This book describes the race to sequence human genome. Main competitors are private sector (represented by Venter) and government funded consortium. The writer spent some time in the headquarters of the Venter's institute, and had a chance to witness both the actual lab work, and meetings and interactions of the key players. The book contains sufficient technical details, but can be read by non-scientists. Furthermore, this is one of the few books that shows what happens in the 'backstage' and how contemporary science works. For me, as a scientist, next to the actual research process, it was very interesting to see how key players interacted. The book is written in a way, that once you start reading, it is difficult to stop.