Genetics for Beginners

Genetics for Beginners, republished as Introducing Genetics, is a 1993 graphic study guide to Genetics written by Steve Jones and illustrated by Borin Van Loon. The volume, according to the publisher's website, "takes readers on a journey through this new science to the discovery of DNA and the heart of the human gene map," and, "gives us the information," to, "make moral decisions where genetics plays a part."[1]

Genetics for Beginners
First edition cover
AuthorSteve Jones
IllustratorBorin Van Loon
CountryUnited Kingdom
LanguageEnglish
SeriesIntroducing...
SubjectGenetics
PublisherIcon Books
Publication date
1993
Media typePrint
ISBN1874166129

Publication history

This volume was originally published in the UK by Icon Books in 1993 as Genetics for Beginners, and subsequently republished with different covers as Introducing Genetics and Introducing Genetics: A Graphic Guide.

The book was described, by illustrator Borin Van Loon, as a companion to Darwin for Beginners (1982), a previous volume in the series, and as a stand in for the long out-of-print DNA for Beginners (1983), both of which he illustrated.[2]

Editions:

  • Genetics for Beginners. Icon Books. 1993. ISBN 1874166129.
  • Introducing Genetics. Icon Books. 2000. ISBN 1840461209.
  • Introducing Genetics: A Graphic Guide. Icon Books. 2011. ISBN 1848312954.

Related volumes in the series:

  • Miller, Jonathan; Van Loon, Borin (1992). Darwin for Beginners. Icon Books. ISBN 1874166013.
  • Evans, Dylan; Zárate, Oscar (1999). Introducing Evolutionary Psychology. Icon Books.
  • Evans, Dylan; Selina, Howard (2001). Introducing Evolution. Icon Books. ISBN 1840462655.
  • Ennis, Cath; Pugh, Oliver (2017). Introducing Epigenetics. Icon Books.

Reception

Eric Reeve, writing in Genetical Research, describes the volume as, "a very curious little book," that's purpose is to "introduce non-scientists to the subtleties, excitements and threats of modern genetics," which would not surprise him, "if it became a cult book in a minor way."[3]

"[The] small amount of much-fragmented text by Steve Jones," squeezed, according to Reeve, "into the little areas on most pages," "tend[s] to lack continuity and consist mainly of small nuggets of genetic knowledge which will give the reader a very simplistic view of the subject," though he acknowledges, "a few impressive sentences may stick in [the reader's] mind for use at parties."[3]

"[T]he obtrusive drawings of Van Loon," Reeve contends, while "clever, often witty," seem intended to, "get in as many puns and jokes as possible," and "are really not designed," "to fill in the gaps in the reader's education," meaning that they, "make very little contribution to the reader's knowledge, and will in many cases mislead or confuse him."[3]

"[T]his book is an important missed opportunity," as, Reeve concludes, "Steve Jones had an opportunity to produce an elementary book which would fire the enquiring readers to further efforts in self education instead of letting them only admire the clever drawings and laugh at the jokes."[3]

Borin van Loon, the volume's illustrator, has responded to Reeve's criticism by stating that, "We're not convinced that [Reeve] quite 'gets' the idea of documentary comic books."[2]

Legacy

Van Loon's illustrations from this book provided the inspiration for his Health Matters Gallery mural at the Science Museum, London, which was opened on 9 June 1994 by Professor James Watson,[4] and were featured in the special exhibition, Representations of DNA, at the Whipple Museum of the History of Science in Cambridge in 2003.[2]

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References
  1. "Introducing Genetics: A Graphic Guide". Icon Books. Retrieved 2017-01-20.
  2. Van Loon, Borin. "Introducing Genetics". borinvanloon.co.uk. Retrieved 2017-01-20.
  3. Reeve, Eric (February 1994). "Genetics for Beginners". Genetical Research. 63 (1): 83. doi:10.1017/S0016672300032158. Retrieved 2017-01-20.
  4. Van Loon, Borin. "Health Matters Gallery Mural". borinvanloon.co.uk. Retrieved 2017-01-15.
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