A Brief History of Time, by Stephen Hawking

[Sophie]

I'm really interested in science, I love reading magazines and watching documentaries about astronomy and physics. So it was very natural to me to want to read A Brief History of Time.

In this book, Stephen Hawking presents the history of science and the quest to find meaning and definition to the universe. He explains the most followed theories about space-time, the big bang, time travel, string theory, etc.

Even though I have quite a lot of general knowledge about those theories (I'm not a trained scientist though), it wasn't an easy read. In terms of pleasure to read, I'd say it's more like a 2 or 3 stars.

However, I was really impressed with the writing. I don't think anyone could have explained all those complicated concepts in so few words, but yet to be so clear. To be honest, I had to read some sentences a few times to really grasp their meaning. But Hawking goes strait to the point and doesn't load your thinking process with too many useless words. That way your brain as more power to comprehend all those complex concepts. I gave it 4 stars so people would know it is worth reading.

I don't want to scare anyone who's interested in reading this book. It is very interesting and if you're curious about pure science, you should definitely read it. But, you should not go in thinking it is a very popularized version, because it stays quite complex.

If you're curious about discovering all those things but in a easier way, I strongly recommend the documentary series The Universe, it is very good and blows your mind with beautiful images of the stars and cosmic phenomena.

[J]

I read this in high school and absolutely loved it. I do think that a full appreciation of the text would require some background in physics. I was a senior in my second year of physics, at the time, and none of this was over my head. Though, I had to take his word on the math.

Personal favorite points:

(view spoiler)[1. Proves that the universe is expanding and will inevitably contract.
2. Proves that the universe is not expanding, but rather is in a fixed state.
3. Disproves Time Travel.
4. Proves Time Travel under very limiting circumstances. (hide spoiler)]

[Ashley]

I have been out of school for a long time and have not taken a science class in about 14 years. Some of the points are a little hard to understand as I am not familiar with the science but I can follow what he says. Also, I do not have a science background and have never looked into anything involving the universe.