In 1978, Max Oldroyd, evolutionary biologist and author of a bestselling popular science book explaining evolution to the masses, embarks on a triumphant book-tour of the US - only to find himself humiliated, ridiculed and almost broken by a series of 'debates' in the Bible Belt staged by people trying to ban the teaching of evolution in schools. He returns to London a changed man, fired by a hatred of religion and all those who preach it. This is to cast a shadow over his life, and, over the years that follow, will tear his marriage apart, damage his career, shape the lives of his children, and finally destroy his relationship with his stepdaughter Cass - the girl who, above all, needed to believe in the power of nurture over nature. Now, as he approaches the end of his life, Max is determined to set down his memoirs, to sift facts from opinion, and use his experiences to 'prove' certain scientific truths. But Max is about to learn that the facts most difficult to reach are those we have to learn about ourselves.