Vanished

Highly readable and academically rigorous… traces the entanglements of race, empire and colonialism to better understand extinction – Maya Goodfellow * Guardian *Dark, persuasive, detailed, poetic… exquisitely attuned to the (often overlooked) historical and political contexts in which scientific ideas thrive – Anjana Ahuja * Financial Times *Qureshi’s definitive account demonstrates that histories of extinction, empire, race and genocide must be written and read together… Acknowledging extinction’s unnatural history may help us choose otherwise – Helen Anne Curry * TLS *Groundbreaking – Andrew Robinson * Nature *Qureshi’s rigorous, fascinating narrative traces how understanding the regrettable impermanence of species such as the dodo and the Tasmanian tiger was reformulated, by dull minds in powerful places, into a justification for exploitation * Telegraph Greatest Books of 2025 *A poignant, compassionate exploration of the tangled and unnatural histories of extinction and empire. Professor Qureshi skilfully interweaves fascinating original research and compelling storytelling to show us that extinction is both an evolutionary process and a human act: one which illuminates our past, and may alter our future * Forbes *Wide-ranging... Qureshi deftly considers how narratives of extinction have shaped how we see the world—and each other – A Smithsonian Magazine Best Science Book 2025Vital… a breathtaking account of extinction * New Indian Express *Both authoritative and readable, panoramic in its scope and incisive in its argument… a truly original, challenging and consequential book – Gary YoungeIlluminating and disturbing in equal measure. A poignant and powerfully written account of the intellectual revolution that birthed the concept of extinction; a concept deployed to both justify and animate colonialism and even extermination. A vital and important book – David Olusoga

Sadiah Qureshi is a writer and historian of science, race and empire. Currently a Chair of Modern British History at the University of Manchester, she has written for the London Review of Books, Times Literary Supplement and New Statesman. She cannot bear the thought of living in a world without trees or tigers.

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