The Re-Origin of Species

a second chance for extinct animals
Torill Kornfeldt (trans. Fiona Graham)

‘Reading The Re-Origin of Species was a delightful adventure. Torill Kornfeldt took me by the hand and led me all around the world, and back through history, teaching me about how extinction works and how the restoration of all kinds of species, from the woolly mammoth to feathered dinosaurs, just may be a part of our future.’

Tim Urban, Wait But Why?

‘Any number of terms apply to Torill Kornfeldt's fascinating overview of this profoundly important subject: clear-eyed. Skeptical. Open-minded. But the word that sticks with me is one I haven't had cause to use in a very long time: hopeful. The Re-Origin of Species gives me hope.’

Peter Watts, author of Blindsight and Starfish

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‘The author's careful synthesis of accomplishment versus aspiration is also spot-on—even world-class scientists will be dreamers, and there is much more research to be conducted before mammoths once again lumber across the tundra. Wondrous tales of futuristic science experiments that happen to be true.’

Kirkus Reviews

‘Extinction might not be forever! ... Free of most scientific jargon, Kornfeldt’s book is an eye-opening introduction to an important new field of study that”s well fit for public library audiences.’

Booklist

‘Kornfeldt interviews researchers intent on recreating mammoths and passenger pigeons, saving the northern white rhino, and reintroducing chestnut trees to North America.’

Publishers Weekly

‘This thought-provoking and deeply engaging book throws into the question the very meanings of life and death as we understand them.’ STARRED REVIEW

Shelf Awareness

‘Pick up this book and you’ll be glued to its pages, and soon convinced that bioengineering will continue to change the world in ways difficult to imagine.’ 4.5 STARS

Good Reading

‘It’s a beautifully written and perceptive book, that also poses sharp questions about environmental nostalgia and the true value of species.’

Number 4 of the ‘Best Books of The Year 2018’, Steven Poole, The Daily Telegraph

‘In her cleverly titled book, The Re-origin of the Species, Swedish science journalist Torill Kornfeldt examines the world’s most famous (or perhaps most infamous) attempts to resurrect extinct species ... Crisscrossing the globe to interview the world’s leading experts on de-extinction, she offers her personal impressions of their laboratories, their research, and even their motivations ... The Re-Origin of the Species is a welcome addition to the growing corpus on de-extinction, and a strong debut by a gifted writer.’

Abraham H. Gibson, The Quarterly Review of Biology, Stony Brook University

‘[T]his excellent book, written with a deceptively light touch (in Fiona Graham’s translation) … raises a number of deep questions and paradoxes about our relationship with nature.’

The Guardian

‘The Re-Origin of Species is an engrossing exploration of a controversial area, written with a light touch and a journalist’s eye for detail.’

Irish Examiner

‘Kornfeldt does an excellent job of exposing the ethical dilemmas of bringing extinct creatures back to life.’

Kathryn Hughes, The Mail on Sunday

‘It’s less like reading a college text book and more like reading about a famous explorer digging into cultures not seen since the dawn of time. It’s like Indiana Jones light, for the scientist.’

Adventures in Poor Taste

‘[E]xpresses the full complexity of this topic in a lighthearted, masterful way, raising critical questions … which guide the reader to develop informed opinions about how humankind can limit the ongoing destruction of nature.’

Adelaide Advertiser

‘[T]he projects Kornfeldt writes about are incredibly compelling, given that we are living through a mass-extinction event that threatens the stability of the world’s ecosystems.’

The New Yorker

What does a mammoth smell like? Do dinosaurs bob their heads as they walk, like today’s birds? Do aurochs low like cows? You may soon find out.

From the Siberian permafrost to balmy California, scientists across the globe are working to resurrect all kinds of extinct animals, from ones that just left us to those that have been gone for many thousands of years. Their tools in this hunt are both fossils and cutting-edge genetic technologies. Some of these scientists are driven by sheer curiosity; others view the lost species as a powerful weapon in the fight to preserve rapidly changing ecosystems.

It seems certain that these animals will walk the earth again, but what world will that give us? And is any of this a good idea? Science journalist Torill Kornfeldt travelled the world to meet the men and women working to bring these animals back from the dead. Along the way, she has seen the mammoth that has been frozen for 20,000 years, and visited the places where these furry giants will live again.

Tim Urban, Wait But Why?

Peter Watts, author of Blindsight and Starfish

View all reviews

Kirkus Reviews

Booklist

‘Kornfeldt interviews researchers intent on recreating mammoths and passenger pigeons, saving the northern white rhino, and reintroducing chestnut trees to North America.’

Publishers Weekly

‘This thought-provoking and deeply engaging book throws into the question the very meanings of life and death as we understand them.’ STARRED REVIEW

Shelf Awareness

‘Pick up this book and you’ll be glued to its pages, and soon convinced that bioengineering will continue to change the world in ways difficult to imagine.’ 4.5 STARS

Good Reading

‘It’s a beautifully written and perceptive book, that also poses sharp questions about environmental nostalgia and the true value of species.’

Number 4 of the ‘Best Books of The Year 2018’, Steven Poole, The Daily Telegraph

Abraham H. Gibson, The Quarterly Review of Biology, Stony Brook University

‘[T]his excellent book, written with a deceptively light touch (in Fiona Graham’s translation) … raises a number of deep questions and paradoxes about our relationship with nature.’

The Guardian

‘The Re-Origin of Species is an engrossing exploration of a controversial area, written with a light touch and a journalist’s eye for detail.’

Irish Examiner

‘Kornfeldt does an excellent job of exposing the ethical dilemmas of bringing extinct creatures back to life.’

Kathryn Hughes, The Mail on Sunday

Adventures in Poor Taste

Adelaide Advertiser

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Details

Format:Paperback

Size: 234mm × 153mm

Extent:256pp with 16pp colour section

ISBN (13):9781925713060

RRP:$35.00

Pub date:2 Jul 2018

Rights Held: World English

Rights Sold: India (Westland), Audio (Audible)

High-res cover:Download Image

ADDITIONAL MATERIAL:Download ZIP

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AUTHOR

Torill Kornfeldt

Torill Kornfeldt is a Swedish science journalist with a background in biology. She has worked for Sweden’s leading newspaper Dagens Nyheter and for Swedish public radio.

TRANSLATOR

Fiona Graham

Fiona Graham is a British literary translator, editor, and reviewer who has lived in Kenya, Germany, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Nicaragua, and Belgium. Her recent translations include Elisabeth Åsbrink’s 1947: when now begins, an English PEN award-winner longlisted for the Warwick Women in Translation Prize and the JQ Wingate Prize, and Torill Kornfeldt’s The Unnatural Selection of Our Species.