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Holiday reading with PLOS Genetics

Do you have a reading list this holiday season? Unsure what to buy for your lab’s Secret Santa this year? Here at PLOS Genetics our usual business is strictly scientific, but we’re also interested in how science and genetics meet a wider community – and one of those ways is through literature (not just of the research variety!).

To celebrate our broader horizons as scientists and science enthusiasts (as well as our simple desire for a good book), PLOS Genetics has just launched Deep Reads, a new article series inspired by our interviews editor, Jane Gitschier, who has run a genetics-themed book club for the past 10 years or so. Jane has written the first instalment, Recommendations from Jane Gitschier’s Bookshelf, but hopes that other members of the genetics community will subsequently take up the pen.

Image credit: State Library of New South Wales (Flickr)
Image credit: State Library of New South Wales (Flickr)

The article is a catalogue of her favourite books related to science, stepping off from genetics but going beyond into other scientific domains. Many of our readers will already know and love Jane’s collection of interviews, in which she talks to influential people from the world of genetics about their scientific discoveries and life stories. In a similar conversational style, Jane takes us through a journey of memoirs and biographies, and delves into a variety of non-fiction and fiction. We’re delighted that she has provided the initiative to kick-off the new Deep Reads series, and we look forward to reading others’ top literary picks in future instalments.

As a community journal, PLOS Genetics is run by and for scientists, whether full-time researchers, students, or those with an interest in genetics and genomics. With the launch of Deep Reads, we hope to learn about the books that you’ve read and your views on science in literature. Have they affected your perception of science?  How do you think reading about the lives of scientists in the past has influenced the lives of researchers today? Perhaps there was a book that spurred you on to investigate a certain aspect of genetics, or motivated you as you began your career in science. If you’re looking for some holiday reading or deciding on gifts for your family and friends, we hope that this list of books also provides some inspiration as the holiday season approaches!

If you have read any of the books recommended by Jane or have some of your own “Deep Reads” to recommend, we invite you to tell us by leaving a comment here, tweeting @PLOSGenetics (#PLOSGenReads), or emailing us at plosgenetics@plos.org.

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