George's Secret Key to the Universe

By: Lucy Hawking, Stephen Hawking

Narrated by: James Goode

Length: 5 hrs and 44 mins

Publisher's Summary

Take a roller-coaster ride through the vastness of space! In the midst of an exciting adventure, discover the mysteries of physics, science, and the universe along with George and his new friends next door, the scientist Eric and his daughter, Annie, as well as a super-intelligent computer called Cosmos. The computer can take them to the edge of a black hole and back again. Or can it? And who else would like to get their hands on Cosmos? This is a funny and hugely informative romp through space, time, and the universe.

© Lucy Hawking and Stephen Hawking; (P) Random House

Excellent, enjoyable, fun and absorbing

I bought this audio book for my son when he was ten and he has listened to it and listened to it and listened to it. We have the Treasure Hunt too, but this is his favourite. As a result of all this listening Seb was able to impress his science teacher by explaining what a binary star system is. No great reader (or writer) audio books give him the pleasure of reading without any pain, and if he can be educated at the same time, as with this book, so much the better. Being able to spout forth at school about the stars has given him much needed confidence and sparked a desire for learning. If only all learning was this easy and enjoyable.

very good speaking voice

cool book I love it . it is so adventurous and interesting., very good speaking voice.

Wonderful

This really inspired my 7 year old and totally captivated his attention, he loved it!

Surely written by an amateur?

The story is predictable with uninspired repetitive writing.
Grandiose and dismissive, written by an egotistical “science is your god” rhetoric that is flabby and outdated.
Performance is good, unfortunately you cannot polish a turd. My kids were bored although laughed at the wit and adolescence of the super computer.

Best book ever🥰😱

Loved it. Best book I have ever listened to. Although I was not shocked that it was so good. Because I love Stephen and Lucy hawking.

My favourite bit was at the end when there was a speech from Stephen hawking. .
I would recommend this book for ages 8-13

loved this book.

my boys had this playing in the background while doing their school closure work. only thing was it kept having small break-up so missed one or two words.

A really good listen!

Really enjoyed both the story and the educational side of the book... Who wouldn't love to discover a slightly eccentric scientist living next door to you?!

Entertaining story for the whole family

With a car full of diverse listeners in age and interests, this story kept us all entertained.

Less entertaining than a cosmology textbook

If this book wasn’t for you, who do you think might enjoy it more?

Not sure who would enjoy the book. It didn't work as a story or as an introduction to physics.

Would you ever listen to anything by Lucy Hawking and Stephen Hawking again?

No

Who might you have cast as narrator instead of James Goode?

It wasn't the narrator's fault. The story was poor.

Any additional comments?

Having really enjoyed all other recommendations by Audible, I was really disappointed by this book.