Crick

A Mind in Motion - from DNA to the Brain

By: Matthew Cobb

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Hardcover | 6 November 2025

At a Glance

Hardcover
608 Pages

Dimensions(cm)
23.8 x 15.4 x 5.1

Hardcover

RRP $65.00

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The first major biography of Francis Crick, by the Baillie-Gifford shortlisted author of The Idea of the Brain.

'Cobb is a rare jewel' - Adam Rutherford

Crick was a restless, relentless thinker, as fascinated by Beat poetry and psychedelics as the genetic meaning of life and the inner workings of the brain. Yet for all his drive, he was galvanised by collaboration: with Jim Watson on DNA, with artists in Cambridge and California, and with his wife Odile, who drew the figure of the double helix that illuminated his most famous discovery. It was his debates and conflicts with these collaborators that powered a mind in motion.

Meticulously researched and shot through with insight and electrifying detail, Matthew Cobb reveals the man who changed our view of life forever. Crick is the first major biography of one of the twentieth century's most exciting minds.

About the Author

Matthew Cobb is Professor of Zoology at the University of Manchester. The presenter of the BBC radio series Genetic Dreams, Genetic Nightmares, his previous books include The Idea of the Brain: A History, which was shortlisted for the Baillie Gifford, and The Genetic Age, a Sunday Times Book of the Year.

Industry Reviews

Praise for The Genetic Age:
Fascinating, occasionally chilling and very readable' - Rhys Blakely, The Times
'An excellent primer for anyone seeking a well-informed discussion of the moral implications of this enduringly controversial science' - Economist
'Detailed and deeply researched ... striking ... complex' - Henry Marsh, New Statesman
'Disturbing and readable' - New Scientist
'[A] deeply researched and often deeply troubling history of gene science ... [in search of] decency and honor in a morally complex field' - New York Times

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