The Monk in the Garden
The Lost and Found Genius of Gregor Mendel, the Father of Genetics
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3.5 • 2 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
This acclaimed biography of 19th century scientist Gregor Mendel is “a fascinating tale of the strange twists and ironies of scientific progress” (Publishers Weekly).
A National Book Critics Circle Award finalist
In The Monk in the Garden, award-winning author Robin Marantz Henig vividly chronicles the birth of genetics, a field that continues to challenge the way we think about life itself. Tending to his pea plants in a monastery garden, the Moravian monk Gregor Mendel discovered the foundational principles of genetic inheritance. But Mendel’s work was ignored during his lifetime, even though it answered the most pressing questions raised by Charles Darwin's revolutionary book, On the Origin of Species.
Thirty-five years after his death, Mendel’s work was saved from obscurity when three scientists from three different countries nearly simultaneously dusted off his groundbreaking paper and finally recognized its profound significance. From the perplexing silence that greeted his discovery to his ultimate canonization as the father of genetics, Henig presents a tale filled with intrigue, jealousy, and a healthy dose of bad timing. Though little is known about Mendel’s life, she "has done a remarkable job of fleshing out the myth with what few facts there are" (Washington Post Book World).
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Henig (A Dancing Matrix: How Science Confronts Emerging Viruses) divides the life and reputation of Gregor Mendel, the eponymous monk in the garden, into two acts, with a 35-year interlude between. The lost-and-found genius of "The Father of Genetics" is one of the great legends of science, but it harbors many gaps and anomalies, out of which Henig has built a fascinating tale of the strange twists and ironies of scientific progress. Little is known specifically about Mendel's life and work. He left no scientific journals, nothing but a single article published in 1866 summarizing his experiments with peas that went completely unnoticed during his lifetime. Mendel's story is one of repeated failures, disappointments, breakdownsD"a man whose dreams of scientific acclaim are dashed again and again." However, the disappointments of Mendel's life are merely the prelude to its second act: in the spring of 1900, 16 years after his death, that single article was rediscovered almost simultaneously by three separate scientists in three different countries, and within a few years Mendel was hailed as a giant of scientific discovery. Henig, who revisited the sites of Mendel's life and work (and corrects doubts about how extensive and credible his pea cultivations really were), treats Mendel less as a "creative genius who died unrewarded," and more as a case study in the relationship between scientific work and a scientific reputation. Mendel's story continues to be one of the most human and appealing in the history of science, and Henig conveys its full value in this excellent and well-researched history.
Customer Reviews
Mendel lives!
A vivid view of the circumstances, atmosphere, and characters surrounding a seminal discovery in biology. While the historical record is often thin, Henig brings it to life in an entertaining, clear, and comprehensive manner.