Understanding Evolution is a fairly accessible book to read for a science layman. What I liked was the philosophical discussions on the topic of evolution and development. I expected more on the political repercussions of the resistance to evolution. I also personally would have liked a longer, deeper dive into the science of evolution itself. As a short read it is good, but I believe with more room to work, this book could have been excellent.

Has some merit but there are better books out there

I was neutral about this book. On the plus side, the author uses great analogies to make points. Later on in the book, the discussion of the philosophy of science is excellent. However, the middle wasn't that good. The discussion of evolution seemed to be directed at people who would already understand evolution and there was too much information on how people learn. There are better books out there on the subject, including “Simply Darwin” by Michael Ruse and “On Faith and Science” by Edward J. Larson and Michael Ruse.
Disclosure: I received an advance reader copy of this book via Netgalley for review purposes.