The book received many positive reviews in the literary and popular press, including many written by scientists, but the reviews in scientific journals were, for the most part, highly critical. Literary reviews praised the book for opposing racism, the concept of general intelligence, and biological determinism. Reviews in scientific journals accused Gould of historical inaccuracy, unclear reasoning, and political bias. "The Mismeasure of Man" won the National Book Critics Circle award. Gould’s findings about how 19th-century researcher Samuel George Morton measured skull volumes came under criticism, and even Gould’s defenders found reasons to criticize his work on this topic.