A Short History of Nearly Everything: Special Illustrated Edition | Bill Bryson

A Short History of Nearly Everything: Special Illustrated Edition | Bill Bryson | Sometime, everyone should read this book.

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A Short History of...

	A Short History of Nearly Everything: Special Illustrated Edition Bill Bryson Broadway, 2005 - 624 pages average customer review:based on 45 reviews view larger image
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highly recommended

The Layman's Scientific Reference Text

This review is for the Black Swan Paperback edition published in 2004, 574 pages of text plus comprehensive notes, bibliography and index. A SHORT HISTORY was on the USA Today top 150 best sellers list for 63 weeks between May 2003 and August 2005, reaching the peak position of number 31.

This is an extraordinary book crammed full with the history of scientific efforts to understand our universe, the earth, the structure of atoms, cells and DNA, and the origin of species. The author states that he spent three years researching and writing this book, which is astounding, because it seems it would take that long just to organize the information into what is an eminently readable text.

There is a great deal of fascinating scientific stuff in this book, but also remarkable is the anecdotal history of discovery. The author tells us that the credit for many theories and insights went not to the person who figured them out but to the guy who could market the idea; the history of nearly everything, it seems, was stolen.

Throughout A SHORT HISTORY, the author emphasizes that within the expanse of time for what we know, the human experience has been brief indeed, very fragile, and catastrophe lurks. For example, the last super volcano eruption, some 74,000 years ago, spewed enough ash to cause six years of winter. Yellowstone is an active super volcano that, according to geologists, erupts about every 600,000 years to bury the western States in ash. The last eruption was 630,000 years ago. Or consider the hundreds of thousands of asteroids zipping across the path of earth's orbit, with perhaps two or three near misses every week. Should one hit the resulting crater "would make the Grand Canyon look quaint and trifling."

A SHORT HISTORY OF NEARLY EVERYTHING is exceptionally readable and informative with an extensive bibliography and index. It is the layman's scientific reference text.

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Sometime, everyone should read this book.

The title may be grandiose, but this book delivers on its claims. Even better, it is ultra readable. Complex info is largely digestible. It is enlivened with whimsical anecdotes and side commentary on the people who made our world. We are kept aware of the humanity and failings of our intellectual giants so that the whole adventure is warm and endearing rather than the crushing weight the topic suggests.
The extra graphics of the Special Illustrated Edition aren't essential, but they do add real pleasure that seems appropriate to such a daunting task.
I would love to see this book on every senior school reading list. Public debate would be a lot better for it.

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A must read!

I first read A Short History while on business in Australia. I couldn't put it down. The writing is outstanding and the information is communicated in language that anyone can understand. I have been re-reading A Short History with my kids, and they love it. This is a book for all ages.

Read'em up.

I've read this book three times and listened once. Bryson is one of my favorites. This effort has resulted in the most interesting, fun, informative and memorable book I've ever had the pleasure of keeping by my bedside, on planes, on the sun porch, on the deck. Pick it up anywhere, open anywhere and you'll be smiling, laughing and in awe of the classy presentation.

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Amazingly witty and informative.

This is a very well written book. The writer writes in an old fashioned witty style alas seldom seen nowadays. I bought more examles of the book to send to my children and best fiends.

reviews: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, page 6, 7, 8, 9

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