The Intimate Animal: The Science of Sex, Fidelity, and Why We Die for Love

The eye-opening debut study from evolutionary biologist Garcia tackles the contradictions at the heart of human relationships. Humans evolved to form pair bonds, he explains, an adaptation that ensures the pooling of resources and cooperation needed to survive and raise infants. The instinct to form close bonds creates a strong biological imperative to seek out love and emotional intimacy as its basis. But that instinct, the author writes, clashes with an opposing drive for sexual exploration, which may be rooted in the novelty-seeking, risk-taking genes that propelled humans to leave Africa and migrate around the globe. Garcia uses the tension between these two drives—for intimacy and for sexual novelty—to explore in fascinating detail a host of issues, including why people cheat (and why relationships can recover after infidelity), why it’s so hard to get over exes (breakups constitute a “serious threat to our physical and mental health”), and how couples can balance competing desires for love and novelty to build successful relationships. Along the way, Garcia weaves together anecdotes and scientific research (including some intriguing examples from the natural world, like monogamous prairie voles and sensation-seeking bluebirds) to delve into the complexities of what makes relationships work. Readers will be riveted. (Feb.)