The Genetic Age

Fascinating, occasionally chilling and very readable -- Rhys Blakely * The Times *
An excellent primer for anyone seeking a well-informed discussion of the moral implications of this enduringly controversial science * Economist *
Detailed and deeply researched ... striking ... complex -- Henry Marsh * New Statesman *
Disturbing and readable * New Scientist *
Comprehensive ... you can sense Cobb's excitement and enthusiasm * TLS *
[A] deeply researched and often deeply troubling history of gene science ... [in search of] decency and honor in a morally complex field. -- Deborah Blum * New York Times *
Masterfully written and deeply researched ... Cobb catapults us into a world full of the joys of discovery, the intense rivalries and friendships between scientists, and the many moral and scientific uncertainties about genetics that await us -- Siddhartha Mukherjee, author * The Gene: An Intimate History *
The ideal guide to what is not just a fiendishly complex area of science but also an ethical minefield * Mail on Sunday *
There are serious questions about the safety of genetic engineering, but also profound social and ethical questions about its use. Matthew Cobb, in his detailed and deeply researched book ... is concerned as much about these questions as he is about the technical details ... but the book is not a primer for understanding the field; it is much more than that. -- Henry Marsh * New Statesman *
Wonderful ... a thoughtful, lively and evocative exposition of the history of genetic engineering. -- Adrian Woolfson * Wall Street Journal *
Excellent and occasionally harrowing ... masterfully told history ... offers a clear-eyed, well-researched view of the promises and pitfalls of a necessary new technology * Forbes *
[An] indefatigable exploration of the genesis of biology ... beautifully lays out the sheer improbability of our biosphere. * The Atlantic *
A look at genetic engineering that provides valuable background for rethinking the appropriate uses for these technologies. * Kirkus *
A truly valuable book ... most of us get very big picture ideas of what's going on with gene editing and other genetic modifications from the media. Now we've got the real story -- Brain Clegg * Popular Science *
An engaging, intriguing book about the history of genetic engineering and where it might lead society ... Excellent. * Library Journal *
[A] remarkable jaunt through the twists and turns of the genetic engineering revolution ... a valuable new go-to source. -- Luis A. Campos * Science *
Cobb does an excellent job describing the history and the nuts and bolts of genetic engineering. But his real focus, as the title of his book implies, is on the sociological, psychological, and philosophical questions surrounding the genetic age. * GEN Biotechnology *
His evenhanded critique balances caution about emergent technologies with tart scepticism of overreaching claims ... The result is an eye-opening - and occasionally hair-raising - indictment of scientific hubris and recklessness. * Publishers Weekly *
The book provides such rich description that even the most knowledgeable readers ... will learn something new ... fascinating. * Journal of Medical Humanities *
Powerful gene technologies, long foreseen, are finally with us. Taking the measure of this daunting prospect calls for historical acumen, technical appreciation, and a clear-eyed view of human foibles. As this book attests, Matthew Cobb has all three -- Jon Turney
A superb account of genetic engineering in life and culture, in all its myriad anxieties and exhilarations. Should we be scared? Read this book and you'll have a sense of the answer -- Adam Roberts, author * It's the End of the World *
The essential, engrossing and disturbing story of a science that enabled us to create new forms of life -- Victoria Gill
Matthew Cobb is a great storyteller of science, a tapestry of intriguing and enlightening ideas thoughtfully and entertainingly told -- Robin Ince
Profound and important ... Written with astute, calm and clear-sighted judgement, The Genetic Age is likely to be the definitive account of the rise of gene biotechnologies. Neither a credulous booster nor a doom-mongering catastrophist, Matthew Cobb steers a prudent path through the promise and perils of genetic engineering -- Philip Ball, author * Critical Mass *
Faced with a new round of genetic dreams and nightmares, Matthew Cobb skilfully sifts the truth from the hype in this thrilling and alarming account of our most dangerous and exciting technology -- Paul Mason, author * How to Stop Fascism *
The promise of genetic engineering is limitless, the stuff of dreams and nightmares, and that is also the problem, as Matthew Cobb shows us in this elegant and meticulously researched history. Packed with human stories and fascinating detail, this is the journey of discovery that changed how we view life itself. -- Gaia Vince, author * Transcendence, Adventures in the Anthropocene *
A lucid and vigorously insightful account of the pitfalls and triumphs of the twenty-first century's most ethically challenging and potentially world-changing technology -- Paul McAuley, author * Fairyland *
A superb guide to the global history of the dreams, fears and science of genetic engineering, and why it matters for tomorrow -- Jon Agar, author * Turing and the Universal Machine *
A gripping, bawdy tale of science fiction morphing into business history ... Exhaustively researched and beautifully written ... the histories of recombinant DNA, biotech, GMOs, gene therapy, and cloning in a single lively, accessible account -- Nathaniel Comfort, Professor of the History of Medicine, John Hopkins University, and author * The Tangled Field: How Genetics Became the Heart of American Medicine *
A riveting guide to the new age of genome engineering, revealing how ideas and technology that until recently existed only in science fiction are now a stunning clinical reality ... Required reading for anyone who cares about the future of humanity and our planet -- Kevin Davies, author * Editing Humanity *
The genetic advances of the past half-century have raised the possibility that we can not only read the instructions that make living things, including ourselves, but also edit them at will. As a geneticist, Matthew Cobb celebrates the potential of these advances for medicine, agriculture and biodiversity. As a historian, however, he sets them against a complex social, political and cultural backdrop, arguing that everyone should have a voice in deciding what is necessary and right, not just what is possible. His riveting analysis warns that in a world beset by poverty, inequality and climate catastrophe, chasing apparently dazzling technofixes is rarely cost effective or morally justified. -- Georgina Ferry, scientist and broadcaster