‘This book is worthy of the place it tells us about, and that is a pretty lofty chunk of praise.’ The Times
‘In this loving survey of his life at the museum, Fortey…is never less than enthused by all the museum's collections.’ Financial Times
‘Fortey…sneaks us behind the scenes with all the glee of a small child seeing for the first time the museum's iconic Diplodocus skeleton. The beauty of the book is that – just like a museum – you can visit the different sections in any order you choose, lingering in the places that most take your fancy … and there is plenty of solid science to enjoy, elucidated with brilliant flair.’ Sunday Times
“There is nothing dry about this exploration of life behind the scenes at the Natural History Museum…Richard Fortey is an amiable, amusing and erudite guide, with a copious supply of anecdotes…Fortey also has a more serious point: that the unglamorous scientific work of taxonomy…is vital not only for the unexpected discoveries it can lead to…but also because it is intrinsically valuable to understand our world during our short stay here.” Independent on Sunday