Where was Bill Bryson when I was struggling through high school science class?
Bryson is known primarily as a travel writer, having written such works as In a Sunburned Country, The Lost Continent and other such memorable reads. His first attempt at explaining science, which is written in much the same style as his travel books, is nothing short of awesome. I’ve never been able to put any of his books down for very long. A Short History of Nearly Everything is no exception.
A Short History of Nearly Everything delivers, in true Bryson fashion, massive amounts of history, facts and trivia in his simple and easy to read style.
Bryson sweeps his readers up in the mysteries of the cosmos and life on Earth, and as he unravels each significant scientific event and discovery, he manages to do it in such a way that anyone can understand.
Essentially, A Short History of Nearly Everything is a readable textbook, with interesting and at times, slightly eccentric characters from the last four centuries. He revisits old friends like Gregor Mendel and Charles Darwin and makes their work seemingly simple to understand. I think this book should be introduced to the public school systems throughout North America. Bryson’s charm, wit and obvious enthusiasm shine through and make it abundantly clear that anyone can develop a pure and proper passion for the cosmos and life on Earth when the information is readable and fun.
Subscribe in a reader
I’ve actually heard of this book
Though I haven’t read it yet.
Spent a long while looking at the pictures from your previous post, they are simply fascinating…
just seen your sun set on planet earth X-Lent ;o]
Absolutely agree. Used to be a bookseller and that s exactly what I said about the book “it should be given to all students”. I found that with other books that attempted the same thing that I would always skip over those areas I had little interest in such as genetics but Bryson had me reading every word.