Sample
  • A Short History of Nearly Everything

  • By: Bill Bryson
  • Narrated by: Richard Matthews
  • Length: 18 hrs and 13 mins
  • 4.6 out of 5 stars (27,850 ratings)

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

A Short History of Nearly Everything

By: Bill Bryson
Narrated by: Richard Matthews
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $24.75

Buy for $24.75

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Editorial reviews

"Imagine if you can -- and of course you can't..." is how Bryson opens his explanation of how a universe is born. And he has the uncanny ability to not say too much, nor too little; to use metaphors brilliantly but without cliché; and to sound like he's actually learning as he goes along. Like Stephen Hawking before him, Bryson skips from one BIG topic to the next with the curiosity of a child and the patience of a schoolteacher. It's like having a front-row seat to the history of the world.

With his slightly bemused English accent, narrator Richard Matthews sounds completely at home in the material, chatting knowingly and with perfect dry comic timing. For managing to cover the universe and keep it lively, this experience definitely merits as an all-time favorite.

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.
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: History

Critic reviews

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

Featured Article: The Best Nonfiction Audiobooks to Jump into Right Now


The best nonfiction audiobooks take involved, often intimidating subjects and reinvigorate them with sharp narration so you can stay focused and on track. In this list, we’ll share our picks for some of the best nonfiction audio out there, encompassing a wide array of topics—from the entire history of humanity to astrophysics to the American prison system. Engage with some of the most fascinating, deeply human real-life stories our catalog has to offer.

What listeners say about A Short History of Nearly Everything

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    20,628
  • 4 Stars
    5,187
  • 3 Stars
    1,399
  • 2 Stars
    338
  • 1 Stars
    298
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    17,033
  • 4 Stars
    3,105
  • 3 Stars
    716
  • 2 Stars
    154
  • 1 Stars
    137
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    15,830
  • 4 Stars
    3,803
  • 3 Stars
    1,014
  • 2 Stars
    216
  • 1 Stars
    178

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Absolutely Breathtaking!

My mind is still completely blown away by all the new information I just learned!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Witty, imformative and concise.

I loved this book and its reading. It has a dry wit which is perfectly delivered by the reader

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A perfect subject for am audiobook

If you like overviews and provocative thoughts for further studies, this is a very good book.
The narrator is very clear as well

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

I’ve listened to this book 3 times

I love this book. I’ve gifted several times. Fascinating and easy listening. Perfect for sons and dads to listen to together.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Unfortunately

the facts were pretty accurate, but the linear history was quite a bit white washed, with subtle hints of racism

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Astonishing

What an undertaking, from the stars to the earth, its inhabitants and everything in between; and to have made it understandable to a layman like me, at least mostly understandable, is quite a feat. The performance was top notch, his dictation was spot on. Highly recommended!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A Short History of Nearly Everything

A beautifully written book well narrated and a book that should be read by anyone interested in our world our species who we are and where we may be going...if I could I’d give the book 10 stars!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Very much enjoyed this book.

Extremely interesting, subtle humor and very informative. Fact is better than fiction. I highly recommend this book for anyone remotely curious about expanding their knowledge of humans, life and the universe. 5 stars.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Wonderful

I love all of Bryson's books for the care, information, and humor that has been put into them.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Best book ever written

I listen to the audiobook over and over. Has to be the best book written for those who are curious about anything meaningful.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!