A Short History of Nearly Everything

By: Bill Bryson

Narrated by: Richard Matthews

Length: 18 hrs and 13 mins

Publisher's summary

One of the world’s most beloved and best-selling writers takes his ultimate journey - into the most intriguing and intractable questions that science seeks to answer.

In a Walk in the Woods, Bill Bryson trekked the Appalachian Trail - well, most of it. In In A Sunburned Country, he confronted some of the most lethal wildlife Australia has to offer. Now, in his biggest book, he confronts his greatest challenge: to understand - and, if possible, answer - the oldest, biggest questions we have posed about the universe and ourselves. Taking as territory everything from the Big Bang to the rise of civilization, Bryson seeks to understand how we got from there being nothing at all to there being us.

To that end, he has attached himself to a host of the world’s most advanced (and often obsessed) archaeologists, anthropologists, and mathematicians, travelling to their offices, laboratories, and field camps. He has read (or tried to read) their books, pestered them with questions, apprenticed himself to their powerful minds.

A Short History of Nearly Everything is the record of this quest, and it is a sometimes profound, sometimes funny, and always supremely clear and entertaining adventure in the realms of human knowledge, as only Bill Bryson can render it. Science has never been more involving or entertaining.

©2003 Bill Bryson (P)2003 Books on Tape, Inc. Published by Arrangement with Random House Audio Publishing Group, A Division of Random House, Inc.

Critic reviews

"Not to be missed." (AudioFile)
"Destined to become a modern classic of science writing." (The New York Times Book Review)

Fascinating facts and the stories behind them

Wonderfully enlightening, pulls together the history and evolution of scientific knowledge on a wide range of topics. Light, yet factual. I particularly appreciated the glimpse into the lives and personalities of the people who have contributed to our understanding of the world around us! Frequent opportunities to relate this to conversations, news and observations every day.

The Veil is Lifted!

The curtain is pulled back to reveal...everything!
From the Big Bang to us and BEYOND

Fascinating, occasionally horrifying

If you want to know more (a lot more) about big questions like, "How did we get here?", "Where did the earth come from?", or "Why are humans so different than all other animals?", then this is the book for you. I surveys our scientific knowledge and its historical development, mixing well-written scientific explanations with surprising, funny, and sad stories about the scientists themselves. Some of the topics I sort of wish I did not know about, though. Stories of meteor strikes, ice ages, and mass extinctions give the very real sense that we -- that is, most forms of life on earth -- are not in as comfortable of a situation as we think, and eventually we are probably all doomed. It is a very discomforting thought, especially when explained so convincingly and in such detail, and not a good feeling to fall asleep to.

A fascinating "fulfill your curiosity" read!

All the stuff you wish they had taught you in school, all the stuff about the history of human civilization, evolution and the development of science and technology as we know it today, all the stuff about the big bang theory, the inflationary theory, the extraordinary conditions that forged the universe we know of today, all the stuff about the theory of evolution, the origins of life on earth up until the dawn of humanity and human civilization we live in today - This book presents to the reader/listener an awe-inspiring panoramic view of the thousands of years of evolution, and the extreme ephemerality of humans, if put on the cosmic scale. It is a great read, and the audiobook is narrated in quite an engaging tone that makes the listener marvel at the whole history of life on our planet and create a spark of curiosity within one's self into what else might be in store for further discovery. Every scientist you may have ever heard of in high school or later would probably have their spot in this book, along with either an interesting story or a mention of some of their most important contributions to science - Newton, Einstein, Mendeleev, Hubble, Rutherford, Planck, Darwin and many many more.

Bryson talks about the expansion and acceleration of the universe, the billions of other known galaxies and the hundreds of billions of stars in our Milky Way galaxy, discoveries that were attributed to the invention of standard candles - an ingenious way to measure relative distances between galaxies. The author touches upon the superstring theory - which suggests our physical space to be in 10 dimensions (3D + time + 6D hyperspace) which is an attempt to harmonize Einstein’s theory of general relativity (for large-scale) with quantum mechanics (theory of the atomic/small) - a problem that has intrigued physicists for a hundred years.

In subsequent chapters Bryson dives into biology and anthropology. The book talks about the Cambrian explosion, the 5 major extinctions including the Permian and Triassic extinctions, the multiple ice ages and describes the the big-birth, which is the origin and birth of microbes that eventually evolved into more advanced forms of life. Delving into the major areas of work by scientists in the 19th and 20h century gives the reader a brief about the specific evidence supporting the claim/discovery and a general understanding of the process of natural selection, and eventually the biological evolution of humans from bipeds, hominids and Neanderthals.

The book cautions us on how not to endanger our own survival and that of other species and gives countless other discussions on remarkable inventions, interesting stories and examples of successes from the past, that every one of us should have the curiosity to know about. A highly recommended read at any age to expand your knowledge quotient and perspective about our journey to how we got here.

Listen, think, repeat

I echo the previous high marks.
Certainly not a one and done download.
It is worth going back every few years to learn something new.

I especially like the commentary on Thomas Midgeley. Never had science had such an anti-hero.

Just read the introductory chapter and decide from there.

It is difficult to explain to others how I can laugh so often with such a dull topic. All I can say is “that is what good writing can do”.

Would have much preferred Bryson reading this unabridged version.

An updated anniversary addition would be welcome

Science History Lesson

What a refreshing humorous and informative book on the universe.Its macro and micro subjects are like a lecture at university by your favorite teacher.

Good coverage overall, too much history.

Naration is really good, science topics span a lot of fields and are good too, in also gives some context in the lives of the scientists, BUT this (too often) goes too deep in the scientists lives...

laugh while you learn.

I Love Bryson's writing. This book is essentially the history of scientific discovery, which admittedly sounds very dull. However Bryson's approach to the subject is both riveting and hilarious. this is one of the best reads/listens I've had in a while. If you enjoy reading history or science you will love this book.

Great read, thoroughly enjoyed it.

I wish school books had as many insights as this book did on the process of discovery and how error-prone it was

Fascinating Anecdotes and Explanations of N E

Don't hesitate. This book is entertaining and informative beginning to end. It will inspire many relistens and more in depth explorations of the topics it touches on.