The Life and Collected Works of Thomas Darwin (1857-1879)
A novel by Harry Karlinsky
While carrying out historical research at Ontario’s London Asylum, psychiatrist Harry Karlinsky comes across a familiar surname in the register, one “Thomas Darwin of Down, England.” Could this Thomas, involuntarily admitted to the asylum in 1879 as “dangerous to others,” be a relation of the eminent scientist Charles Darwin? And what might have brought him to this place, where he died alone, a world away from home? In a narrative woven from letters, memoir abstracts, photographs and illustrations, what emerges is a sketch of Thomas’s life — from his earliest days at Down House and schooling, through his scholarly works, collected together here for the first time, to his confinement and death within a North American asylum.
In this stunning factitious biography, Karlinsky gives us a subtle parody and a Nabokovian tale of Darwinian theory gone wrong. Through the sometimes doctored, sometimes invented writings of historical figures, we see the tragically short life of Thomas Darwin, the last of eleven children born to Charles Darwin, and a young scientist in his own right, whose novel application of evolutionary theory centres on knives and forks and spoons. Although decisively a work of fiction, The Evolution of Inanimate Objects invites sustained uncertainty as to whether Thomas Darwin is a character of pure invention or simply a heretofore little known figure, one reclaimed from the dusty registers of the London Asylum by the diligent research of Karlinsky: scholar, historian, and first-rank provocateur.
Errata to the Insomniac edition
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Praise
“An incredible work of the imagination. A revolutionary novel.”
Lee Henderson, author of The Man Game and The Broken Record Technique.
Karlinsky’s retelling of Darwinian family history is ingeniously wry and original. Prepare to be moved, amused and duped when you enter this quasi Victorian World.”
Essie Fox, Author of The Somnambulist.
“Just when you think there’s nothing new to be done with the novel, along comes a book that pushes the form in a fresh direction. Harry Karlinsky’s extraordinary book slyly and playfully blurs the boundaries between fact and fiction, asking where one begins and the other ends. The Evolution of Inanimate Objects is the work of a genuinely original imagination, a complete pleasure and like no other book you have ever read.”
John Harding, author of Florence & Giles
“The Evolution of Inanimate Objects invites us to surrender, for a few hours, the distinction between biography and fiction, reason and delusion, the organic and the contrived–and what sly fun ensues!”
Joan Thomas, author of Curiosity and Reading by Lightning
“Harry Karlinsky has produced an extraordinary artifact, a novel disguised as closely researched history, so carefully constructed and convincingly made that we believe in the sad, amusing, story as if it were fact. The book is wonderfully imagined; it is a romp, a mine of information, and a refined pleasure.”
Dr. Vivian M. Rakoff, Professor Emeritus, Dept of Psychiatry, University of Toronto
“This fascinating historical narrative succeeds not only in creating a convincing nineteenth century British-Canadian psychiatric milieu peopled by engaging characters, but also in delivering incisive comment — often satirical — on important themes and issues.”
Dr. Paul Potter, History of Medicine, University of Western Ontario
“A radical novel that, among other things, vividly recreates Dr. R.M. Bucke, one of Canadian history’s true eccentrics.”
George Fetherling, author and editor of more than 50 books, including Walt Whitman’s Secret
“I was completely taken by the story. It is a compelling read that takes the reader into another historical dimension, and suspends belief. The unlikely story of the evolution of cutlery even becomes plausible. In brief, it is a good and captivating read, solidly set within an historical context of great interest.”
Dr. Keith Benson, an historian of biology and past Principal
of Green College at University of British Columbia
Reviews
July 6, 2013
The Academics weigh in!
May 5, 2013
March 30, 2013
Evolution of Inanimate Objects now available as an Audible Audio edition.
October 14, 2012 – More British Blog Reviews!
- Words of Mercury
- Jonathan Pincock
- The Tatooed Book
- Page Plucker
- The Virtual Victorian
- Not Designed to Juggle
- Musings from the sofa
October 12, 2012
Congratulations to
- John Coates, ‘The Hour Between Dog and Wolf’
- Nick Coleman, ‘The Train in the Night’
- Mohammed Hanif, ‘Our Lady of Alice Bhatti’
- Peter James, ‘Perfect People’
- Rose Tremain, ‘Merivel: A Man of his Time’
- Thomas Wright, ‘Circulation’ (WINNER!)
for making the Wellcome Trust shortlist! See Press Release
September 4, 2012
Flattered to be longlisted for the Wellcome Trust Book Prize!
Complete list of nominees.
June 8, 2012 – Trailer for Evolution of Inanimate Objects
Thanks to Sam Kay and KOVE productions for this trailer for Evolution of Inanimate Objects
March 12, 2012 – The British are Blogging!
See www.amazon.co.uk/product-reviews/B005Z4QUIM
January 28, 2012 – Hardcover UK edition of Evolution is just out!
From the Scotsman – “This may be a bagatelle of a novel, but it is one with so much charm and erudition it is more memorable than any door-stopping wodge of prose presenting itself as a diagnosis of the state of the nation.”
Full review
January 1, 2012 – New British Reviews!
“Karlinsky’s retelling of Darwinian family history is ingeniously wry and original. Prepare to be moved, amused and duped when you enter this quasi Victorian World.”
Essie Fox, Author of The Somnambulist.
“Just when you think there’s nothing new to be done with the novel, along comes a book that pushes the form in a fresh direction. Harry Karlinsky’s extraordinary book slyly and playfully blurs the boundaries between fact and fiction, asking where one begins and the other ends.The Evolution of Inanimate Objects is the work of a genuinely original imagination, a complete pleasure and like no other book you have ever read.”
John Harding, author of Florence & Giles
August 18, 2011 – Evolution of Inanimate Objects reviewed in July/Aug 2011 issue of the Literary Review of Canada – “a compelling tale … entertaining … a great read”
Full review
Evolution of Inanimate Objects has also been lauded as a “jeu d’esprit” (Globe and Mail) and as a “delightfully imaginative book” (Historical Novels Review), praised for its “brilliant conception and well thought out execution” (Broken Pencil); and as “Poignant. Erudite. Understated. It is a first novel signaling the arrival of a serious and inventive new writer on the Canadian scene” (The Vancouver Sun).
All previous reviews
August 1, 2011 – Evolution of Inanimate Objects is longlisted for the 2011 Novel Relit Award
Complete list
July 24, 2011 – Carolyn Swayze of the Carolyn Swayze Literary Agency has sold world English-language rights (excluding Canada) to The Evolution of Inanimate Objects and my forthcoming novel, the tentatively titled The Stonehenge Solution, to HarperCollins UK imprint The Friday Project. The books will be published in summer 2012 and 2013, respectively.