A Short History of Nearly Everything

By: Bill Bryson

Narrated by: William Roberts

Length: 18 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

A Short History of Nearly Everything is Bill Bryson's 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.

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)

A short history of nearly everything

Very interestingly written and captures / sustains your attention much of the time. On occasion the digrassions can be a little distracting but, these are rare occurances. It provides historical context to the development of the subject matter and is very enlightening on the many personalities whose individual efforts contributed to the whole.

Outstanding.....

Every human being should listen to this book. Not only will it make you appreciate just how far we have come as a species, and how lucky we are to be here (so many other species failed to survive). It will also make you realise that there is so far we have yet to go and just how wrong we can be, and occasionally, right.

An amazing insight into "the only planet you will ever know".

My favourite audio book so far

This is my favourite audio book from audible so far. At first the narrator was slightly irritating, he sounds like the kind of "crazy professor" types they get to host pop science shows for kids, but after a while he grew on me, and in the end I think it was very well narrated.

The actual content is far too wide ranging to cover specifically in a short review. But it follows a coherent path about all those little tidbits of the history of our planet, our species and our universe, that everyone should know, but most of us never bothered to investigate.

Even though this is probably one of the longest audio books on this site, you'll still be wanting more when it's over. If you're interested in the general topics I mentioned, and just want a nice, "for the average person with an interest in science" presentation of this material, you'll thoroughly enjoy this audio book.

It rarely strays into the extremely technical or detailed, but still conveys the main thrust of the ideas. I highly rate this book, the writing is good, and there were times I laughed out loud, at the authors humour which kind of sneaks up on you.

Not bad, but some science is outdated.

Very good read, great story telling. However, unfortunately, a lot of science quoted as current is simply proven to be false by now as the book is over a decade old. So for more recent fact it would be more interesting for the reader to go through a more recent book. Otherwise great :)

Really stunning

An amazing synopsis of the evolution of scientific thought combined with profound insights about the probable future. Bryson touches on both the glory and the folly of man.

One of my favorites

Love this book. Bill Bryson is brilliant, I have a feeling he could write a book on any subject and make it interesting, although in this case the subject could not be more interesting, the History of the Universe (I guess this could be considered a History of Science as well).

If you love any other work by Bill, science or history, I recommend this book.

loved every second of the book.

brilliantly written with a touch of subtle humor. science has been made enjoyable for everybody.

Essential life science reading

places all the major events into easily understood context thus bringing some cold difficult areas to assimilate into easily understood context. particularly the role of Rosalind in the discovery of the structure of DNA.

Almost too much information!

It is scary how much we really don't know about ourselves, the other living things around us and our own planet. To say that this is an incredibly detailed and thoroughly researched book is an understatement! With mind-boggling stats for most things presented, the insignificance of the human race and our own tenuous existence is reinforced at every point. Whilst I'm sure listeners with a science background would appreciate this book at a different level, I found every chapter engaging and fascinating. The entertaining narration by William Roberts is the "icing on the cake".
Highly recommended.

Crash Course in Scientific History

Would you listen to A Short History of Nearly Everything again? Why?

Full of interesting insights and an accurately condensed picture of scientific achievements of the past few hundred years.

What did you like best about this story?

The oddities and eccentricitries of the various people was a welcome addition to what would have otherwise been a far less interesting story.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

I found my engagement was steered more towards the sections I am personally interested in, such as the quantum physics and planetary parts, but I didn't find any part 'boring'.

Any additional comments?

One of my favourite downloads so far, there is something in there for everyone.