In this richly detailed novel based on the life of Syms Covington, Charles Darwin's hard-working shipboard assistant and later his house-servant, Roger McDonald shines a light on a man forgotten by history, capturing the breathtaking excitement of the historic voyage of the Beagle and brilliantly illuminating the scientific, religious, and social controversies that exploded around Darwin's watershed theories.As "Darwin's shooter, " Covington collected and preserved invaluable specimens; as the scientist's clerk in London, was he the first man to grasp the full import of their research -- the seeds of Darwin's theory of natural selection? Twenty years later, Covington awaits his copy of The Origin of Species with mixed emotions. Embittered by Darwin's failure to acknowledge him, he is also profoundly troubled by his own role in the discoveries that subverted sacred doctrines and shook the Victorian worldview to its very foundation.
- ISBN10 1862300542
- ISBN13 9781862300545
- Publish Date 3 September 1998
- Publish Status Out of Print
- Out of Print 10 January 2005
- Publish Country GB
- Imprint Anchor Books
- Format Paperback
- Pages 416
- Language English