American Journal of Human Genetics, 76:0, 2005

"This is an absolutely superb book! One of the best textbooks on any subject…"

Book Description

"This is an absolutely superb book! I have been recommending it enthusiastically to professional colleagues, graduate students, and even the occasional highly motivated undergraduate student ever since it was published last year, and the response to the book has been overwhelmingly positive. Not only is the book unique in terms of topical coverage, but it is also extremely well executed. In fact, it is one of the best textbooks on any subject that I have read. It belongs on the shelves of everyone interested in the genetic aspects of human evolution. There is also much of value in it for paleoanthropologists, historical linguists, archaeologists, and human biologists (biological anthropologists), as well as for geneticists with various complementary specialties and interests.

… The text is clearly written, and the illustrations are excellent. The boxed supplementary text is especially informative, whether just explanatory information or an opinion piece by an outside expert. There is a real richness to the mtDNA and Y-chromosome data presented in a phyolgenetic/phylogeographic framework in the three chapters on prehistoric range expansion and global colonization. Students have found chapters 3-6 (about genome diversity) quite helpful and have deemed the text’s brief excursions into the realm of mathematics to be effectively presented and not overly technical. Appropriate Web sites are mentioned throughout the book, to foster independent research. I must confess that I learned something new (and important) from every chapter in the book!

… This new compendium emphasizes the enormous explosion in knowledge derived from human haploid systems and molecular genetic markers, and, as such, it is a most worthy successor. It should quickly become the book to consult for genetic information pertinent to the evolution of our species. To the authors, I offer both a sincere thank you and a hearty congratulations for a job well done!"