The Evolution Of Jane Kindle Edition

Jane, the narrator and protagonist of this mildly diverting novel, is on the rebound from a failed marriage. She goes on an ecotour to the Galapagos Islands and is stunned to find that her distant cousin and best friend from childhood, Martha, is the guide. Martha abruptly broke of their friendship for no apparent reason and Jane has been stewing about it ever since. Was it something she said or did, or was it perhaps connected to a mysterious family feud that divided the branches of their family?The chapters alternate between the tour of the Galapagos and Jane's childhood in Connecticut with frequent musings on Darwin's "Origins of Species" and much discussion of questions such as "what is a species?" and "how and where do species divert from one another on the evolutionary tree?"The author keeps hinting about the secret that caused the rift between Martha and Jane and provides some possible explanations - but by the time they come forth, I had stopped caring very much.The problem with this book, which ultimately bored me more than it amused me, was that the characters don't come into sufficient focus for the reader to get very invested in them or care about what happens to them. Jane is a bit of a whiner but not tremendously interesting and Martha never really established herself as a character at all. The other people in the book are a collection of names with attributes -- but do not really live.This book could have gone for comedy or for an intellectual puzzle but in the end tries for both and succeeds at neither.

This was a disappointment to me. It droned on endlessly and neither Jane nor Martha kept my attention long enough to invest in either of them. Perhaps their childhood, a very minor part of the book, could have been a larger part of the story. I just don't think it went anywhere. We were enticed a bit by the family dynamics and teased by the references to their respective mother/father's connection, but that too turned out to never be fully developed. Sorry, I just was sadly disappointed by this.

Great book for someone traveling to the Galapagos

The author has good potential as a writer, but needs a ruthless editor -- the story is much too verbose. In addition, the character development needs bolstering. On the whole, as one kept reading the story, I found myself wanting to scream, "Get over it!!! We have all lost a friend during childhood."

I can't say I did or did not like the book. Rather I felt it was much ado about nothing. The main character, Jane, was not very interesting and her part of the story verged on the silly. The Darwin stuff was so old hat that if it was the point of the book, I didn't get it. It was mildly interesting to read Darwin's journals but so much has been said about his theory and work that it was more like reading history than a novel. Oh well, it may spark discussion for a book club.

My book group read this book and will meet next week to discuss it. I found it to be a welcomed break-away from a conventional novel. The balance of Non-fiction/fiction was superbly crafted. Ms Shine's wit and wisdom is both provocative and entertaining. Don't we all know a Jane somewhere? Or perhaps have a little of Jane's quirky narcisism lurking in ourselves that we cringe to acknowledge? I would venture that it's this dark truth, along with the risk-taking departure from conventional format, that readers find disturbing. But if you shake off preconception, it's a terrific read. Bravo!

This is a story about a whiny woman who never grew up andobsessed about a friend long lost. Losing contact with friendshappens every day, it shouldn't ruin your life as it did Janes'.

I teach psychology and evolutionary theory at at a small university in the mid-west. This novel is a wonder as it elucidates evolutionary principles as they are manifest in "genes, mind and zeitgeist". I have long told my students to look to their own lives, the evolution of their own personalities, to understand the evolution of sepecies and cultures. The principles of change are the same in all three worlds and any one of the three reflects the other two. Schine breaths life into this maxim, for which I say thanks.

Yes, she is self-absorbed, thinking everything and everyone else's reactions revolved around her. That is the (most humourous) point. She is not like most people who take themselves too seriously and take everything personally.... she evolves when she discovers that other peoples' lives go on very well without her..... we are so often at best mere footnotes in other people's lives - while we (mis)conceive that we are the main character.

Great conditioned book and such an interesting story … love it.