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A Short History of Nearly Everything

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A Short History of Nearly Everything

By: Bill Bryson
Narrated by: William Roberts
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Featuring a special introduction written for the audiobook edition and read by the author

A Radio 4 Book Club Selection.

A Short History of Nearly Everything is Bill Bryson's fascinating and humorous quest to understand everything that has happened from the Big Bang to the rise of civilization. He takes subjects that normally bore the pants off most of us, like geology, chemistry, and particle physics, and aims to render them comprehensible to people who have never thought they could be interested in science. In the company of some extraordinary scientists, Bill Bryson reveals the world in a way most of us have never seen it before.

©2003 Bill Bryson (P)2014 Audible, Inc. Earth Sciences History History & Philosophy Nature & Ecology Philosophy Science World Natural History Witty Thought-Provoking Paleontology Funny Scary Suspenseful Cosmology Mathematics
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Editor reviews

In his latest release, A Short History of Nearly Everything, Bill Bryson compounds the story of human existence, or rather what is known of it so far, into one incredible audiobook expertly narrated by American voice performer William Roberts. Be entertained by even the most complex of discoveries, all broken down in a way that makes them understandable and enlightening. Covering innumerable topics of human achievements, you will be tremendously inspired by the significance these discoveries have had on life as we know it today. Available now from Audible.

Critic reviews

"To read Bryson is to travel with a memoirist gifted with wry observation and keen insight that shed new light on things we mistake for commonplace. To accompany the author as he travels with the likes of Charles Darwin on the Beagle, Albert Einstein or Isaac Newton is a trip worth taking." ( Publishers Weekly)
"Stylish [and] stunningly accurate prose....Brims with strange and amazing facts...destined to become a modern classic of science writing." ( The New York Times)
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You certainly gets your monies worth with this book, as you'll need to listen to it over and over to get to grips with all the information contained. Having said that, it's easy listening and the narrator is easy on your ears.

Knowledge enough to blow your mind

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I was gripped by this from beginning to end. Bryson provides an overview of modern science, tracing the story of various disciplines. What stands out is the way that he makes each narrative strand fascinating in its own right, while weaving them into a bigger picture. I loved the way that he provides a historical perspective on scientific endeavour. He's really good at explaining where various ideas came from and why they seemed radical in their day. I'm sure that if you're a serious scientist then Bryson is just glossing the surface. But as an interested non-scientist I found that this explained and illuminated a lot of ideas I had previously found vague and confusing. Fascinating.

Terrific

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This book is a genuine tour de force which I have listened to now many times, and will listen to again, and again.

An outstanding read

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This is a chunky book, and the audio version is no different. There is a LOT of scientific ground covered in this, and there's no time for hanging around, explaining things twice over. However, unlike lectures, you can rewind this, stop when you get a bit overwhelmed and (certainly what I'm going to do) listen to it all over again.
This probably wouldn't suit anyone who's got A-levels or higher in science, but also, you have to be interested in finding out stuff, as although the author has little stories within, you ARE going to be listening to a lot of scientific histories and theories.
Nice narration and I especially approve of the author's view on carbon dating !

Not easy listening

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I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It's like an epic. Only it's on life. And it made me care about areas of science which I had very little regard for prior to (paleontology schmaleontology no more!).

But it is a marathon read... many trips to the gym, in my case. One suggestion for those attempting this book: have a notepad or something handy to jot down names and things that interest you for further study.

nice read for the moderately scientific

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