“Wolf has written a definitive anthropological study of several social and scientific controversies. His work is based on more than two decades of research.”—Choice

“The most voluminous and compelling findings yet on the foundations of human incest avoidance. . . . It is destined to be of enduring importance, not only for anthropology, but for the social sciences as a whole.”—Journal of Anthropological Research

“A fine, and at times exquisite, causal analysis that has always been rare in anthropology.”—Journal of the History of Sexuality