sentences:  Edwin Barber—who was then the editorial director for W. W. Norton & Company— encouraged Gould to produce a book.He soon commissioned Gould to write "The Mismeasure of Man", but it was not until three years later, when Gould accumulated 33 columns, that it occurred to either of them that the "Natural History" columns should be published in a single volume.The collection of essays, written between 1973–1977, became a best-seller and propelled Gould to national prominence.