Steve Brusatte Traces 150 Million Years of Bird Evolution in New 448-Page Book

3 articles · Updated · Financial Times · Jun 5

Steve Brusatte’s new book, "The Story of Birds," argues that modern birds are living dinosaurs, tracing their lineage through 150 million years of evolution from small feathered coelurosaurs.
Archaeopteryx — described as the oldest true bird at about 150 million years old — anchors his account of how feathers, smaller bodies and rising metabolism helped shape flight and warm-bloodedness.
Brusatte links those traits to a larger puzzle: why birds survived the extinction that killed other dinosaurs, then went on to dominate the skies and diversify into forms from ostriches to penguins.
The review praises the University of Edinburgh palaeontologist’s ability to synthesize vast evidence, including genetics and fossils, but says the book’s simplified style can at times read like a children’s book.
Even with those reservations, the assessment is strongly positive, presenting the book as an accessible case for the now well-supported view that birds are among evolution’s most remarkable survivors.