Every Living Thing: The Great and Deadly Race to Know All Life
by Jason Roberts
Summary
Jason Roberts tells the story of two eighteenth century rivals, the Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus and the French naturalist Georges Louis Leclerc de Buffon, who pursued opposing visions for cataloging all life on Earth. The book contrasts Linnaeus and his rigid system of naming and classification with Buffon and his sprawling, evolving view of nature, following both men, their disciples, and the explorers who risked their lives to gather specimens. It matters because it shows how these competing ambitions shaped modern biology and still influence how scientists understand species, race, and the diversity of the living world.
Historical Context & Significance
The book centers on the eighteenth century rivalry between Carl Linnaeus and Buffon, whose disagreement over how to classify nature laid foundations for modern biology.