Peter Godfrey-Smith

Other Minds: The Octopus, the Sea, and the Deep Origins 

of Consciousness

 

This creative nonfiction book is simultaneously a meditation on consciousness and a love letter to octopuses. Based on a unique fusion of philosophy, natural history, marine biology, and personal experience, Godfrey-Smith delves into the nature of consciousness, outlines how species on our planet evolved, and explains how the octopus—a remote relative of humans on the tree of life—is similarly intelligent.