Virtually unknown today, Alfred Russel Wallace was the co-discoverer of natural selection with Darwin and an eminent scientist who stood out among his peers as a man of formidable mind and outsized personality. In this biography, Michael Shermer aims to rescue him from the history's sidelines.

Introduction: Genesis and Revelation ; Prologue: The Psychology of Biography ; 1. Uncertain Beginnings ; 2. The Evolution of a Naturalist ; 3. Breaching the Walls of the Species Citadel ; 4. The Mystery of Mysteries Solved ; 5. A Gentlemanly Arrangement ; 6. Scientific Heresy and Ideological Murder ; 7. A Scientist Among the Spiritualists ; 8. Heretical Thoughts ; 9. Heretical Culture ; 10. Heretic Personality ; 11. The Last Great Victorian ; 12. The Life of Wallace and the Nature of History ; Epilogue: Psychobiography and the Science of History ; Appendix I: Endnotes ; Appendix II: Biography of Wallace's Archival Sources ; Appendix III: Biography of Wallace's Published Works ; Appendix IV: General Biography ; Index

"A triply fascinating book that contains original research and interpretations full of insight."--New Scientist "Shermer brings Wallace into the light."--Psychology Today "An ambitious enterprise that will interest, excite, and maybe even infuriate a wide variety of readers."--Thomas Soderqvist, Science "In this dazzling new biography, Alfred Russell Wallace at last comes out from behind Darwin's shadow and is given his due. As a leading figure in evolutionary theory, an astute social philosopher, committed political activist, hopeless dreamer, geographical explorer. much loved friend, anthropologist and spiritualist, he certainly deserves a fresh and full biographical study that does justice to his fascinating personality. Michael Shermer has written a wonderful account of Wallace's life and the varied times through which he lived. This is also biography with a purpose. Shermer asks how some thinkers can break out of the conventional mold while others do not. The answers lie in a provocative combination of history, biography, psychology and sociology...that is sure to generate much comment."--Janet Browne, Wellcome Trust Centre for the History of Medicine at University College London, author of Darwin: Voyaging "The author and the subject of this wonderful book have much in common. Both refuse to swim with the tide, both insist on judging the facts for themselves, neither is moved one tit or jottle by the opinion of the general public, both have an innocence and joy of life that protects them from the hurts of others. There is a moral purity combined with a fierce intelligence that characterizes both Alfred Russel Wallace and Michael Shermer, and it took the one to understand and write about the other. I recommend this book very highly indeed. It is a joy and privilege to spend time with two such men."--Michael Ruse, author of Can a Darwinian be a Christian?: The Relationship between Science and Religion "Shermer does an outstanding job, painting a psychologically sensitive portrait of the heretic personality that made Wallace prone to investigate unusual claims, and to commit to and stand by them in the absence of substantial evidence in their favor."--Oren Solomon Harman, American Scientist "A triply fascinating book that contains original research and interpretations full of insight."--New Scientist "Shermer brings Wallace into the light."--Psychology Today "An ambitious enterprise that will interest, excite, and maybe even infuriate a wide variety of readers."--Thomas Soderqvist, Science "A scholarly appraisal of the curious life and work of the naturalist who, some insist, was the true father of the theory of evolution.... A useful companion to Wallace's--and Darwin's--own writings, and a fine contribution to the history of science."--Kirkus Reviews "Shermer's expertise in analyzing the life and paradoxical beliefs of this complex man elevate 'the last great Victorian' to a position of prominence as one of the significant leaders in modern science."--Library Journal "In this dazzling new biography, Alfred Russell Wallace at last comes out from behind Darwin's shadow and is given his due. As a leading figure in evolutionary theory, an astute social philosopher, committed political activist, hopeless dreamer, geographical explorer. much loved friend, anthropologist and spiritualist, he certainly deserves a fresh and full biographical study that does justice to his fascinating personality. Michael Shermer has written a wonderful account of Wallace's life and the varied times through which he lived. This is also biography with a purpose. Shermer asks how some thinkers can break out of the conventional mold while others do not. The answers lie in a provocative combination of history, biography, psychology and sociology...that is sure to generate much comment."--Janet Browne, Wellcome Trust Centre for the History of Medicine at University College London, author of Darwin: Voyaging "In this psychologically informed biography of Alfred Russel Wallace, Michael Shermer displays both his deep knowledge of the history of science and his well-known ability to write for a general audience. He convincingly shows how the co-discoverer of natural selection and an ardent spiritualist fused his scientific and religious interests into a coherent, if controversial, life."--Ronald L. Numbers, Hilldale and William Coleman Professor of the History of Science and Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison "Shermer does an outstanding job, painting a psychologically sensitive portrait of the heretic personality that made Wallace prone to investigate unusual claims, and to commit to and stand by them in the absence of substantial evidence in their favor."--Oren Solomon Harman, American Scientist "The author and the subject of this wonderful book have much in common. Both refuse to swim with the tide, both insist on judging the facts for themselves, neither is moved one tit or jottle by the opinion of the general public, both have an innocence and joy of life that protects them from the hurts of others. There is a moral purity combined with a fierce intelligence that characterizes both Alfred Russel Wallace and Michael Shermer, and it took the one to understand and write about the other. I recommend this book very highly indeed. It is a joy and privilege to spend time with two such men."--Michael Ruse, author of Can a Darwinian be a Christian?: The Relationship between Science and Religion "In Darwin's Shadow is an ambitious enterprise that will interest, excite, and maybe even infuriate a wide variety of readers . . .The arguments is intelligent and the narrative well written . . .What makes Shermer's book interesting, however, is not so much its portrait of Wallace the man, his thinking, and his times (a picture that does not add much to what we already know from, for example, Raby's treatise), but rather the approach taken to the genres of biography and history."--Science

Michael Shermer is founding publisher and editor-in-chief of Skeptic magazine, and is director of the Skeptics Society. He has authored several popular books on science, including Why People Believe Weird Things, How We Believe, Denying History: Who Says the Holocaust Never Happened and Why Do they Say It? and Borderlands of Science (OUP). He lives in Los Angeles, California.

A gripping narrative about one of the most controversial scientists in history Explores the many facets of this polymathic genius, and delves into the many eccentric and fringe causes championed by Wallace throughout his career, including anti-vaccination, conservation of the environment, crime and punishment, eugenics, socialism, religion and the role of institutionalized churches, and women's rights and suffrage