Pop. Books on Evolution and Genetics

[neutrino]

Probably on the list of top 5 interesting (science) topics, of which I know next to nothing. Okay, natural selection, survival of the fittest and all that, but I'd like to have a better understanding, at least at the level of a layman.

My last biology class was in school, about 7 years ago, and we were learning about diseases and stuff. I bought a couple of books a year or so ago on a whim: Watson's DNA and Dawkins' The Ancestor's Tale. I found the latter's synopsis quite interesting, but after reading it for a while, I realized that I'd understand it better if I read a primer on Evolution first.

So I'm looking for recommendations. I hear that The Selfish Gene is a "controversial" book. For a first read, I'd prefer a book that presents less of the author's own views/hypotheses, and more of what is already known and tested. Same goes for Genetics, too.

Thanks.

 

[^_^physicist]

If you just want to learn the basics and roots of evolution, you can always pop on over to your local bookstore and pick up Darwin's Origin of Species.

Just be warned, it is quite dull for a good majority of the book.

 

[Gokul43201]

Another Dawkins book, The Blind Watchmaker, I've heard, is a gentler introduction and very readable.