Customer Reviews: Read 633 more reviews...
 Very Interesting and Entertaining December 4, 2008
This is an excellent book and is very entertaining to read. It starts by explaining the beginning of time (big bang), and then goes chronologically from there explaining pretty much every aspect of the history of the universe and the Earth.
Of course to fit this all into 400 pages Bryson has to be very brief, as the title of the book implies. But despite being brief, he never leaves out anything important. The book discusses many different subjects, including astronomy, physics, chemistry, geology, and especially the biology of life on Earth. It talks a lot about important people from history and how they have advanced science, and often includes amusing facts about these people. The book also talks about lesser-known, but very important, scientists from history; scientists who are often ignored because other scientists have stolen their credit for discoveries.
A major theme in the book is emphasizing how little we humans actually know about the world and universe, which is totally true. After reading this book you'll be amazed by how many species of animals and plants we know absolutely nothing about and how many are estimated to be discovered in the future; you'll see that we really don't know all that much about the history of the Earth; and that we don't really know much about the rest of the universe. It's also quite interesting to note that Bryson has no formal scientific background. He just researched this stuff very thoroughly and then simplified it so that almost anyone can understand the material.
Overall it's a very good book and it was very hard to put down.
Well almost everything November 30, 2008
This book presented an account of history of science in 18th, 19th and 20th century. It made science interesting with stories of scientists and their rivalry. Hmmm almost like a soap opera.
The book also brings out the complexity of life and tries to define the same through simplicity of atoms. It almost succeeded in explaining origin of life. Its a great book.
Now, what got left out. It concentrated too much on western scientists of 18th to 20th century. It does not give any space to ancient scientists who built the foundation of western science. Well, that's why its "nearly" everything.
The last word...go for it... its good.
A Must Read for Everyone November 19, 2008
I purchased "A Short History of Nearly Everything" because of the glowing report of two friends who had read the book. This is a delightfully put together account of "nearly everything". If you are looking to know more about lots of things, this is your book.
A tour through history October 29, 2008
Fabulous, well written book that covers a wide variety of little known or understood topics. Bryson meanders through some of the most interesting parts of our history with his special gifts of quirky insights and stylish prose. This is the book that will have you saying "Wow, I didn't know that. That's really interesting!"
A biography of the universe October 24, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
The most amazing thing about this book is that it manages to live up to its title! Bryson covers a whopping amount of material in just under 600 pages - discussing everything from the expanse of the universe to the confines of a single cell. And he does a more than admirable job. Scientific technicalities are presented in a highly readable manner through the smart use of analogies. His chapter on the solar system, for example, left me with an infinitely more vivid picture of the make-up of our planetary neighbourhood than a dozen other science textbooks would have. Full credit to Bryson as well for writing with a boldness and authority that belies the author's background as a non-scientist.
Many reviews have labelled the book as "a rough guide to science". The book offers so much more. It is really a biography of the universe - a an elegant blend of scientific fact, history and lovely anecdotes that makes everything come to life. Nearly everything at least.
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