Life on a Young Planet

By Andrew H. Knoll,

Book cover of Life on a Young Planet: The First Three Billion Years of Evolution on Earth

Book description

Australopithecines, dinosaurs, trilobites--such fossils conjure up images of lost worlds filled with vanished organisms. But in the full history of life, ancient animals, even the trilobites, form only the half-billion-year tip of a nearly four-billion-year iceberg. Andrew Knoll explores the deep history of life from its origins on a young…

Shepherd is reader supported. When you buy books, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Why read it?

1 author picked Life on a Young Planet as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Harvard geobiologist Andy Knoll vividly captures the dynamic field of Precambrian paleontology in this unique, zippy read. Personalities—both fossils and the people who study them—come alive as Knoll races across the eons. With episodes from life’s enigmatic origins, to scrappy contentious black smudges that might or might not be the remains of cells, to some of the most exquisite and revealing microfossils on Earth, Life on a Young Planet takes its readers on a unique journey.

From Robert's list on planet Earth.

Want books like Life on a Young Planet?

Our community of 10,000+ authors has personally recommended 100 books like Life on a Young Planet.

Browse books like Life on a Young Planet

5 book lists we think you will like!

Interested in fossils, earth, and presidential biography?

10,000+ authors have recommended their favorite books and what they love about them. Browse their picks for the best books about fossils, earth, and presidential biography.

Fossils Explore 35 books about fossils
Earth Explore 285 books about earth
Presidential Biography Explore 18 books about presidential biography