That said, with ever-increasing levels of computational power and advances in our ability to edit genetic code, we are undoubtedly entering an era of immense new possibilities. Stressing the hugely complicated recipes of chance, environment, and combinations of multi-purposed genes that can determine our susceptibility to different disorders, Mukherjee also addresses misconceptions around genetics and tempers any expectations of miracle cures for all of our ailments. The disastrous eugenics programmes of the early 20th century, tragically ill-fated trials of early gene therapies, and our entire notion of ‘illness’, are all confronted with sagacity and compassion. The gene refuses to shy away from difficult topics. Threaded through the narrative are Mukherjee’s own memories and deeply personal accounts of how hereditary illnesses have affected his own family. As with the best detective stories, we identify with the protagonists and almost feel as if we are in the laboratory (or greenhouse) alongside them as they close in on landmark discoveries.

Mukherjee promises an ‘intimate’ history and succeeds, narrating this tale with a poetic lucidity that leaves the reader completely absorbed. The book’s final chapters describe contemporary research on biotechnology, gene therapy and genomics, as well as future developments. Mukherjee goes on to describe the rapid evolution of genetics over the last two hundred years – a period defined by the monk Gregor Mendel’s work on heredity and the race to decipher DNA. The gene takes us on a fascinating journey through the history of genetics, which begins with the Ancient Greeks and their early theories of heredity. The gene: an intimate history is a staggeringly impressive piece of writing from geneticist and Pulitzer prize winning author Siddhartha Mukherjee.

The gene the intimate history