A Briefer History of Time

By: Stephen Hawking, Leonard Mlodinow

Narrated by: Erik Davies

Length: 4 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's summary

From one of the most brilliant minds of our time comes an audiobook that clarifies his most important ideas.

Stephen Hawking’s worldwide best seller A Brief History of Time remains a landmark volume in scientific writing. But for those who have asked for a more accessible formulation of its key concepts - the nature of space and time, the role of God in creation, and the history and future of the universe - A Briefer History of Time is Professor Hawking’s response.

Although “briefer”, this audiobook is much more than a mere explanation of Hawking’s earlier work. A Briefer History of Time both clarifies and expands on the great subjects of the original and records the latest developments in the field - from string theory to the search for a unified theory of all the forces of physics. Thirty-seven full-color illustrations enhance the text and make A Briefer History of Time an exhilarating and must-have addition in its own right to the great literature of science and ideas.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2005 Stephen Hawking (P)2005 Random House, Inc. Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Readers will come away with an excellent understanding of the apparent contradictions and conundrums at the forefront of contemporary physics....Throughout these discussions, the authors maintain the same wry, lively tone that made the original Brief History such a delight." (Publishers Weekly)

one of the best books I've ever listened to

I have not read the original book which this book is based on. but I should say this one is amazing. concepts perfectly explained. great audio the narrator is great as well. I had no hard time understanding what he says at all.

This is much improved or the first version.

I read this book years ago and was a little let down. Then, I read the illustrated version and was thrilled. This shorter audio book is also excellent.

Aces!

Top notch narration with a pleasant voice, and an awesome book! I never took a physics course and I stink at math; but the concepts were dumbed down just enough for me to get a basic grasp of the concepts, and I still have to listen to it again. Fortunately, I look forward to listening to it several more times.

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Etertaining and understandable

Where does A Briefer History of Time rank among all the audiobooks you???ve listened to so far?

This audiobook would rank in the top 30th percentile of the hundreds that I have read/listened to.

What other book might you compare A Briefer History of Time to and why?

THE GREATEST SHOW ON EARTH by Richard Dawkins compares favorably to A BRIEFER HISTORY IN TIME because they both offer believable options as to how and why we might exist.I would add: THE BLANK SLATE by Steven Pinker and 36 ARGUMENTS FOR THE EXISTENCE OF GOD by Rebecca Newberger.

What about Erik Davies???s performance did you like?

I believe Erik Davis's performance made a complicated subject alive, understandable and enjoyable.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

This is a book that I enjoyed reading and re-listening to over a 2 day time period because there was so much that I wished to remember.

Any additional comments?

I have about 90 books on my wish list so it will be a while before I add A BRIEF HISTORY OF TIME to my list.

Short and Sweet

As good as the slighly longer version. I like the narrator. As a non scientist the book still reads well. Worth reading.

Great Overview

Great overview that covers a lot of subjects in a short time. You won't be a master of any of it after the one book, but you won't be a novice either.

Great explanation of difficult content

Any additional comments?

The book takes some very technical ideas and brings them down to a normal level using simple examples that we can follow. I listened to this in the car with my kids and my 5th grader was able to follow many of the discussions and grasp the content

A Briefer History of Time

Much less obtuse than the original, but still hard slogging. I've had to listen to most sections several times to get a clue.

I understand a little more, I think.

This is a remarkable effort to convey very difficult concepts. I will almost certainly need to review it again. I have tried to read the text directly, but the audio book was a little easier to get through, perhaps because it did not allow me to read and reread passages that I did not understand. Rather, this just slogs through a great physicists summary of some interesting theories about physics and the universe. In truth, without deeper mathematical explication, I don't think there could be true understanding of these concepts. it was clearly narrated and it was a pleasure to listen to.

Update of the previous Brief History of Time

This book is simply an update of the previous book Brief History of Time, and uses the same words and paragraphs! It is always worth hearing Stephen Hawking teach some truth about the universe in his unique way of teaching.