scope and an eye for details that challenge the reader. Especially, as when he concludes, I was left thinking about what will come next.

I once had a friend with a connected earlobe, which he posited meant he was "more evolved" than those without (like me). I think he meant his forebears were a later-branching in our species. As to whether his offspring and mine have a statistically different chance of surviving and reproducing ("more evolved"), we'll just have to see....