Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith (review)

It's common knowledge that Charles Darwin's publication of On the Origin of Species unleashed a tidal wave of controversy; less frequently discussed, at least in children's literature, is how this tension played out in Darwin's own household with his wife, Emma, a woman of faith. Heiligman crafts her biography around this pivotal issue, which is never reduced to a simple Charles vs. Emma showdown, but instead is a delicate and ongoing conversation between two people deeply and unflaggingly in love. Heiligman begins with Charles's vacillating views on matrimony upon his return from the famous Beagle voyage and his subsequent decision to marry his first cousin, Emma Wedgwood. It was a happy choice for both, with Emma finding in Charles a devoted husband and father, and Charles finding in Emma an intelligent companion, much-needed nurse, a faithful lover, a support in family crises, and, most importantly for his work, a supportive yet devout critic. Although Emma was ever anxious about the welfare of her increasingly agnostic husband's soul, she was able to see the brilliance and importance of his theory and to reconcile in her own mind the mechanism of evolution and the hand of a divine Creator. Charles, on the other hand, could anticipate objections from Scripture adherents and sought his wife's critique of his early drafts, rightly assuming that if he could persuade Emma on a particular point, he stood a better chance of persuading others as well. Heiligman works in the background of their respective premarital lives and covers all the requisite information about Charles Darwin's career, but the domestic lens through which she studies the story both humanizes the main players and tacitly suggests to thoughtful readers how the theory of evolution is still variously embraced, reconciled, or resisted today by those of primarily religious or scientific dispositions. A family lineage chart, bibliography, and index are included, and all quotations are cited. Come for the science, stay for the love story.