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A Short History Of Nearly Everything

by Bill Bryson

4.13 · rating details · 35,348 ratings · 3,510 reviews

Bill Bryson is one of the world’s most beloved and bestselling writers. In A Short History of Nearly Everything, he takes his ultimate journey–into the most intriguing and consequential questions that science seeks to answer. It’s a dazzling quest, the intellectual odyssey of a lifetime, as this insatiably curious writer attempts to understand everything that has transpi...more

Hardcover, 544 pages

Published May 6th 2003 by Broadway (first published 2003)

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Sep 06, 2007

Sarah rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: non-fiction, popular-science

Bryson's dead serious: this is a history of pretty much everything there is -- the planet, the solar system, the universe -- as well as a history of how we've come to know as much as we do. A book on science written by a non-scientist, this a perfect bridge between the humanities and the natural sciences. A course in the history of science should be mandatory for every teenager, and this should be the textbook.

Yes, it's a big, chunky book. No, it can't be trimmed down any further: wh...moreBryson's dead serious: this is a history of pretty much everything there is -- the planet, the solar system, the universe -- as well as a history of how we've come to know as much as we do. A book on science written by a non-scientist, this a perfect bridge between the humanities and the natural sciences. A course in the history of science should be mandatory for every teenager, and this should be the textbook.

Yes, it's a big, chunky book. No, it can't be trimmed down any further: when you're addressing cosmology, earth science, ecology and zoology, with healthy doses of chemistry and physics, plus the historical development of each, you're going to end up with a doorstop of a text, no matter how smoothly written. The wonder of Bryson's writing is that the reader doesn't get lost in these sweeping surveys. When name-dropping, Bryson always gives a short description of the person in question; if mentioned earlier in the book, he drops in a quick reminder to the reader. This is fabulously effective at giving the names some context, not to mention a little personality.

And indeed, isn't that what science education needs most: more humanity and less intimidation? Those science-phobes out there who freely admit their near-complete ignorance of the subject should do themselves a favor and buy a copy of this book. No, don't get it from your library. There's so much here you'll want to have a copy on hand to refer to later.

To those nerds in the audience -- myself included -- don't think your degrees mean you can pass this one over. As hyper-specialized as science has become, it's refreshing as hell to step back and take a look at things with new eyes. While there's not a lot here I haven't encountered before, there's a lot of information about how our current theories were developed that I didn't know.

(Also? It's heartening to read about the social ineptitude, blind spots, and how utterly incompetent many of these scientist were in other aspects of life. Makes me feel better about never finishing that PhD -- at least I have a life.)

Thorough, humorous, engaging, and educational: what's not to like?
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Oct 12, 2007

Foster rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: history, philosophy-and-religion

This is one of the most enjoyable books I have ever read. There, I said it

Bryson's book combines the best qualities of science writers like Attenborough, Diamond, Durrell, and Wilson; presenting the information with the wit he is most known for. It is an amazing achievement to condense the entire base of human scientific knowledge into 478 pages, but Bryson has done it. I completely agree with Tim Flannery, who writes on the jacket that "all schools would be better places if it ...moreThis is one of the most enjoyable books I have ever read. There, I said it

Bryson's book combines the best qualities of science writers like Attenborough, Diamond, Durrell, and Wilson; presenting the information with the wit he is most known for. It is an amazing achievement to condense the entire base of human scientific knowledge into 478 pages, but Bryson has done it. I completely agree with Tim Flannery, who writes on the jacket that "all schools would be better places if it were the core science reader on the curriculum." I certainly would have gained much if I had read it when I was 15.

This is one of the few books that has truly challenged what I had previously held to be conventional wisdom (at least in my own mind). Two main changes have come about:

1. I had always been jealous of the "true" zoologists, such as Audubon and Darwin, who were around when the world was as yet unexplored, and discovering a species was as simple as being the first to walk into a patch of forest. I left science because the idea of being tied to a sterile lab held no interest for me. However, after reading Bryson's vignettes of early scientific/zoological exploration (much of which was both comic and tragic), I realize that those days weren't quite as idyllic as I had imagined.
2. Bryson does a "good" job of scaring the hell out of you by showing just how precarious our daily existence really is. I probably shouldn't say this, but it puts such problems as global climate change into context when you read how an eruption of the supervolcano beneath Yellowstone National Park would wipe out most of the life on earth in a painfully slow manner; especially when Bryson describes how this eruption is overdue by 30, 000 years by historical average.

Combined with those two new impressions, I am left with the following conclusions, and a slightly rearranged outlook on life.

First off, it is clear that science benefits from a large degree of serendipity. We as a species/civilization have been lucky to have some truly great minds working on deciphering the way our world works. Some of these are household names [Newton, Halley, Einstein], some are not [Henry Cavendish, Rosalind Franklin]. However, as with everything that us humans put our hands on, this endeavor wasn't perfect. Egregious mistakes, pathological lying, childlike rivalries and tantrums - they all occurred. On balance, whether they helped or hurt the effort isn't clear. But what is clear is that our present level of understanding was by no means assured.

Secondly, the fact that life is so tenuous makes one a little more philosophical. Since I've finished the chapter about Yellowstone and similar catastrophic threats, I find myself asking "what if today is the day?" It can be rough when you get on the bus at the end of a particularly annoying workday, when the disagreements were petty and you didn't get much done, and think "is that what I did on the last day of my life?"

Thankfully, that attitude only lasted for a short while, until I was able to reframe it in a more productive way. Now I tell myself not to worry about big problems that might happen in the future, because I know that we will be hit by a meteor, we will experience a supervolcano eruption. It's best to just enjoy every day, doing what you really know to be what it is that you want to do. Does that mean that I won't recycle anymore, that I will leave the tap running while I brush my teeth? No! Because doing things to reduce my impact makes me feel good, that I'm thinking about society's needs - not just my own. It's what I want to do.

So, in an incredible way (that even Bill Bryson probably didn't predict) this book can really change your life.(less)

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Jan 24, 2010

Paul rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: misc

Okay, so here's my Bill Bryson story. I was in The Gladstone, a public house not too far from this very keyboard, with my friend Yvonne, who will remain nameless. We had been imbibing more than freely. A guy approached our table and asked me in a sly surreptitious manner if I was him. Him who? Was I Bill Bryson? Now it is true that I bear a very slight resemblance

http://www.speakingvolumes.co.uk/images/...

but you could also say that about Benny from Abba

http://www.abbaexpress.co.uk/benny/benny......moreOkay, so here's my Bill Bryson story. I was in The Gladstone, a public house not too far from this very keyboard, with my friend Yvonne, who will remain nameless. We had been imbibing more than freely. A guy approached our table and asked me in a sly surreptitious manner if I was him. Him who? Was I Bill Bryson? Now it is true that I bear a very slight resemblance

http://www.speakingvolumes.co.uk/images/...

but you could also say that about Benny from Abba

http://www.abbaexpress.co.uk/benny/benny...

and a zillion other white guys with beards and gently rounded fizzogs. Anyway, without missing a beat I said yes, I was him. So the guy immediately asked me if I'd sign two of his books, and before I could say "Come on mate, I'm not actually American, can't you bleedin well tell?" he had zapped out of the pub. Only to zap straight back with two hardbacks of Bill's deathless works. What could I do? He opened them up reverentially and told me one would be for him and one for his mother. Friends, I signed them - "Best wishes, your friend Bill Bryson". He was so grateful, so very very pleased. We drank up and got the hell out of there. I look back on this disgraceful incident and shudder. That's the last time I'm impersonating a famous author.

Short note on the book in question:

There was no way our Bill could write a gently humorous book about the history of all of science without sounding like a fairly smirky know-it-all, so that's what he does sound like, which can be just a trifle wearing. LOTS of good info in here, but it's like being forced to live on Indian takeaways and nothing else, great for a while and then GET ME A SANDWICH! Or like being stuck on a long airplane ride with a very garrolous and opinionated fellow who thinks he is the very model of the modern travelling companion, regaling you with insightful and humourous anecdotes by the bucketful while you're wondering if it would be so bad if you faked a heart attack and you could whisper to the flight attendant "I'm okay really but GET ME AWAY FROM THIS GUY!"(less)

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Sep 15, 2007

Martine rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: science dummies with a sense of humour.

Shelves: popular-science, non-fiction

I know virtually nothing about science, so it was with some trepidation that I began reading this introduction to life, the universe and everything, which deals with questions such as "How did the universe originate?" and "How much does planet Earth weigh?". I ended up enjoying the hell out of it, as Bryson's writing style is so witty and accessible that it frequently made me laugh out loud. He has a knack of telling you not just about major developments in the history of the...more

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Jul 29, 2007

Bookshop rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: non-fiction

Bill Bryson is one of my favourite travel writers. He is immensely funny. He's an American married to a Brit and lives in the UK now. That has an influcence is his writing: he has taken up the dry, self-depreciating humour of the Brits while, at times, remained blunt and straight-forward, as Americans do.

This is his first attempt to write something other than travelling. The book is about science, general science for general public. It covers everything from astronomy to zoology, fro...more

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Dec 10, 2009

Sandybanks rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: 2009, general-non-fiction

What I learned from this book (in no particular order)

1. Phosphor was accidentally discovered when a scientist tried to turn human urine into gold. The similarity in color seemed to have been a factor in his conviction that this was possible. Like, duh. I’m no scientist, but shouldn’t it be obvious enough?

2. “In the early 1800s there arose in England a fashion for inhaling nitrous oxide, or laughing gas, after it was discovered that its use ‘ was attended by a highly ple...moreWhat I learned from this book (in no particular order)

1. Phosphor was accidentally discovered when a scientist tried to turn human urine into gold. The similarity in color seemed to have been a factor in his conviction that this was possible. Like, duh. I’m no scientist, but shouldn’t it be obvious enough?

2. “In the early 1800s there arose in England a fashion for inhaling nitrous oxide, or laughing gas, after it was discovered that its use ‘ was attended by a highly pleasurable thrilling’. For the next half- century it would be the drug of choice for young people.” How groovy is that?

3. If you are an average-sized adult, you contain within you enough potential energy to explode with the force of THIRTY very large hydrogen bombs. Assuming, that is, that you KNOW how to actually do this and REALLY want to make a point. Talk about a monstrous temper tantrum.

4. We are each so atomically numerous and so vigorously recycled at death that some of our atoms probably belonged to Shakespeare, Genghis Khan or any other historical figure. But no, you are NOT Elvis or Marilyn Monroe; it takes quite a while for their atoms to get recycled.

5. When you sit in a chair, you are not actually sitting there, but levitating above it at the height of a hundredth millions of a centimeter. Throw away those yoga mats, your ARE already levitating without knowing it.

6. The atomic particles that we now know as Quarks were almost named Partons, after you know who. The thought that we are being bombarded by billions of partons at any given moment is VERY unsettling.Thankfully, that scientist guy changed his mind.

7. The indigestible parts of a giant squid, in particular their beaks, accumulate in sperm whales’ stomachs into ambergris, which is used as a fixative in perfumes. The next time you spray on Chanel No. 5, you’re dowsing yourself in the distillate of unseen sea monsters. * Note to self: must throw away sea monster perfume collection*

8. The ‘maidenhair’ in maidenhair moss does NOT refer to the hair on the maiden’s head.

BUT SERIOUSLY,

this is a fascinating, accessible book on the history of the natural sciences, covering topics as diverse as cosmology, quantum physics, paleontology, chemistry and other subjects that have bedeviled a science dolt like me through high school and beyond. Yes, it’s true, I failed BOTH chemistry and physics in high school. And that’s why I’m an attorney, by the way.

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Oct 28, 2007

Grumpus rated it

Recommends it for: anyone wanting to know how it all began

Shelves: audiobook

This is based upon the audio download from [www.audible.com].

Narrated by: Richard Matthews

Don’t let the 3 star rating mislead you. This was an awesome book and I’m certain others will think more highly of it. It is a great introduction for those not into the biography of the universe and the history of science. However, if you watch the Science Channel, History Channel, PBS, etc., then you’ll already know much of what’s covered. It is the true "Once upon a time....more

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Apr 28, 2009

Jamie rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: absolutely anyone

Good grief if I had even one textbook half this enthralling in high school, who knows what kind of impassioned -ologist I would have grown up to be. I hereby petition Bryson to re-write all curriculum on behalf of the history of the world.

I would run across things half-remembered from midterms and study guides and think, "You mean this is what they were talking about? You have got to be kidding me." It's never condescending, always a joy.

In fact, what I loved...more

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Jul 11, 2008

John rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: The world...

Shelves: fact, humour, multiple-re-reads

Bill Bryson is excellent... so witty and funny. His writing makes me laugh out loud and cry with laughter - sometimes I can barely breathe.

His research is also wonderful and the facts, presented in this book, are not only interesting, but also startling, fascinating and stimulating. The whole book is wonderfully assembled and a delight to read, re-read and simply to dip into.

Indeed... I am re-reading again....

It is, however, a severe worry to me that many of t...more

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Mar 15, 2008

Megan rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: non-fiction

It says I finished this is March 2008 but it is important to note I started it last summer. It took a long time. Interestingly though that doesn't mean it was bad, it is just long and caters easily to frequently month long stops. It is an easy book to pick up and start anywhere. All in all I really liked it, it is mostly a nicely written history of science and some sciences have more interesting history's than others but they all have their eccentrics.
Bill Byrson is always entertaining an...more

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Sep 15, 2010

Dave Gaston rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: nonfiction, discovery, ecology-earth-science, history, invention, science

First off, this is a huge departure from Bryson's breezy, excellent travel logs. Secondly, this book should be read with some frequency. It is so densely packed with valuable insight, and sound bites of discovery that you could not possibly absorb it all with one pass. This is my second time reading it and I plan on doing it again next year. The organizational structure is a wonderful series of loosely connected cameos covering several essential and enlightened discoveries of man. As an added bo...more

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May 07, 2010

Ben Babcock rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: Everyone

Shelves: science, non-fiction, own, history, deliciously-quotable, favourites, technology, 2010-read, 2010-best10

Second reading review, May 7, 2010.

I cannot recommend this book enough. No word of hyperbole: this is a book that everyone should read. Bill Bryson takes the span of human existence and produced a popular history of science that's both accurate and moving. A Short History of Nearly Everything is a celebration of science, but it also evokes the sense of wonder about the universe that science makes available to us. And, almost inevitably, it underscores how much we still have yet t...more

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Jul 27, 2009

Marian rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: quit

You're probably looking at this book thinking it is so far off my normal path. And it is. I'm chalking it up to penance for doing so poorly in every science class I ever attended.

I truly gave this book an honest effort, but at 2/3 of the way through I cannot continue. In all honesty, the book probably deserves a 5-star rating given there is no fault to be found with either the research or the writing. The problem here is this reader has a 1-star IQ. So I split the difference with 3 ...more

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Apr 03, 2008

David rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: pop-science, nonfiction

There are, broadly speaking, two classes of interesting popular science books. The first class is written by scientists who want to reach a popular audience; the second class is written by journalists who find a particular scientific topic interesting. Good examples of the first class include the writing of Henri Poincare (The Value of Science is a recent printing of three of his books in one volume -- still relevant over a century after they appeared, and it made me wish I could read the orig...more

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Jan 10, 2008

Sammy rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: anyone that enjoys earth science, living on earth, or understanding the planet on which they live.

I really love this book.
I really think you should read it.

I must admit that I'm somewhat biased; I was already a fan of Bryson's work, and I am generally interested in the sciences. Perhaps as a function of that, I believe this to be my favorite of his books (so far).

It's hard for me not to talk to people about the things I read in this book. I mean, it's all so completely interesting to me that I think it should be discussed at all times, in addition to the fac...moreI really love this book.
I really think you should read it.

I must admit that I'm somewhat biased; I was already a fan of Bryson's work, and I am generally interested in the sciences. Perhaps as a function of that, I believe this to be my favorite of his books (so far).

It's hard for me not to talk to people about the things I read in this book. I mean, it's all so completely interesting to me that I think it should be discussed at all times, in addition to the fact that I don't think people realize a lot of the things discussed therein.

I read excerpts to my sixth graders, most of whom sigh in response to my enthusiasm, when related topics arise in class, particularly Science and Social Studies (Pompeii is always good for a volcano digression), but I really can't imagine any grown individual of reasonable intellect and range of interests to find this book lacking.

And yes, I'm willing to contend that some aspects may be overlooked, or others perhaps exaggerated, but come on: Bryson never claimed to be a scientist. Science is imperfect itself, so who can really harp on someone who's just trying to put a little spunk into what many consider unreasonably drab or unappealing material? If anything, any hiccups in accuracy catalyze debate and arguments, which, inevitably, elevates scientific discourse. Even our failures lead to progress.

I consider this book to have been somewhat eye-opening with respect to the cursory science education many of us get (save but for scientists, and those pursuing that area of Academia). I mean, take it from me, one who teaches sixth grade science: the curriculum isn't all that exciting at times, and if you only paid attention as much as most of my students, this book goes a lot farther in teaching you where exactly we live, and how unlikely it is that you're reading this right now.

(Those probabilistic assertions being made, I might point you to John Allen Paulos's "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" for a similarly eye-opening treatment of mathematics. At the very least, you'll get to wow your friends by calculating the rate at which human hair grows in miles per hour.)(less)

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Nov 07, 2007

Jason rated it

I found the title of this work somewhat misleading. Perhaps it should have been called A History of the Natural Sciences or maybe even A Short History of Natural History. Nevertheless, science books often do not sell well so I am sure the idea in titling the book A Short History of Nearly Everything was to attract more of a broad readership. The book itself isn't awful but certainly reads like a survey work. In other words, you won't learn complicated how-tos of scientific methodology but you wi...more

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Feb 24, 2009

Dan rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: Nearly everyone

This book is amazing tto me. As a social studies teacher it may seem as a strange choise but I bought this book after a recomendation (yes, Magnus, it was Robert).

He hadn't finished it but said that it was funny to digest in small packages. He was wrong. I'm trying to find time to read this one as much as I can. The book is truly in the genre of sience, but the good thing about it is that it does not only speak strange sience terms (to me) but it gives me the stories about the scien...more

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Jul 15, 2009

Punk rated it

Shelves: non-fiction, science, history

Non-Fiction. Bryson's travelogue of scientific discovery is heavy on trivia and light on science. This is a history more than a science book, which is right in the title, I know, but in the introduction, he says he set out to discover what scientists know, like how much the Earth weighs, and how they figured that out, but mostly what we get is who figured it out and when.

The science is watered down, but the stories of scientific achievement (backstabbing and all) make up for it, and...more

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Jun 08, 2007

Sarah rated it

· review of another edition

I have to say this is by far one of the best books I've ever read. Although I haven't finished I'm in love with this book.
My chemistry teacher gave me it to read a while back and it took me a while to get started on it, but after I did I couldn't put it down. You don't have to have a real passion for physics or biology or chemistry to appreciate the book as a whole. Although I find some chapters more intresting than others, the footnotes that Bryson includes definetly make the book as lig...more

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May 17, 2007

Abe Brennan rated it

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This book is what its title claims: a comprehensive—and often hilarious—look at the big moments in natural history, chemistry, biology, astronomy, etc. Bryson's breezy narrative style suits the project well, and his initial professed ignorance helps get the reader on board from the outset (no didacticism here—he’s a dummy like the rest of us (well, me, at any rate)). He may be prone to overdo the humor (or perhaps go too far in the cheese department), but the fact that he adopts a rather irrev...moreThis book is what its title claims: a comprehensive—and often hilarious—look at the big moments in natural history, chemistry, biology, astronomy, etc. Bryson's breezy narrative style suits the project well, and his initial professed ignorance helps get the reader on board from the outset (no didacticism here—he’s a dummy like the rest of us (well, me, at any rate)). He may be prone to overdo the humor (or perhaps go too far in the cheese department), but the fact that he adopts a rather irreverent tone with respect to these hallowed men and their theories, experiments, etc. makes for an enjoyable journey (the reader feels like a school kid making fun of the master behind his back). It is truly a marvel how, in merely a few sentences, Bryson sums up the lives of the most renowned in the history of all science, and how many of these summations have one’s jaw dropping at the levels of misfortune that befell some of these characters. While enjoyable, this book is, quite frankly, a doom-laden tome. Part of Bryson's success is his ability, via avuncular hardy har har, to impart these soul-searing scenarios of random chance and inevitable obliteration without sounding like a guy on the corner in a white robe with a Repent! The End is Nigh! sign in his hands. Bryson is more like, "Check out this marvelous, mind-blowing factoid about the universe's inception...oh, and hey, by the way, we're doomed." Bryson’s not a bully, but he’s covering a bludgeoning subject. We find ourselves cowed by geologic time: we're such a blip on the screen, a pebble on the celestial highway, that it's hard not to feel utterly inconsequential in the grand scheme. This is particularly true for those of us who harbor delusions of, if not grandeur, than leaving some sort of lasting impression on the world (even if it's merely negative). The random nature of evolution contributes to a feeling of fundamental ennui: the development of life—our species in particular—can be read as such a fluke that it produces a kind of "Jeez, I'm just lucky to be here" immobilizing humility. Ultimately, this book isn't about retention: it's a crash course in the origins and development of our natural world/cosmos. The endeavor in itself is ridiculous, which is one of the charming elements of Bryson's book: If it's hubris that prompts him to tackle this, then it's of a remarkably ingenuous, "hey, why not?" or "I'm just trying to help" variety. The material goes in and out of the reader’s consciousness, page by page, chapter by chapter, and one finds oneself enveloped in wonder and fear by turns. But the totality of the reading experience leaves a residual presence in the head of the reader: she may not know specifics, but she’s been given a glimpse of the known world from the perspective of EVERY discipline in the natural sciences—a remarkable accomplishment on Bryson's part.(less)

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Sep 04, 2007

Ms Sarah rated it

· review of another edition

Not everyone is a science geek. Bill knows that.

I am a science geek. Not that I took a lot of science courses, but it's a source of fascination for me. There was a lot of stuff I already knew -- if you've read A Brief History of Time the first two chapters are a wash -- but there was also a lot of stuff I didn't. It is miraculously accessible and funny, like all of Bryson's work.

This is a textbook on its face, but at its heart is the diary of a grown man coming home e...more

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Nov 19, 2008

Tamra rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: favorites, my-re-read-list, own-currently

I wanted to share a story about the Introduction. I was reading on the page that tells about him seeing the cut-out of the earth when he was a boy and just being fascinated by it: how did they know what was down there in the center of the earth, etc. I have the hefty illustrated edition, so it showed the cut out. My 7-year-old daughter walks in, looks at the picture and says, "Can they really take out part of the earth like that?" I told her no. "Can they dig down that far?"...more

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Apr 16, 2009

Jen rated it

· review of another edition

i feel like i've conquered something, finally finishing this book. it's like a tome of superlatives. it's like the title should be IN CAPS WITH EXCLAMATION POINTS !!! it's like if i'd had this book (and bill nye) in high school and college, i would have cared more (however, i still don't care about chemistry). if this book and my favorite book had a baby, my brain would spooge. bless you, bill bryson, for bringing it.

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Aug 18, 2010

Kirk Stiffler rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: library-browsing

Bryson certainly succeeds in producing a layman's version of a wealth of scientific knowledge, often bringing a dark humor remniscient of Catch 22 to the fold. The book drags a bit during the chapters on the micro scale of life and science: atoms, cells, particles, etc., but overall I found myself anticipating each coming chapter. Throughout the book I was waiting for Bryson to acknowledge what role human beings have in the intricate, universal system he lays out, and, in the last chapter, he ...more

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Nov 04, 2007

Elizabeth rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: worth-reading

I got into a conversation with someone at a conference about this book. It made me remember how much I enjoy his writing. As my fellow lunch conversationalist said, "Bill Bryson has a talent for finding the absurd about any situation and relating it in a way that is eminently funny and engaging." (And yes, the lunch conversationalist was a bit pompous.)

However, pomposity does not negate the fact that this is a great book. As the title suggests, it really is about almost...more

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Mar 30, 2008

Tony Cohen rated it

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There is just far too much in here to review in any sort of rational way. The book matches the title well: it is a short history of nearly anything, and as such, sinks its teeth truly into nothing. The best parts were all the random funny asides about the peculiar personality types of strange scientists, which is very amusing and reminiscent of his other works (the travel genre) from which he is more famous. In general, it is an enjoyable fluffy read, but sadly, not informative enough for those ...more

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Aug 17, 2007

Meghan rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: everyone

Everyone should read this book. There is so much information in this book and I believe everyone will get something different out of it. You will learn a lot about human beings need for knowledge while at the same time our some what automatic reaction to reject ideas that contradict our old way of thinking. It reminds us of how far we have come and how far we have yet to go,how little we really know about the universe and how we got here. That there is still so much mystery to it all. My fa...more

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Oct 01, 2008

Alison rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: Absolutely anyone

Recommended to Alison by: Melanie Aves

Thought this book was amazing. What an undertaking: to encompass the history of the universe in one single book. Yet he does it with incredible grace and credibility. His capacity for research, for organized thought, and for presenting complex information in an entertaining while still informative way is pretty incredible. The book became the basis for countless conversations while I was reading it -- it's full of information/facts/data that are great fodder for thought and chatter. This would b...more

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Aug 06, 2011

Marc Maitland added it · review of another edition

What a subject to attempt! I'm not quite sure what I expected when I started reading this, given the breadth of the title, but I was hoping for something witty and well-written, as I have come to expect from the pen of Mr. Bryson. I was not disappointed.

Such a broad subject, ranging in time and space from the very beginning (something almost impossible to imagine) with absolute nothingness (equally impossible to imagine), Mr. Bryson attempts to chart the course of our very beginnings right up ...moreWhat a subject to attempt! I'm not quite sure what I expected when I started reading this, given the breadth of the title, but I was hoping for something witty and well-written, as I have come to expect from the pen of Mr. Bryson. I was not disappointed.

Such a broad subject, ranging in time and space from the very beginning (something almost impossible to imagine) with absolute nothingness (equally impossible to imagine), Mr. Bryson attempts to chart the course of our very beginnings right up to the infinitessimal period during that long history when homo sapiens has risen to be the dominant force on planet Earth. It is impossible for a layman fully to understand the Darwinian processes by which a lifeless planet in an indescribably huge universe gave rise to life - life of any sort, let alone life as know it in the 21st Centrury - 21st Century A.D. that is. In broader terms, the year in which we are now living would have to be expressed in billions! (This was not always throught to be the case: pre-Darwinian thought had placed the Earth at a mere few hundred thousand years in age.)

Not one to get swept away by the bigger picture at the expense of the human scale of things, amongst the many charming character portraits of scientists who have been able to chart the history of the physical phenomena which we now take for granted, is the one, for example, of Newton gouging out his own eye by use of a bodkin "just to see what happened", and many other characterisations which could only result in loud chortles when being read. Equally amusing, the battles between scientists in the same field, petty squabbles, false attributations, red herrings, non sequiturs and countless otherups and downs of mistakes and marvels that show just what an interesting course of history has been charted.

I think that the most fundamental thought I am left with is this: just how miraculous it is that any one of us actually exists. With all of the imponderables - time, space, evolutionary changes, geological upheavals, climatic phenomena that make "global warming" look like a slight Summer breeze, genetic factors etc., and human frailty, aggressive predators and countless other factors such as the relatively small temperature band that accommodates human life, the most truly amazing fact of life is that any one of us exists at all!

A highly readable account which I cannot recommend too highly.(less)

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Aug 01, 2011

Anthony added it · review of another edition

Shelves: science

Not a bad book. Acceptably anthropocentric (acceptably in that it's anthropocentric to a normal level, but adds in reminders that, guess what, we're just another species).

Not boring, but, well ... I don't really know how to describe what I'm getting at. It felt like a book I should have just read occasionally instead of a book I just wanted to sit down to read straight through. Some people might call that a bathroom reader. I don't know. Since it was a library book, though, I didn't have the lux...more

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About Bill Bryson

Bill Bryson was born in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1951. He settled in England in 1977, and worked in journalism until he became a full time writer. He lived for many years with his English wife and four children in North Yorkshire. He and his family then moved to New Hampshire in America for a few years, but they have now returned to live in the UK.
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“Tune your television to any channel it doesn't receive and about 1 percent of the dancing static you see is accounted for by this ancient remnant of the Big Bang. The next time you complain that there is nothing on, remember that you can always watch the birth of the universe.” — 88 people liked it

“It is a slightly arresting notion that if you were to pick yourself apart with tweezers, one atom at a time, you would produce a mound of fine atomic dust, none of which had ever been alive but all of which had once been you.” — 69 people liked it

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