• The Greatest Story Ever Told - So Far

  • Why Are We Here?
  • By: Lawrence M. Krauss
  • Narrated by: Lawrence Krauss
  • Length: 10 hrs and 25 mins
  • 4.2 out of 5 stars (2,117 ratings)

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The Greatest Story Ever Told - So Far  By  cover art

The Greatest Story Ever Told - So Far

By: Lawrence M. Krauss
Narrated by: Lawrence Krauss
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Publisher's summary

From award-winning physicist, public intellectual, and the bestselling author of A Universe from Nothing Lawrence Krauss, comes “a masterful blend of history, modern physics, and cosmic perspective that empowers the reader to not only embrace our understanding of the universe, but also revel in what remains to be discovered” (Neil deGrasse Tyson, American Museum of Natural History).

In this grand poetic vision of the universe, Lawrence Krauss tells the dramatic story of the discovery of the hidden world that underlies reality - and our place within it.

Reality is not what you think or sense - it’s weird, wild, and counterintuitive, and its inner workings seem at least as implausible as the idea that something can come from nothing.

With his trademark wit and accessible style, Krauss leads us to realms so small that they are invisible to microscopes, to the birth and rebirth of light, and into the natural forces that govern our existence. His unique blend of rigorous research and engaging storytelling invites us into the lives and minds of remarkable scientists who have helped unravel the unexpected fabric of reality with reasoning rather than superstition and dogma, and to explain how everything we see - and can’t see - came about. A passionate advocate for reason, Krauss gives the rationale for the seemingly irrational - and the mysteries and apparent contradictions of quantum physics, and explores what that means for our lives here on Earth - and beyond.

At its core, The Greatest Story Ever Told - So Far is about the best of what it means to be human - an epic history of our ultimately purposeless universe that addresses the question, “Why are we here?”

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

©2017 Lawrence Krauss (P)2017 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved

Critic reviews

"The Greatest Story Ever Told - So Far ranges from Galileo to the LHC and beyond. It's accessible, illuminating, and surprising - an ideal guide for anyone interested in understanding our accidental universe." --Elizabeth Kolbert, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of The Sixth Extinction

"A rich, definitely not-dumbed-down history of physics.... An admirable complement to the author's previous book and equally satisfying for those willing to read carefully." --Kirkus

"In confident...prose, Krauss tells a story that both celebrates and explores science. Through it, he reminds readers why scientists build such complicated machinery and push the boundaries of the quantum world when nothing makes sense: 'For no more practical reason than to celebrate and explore the beauty of nature.'" --Publishers Weekly

What listeners say about The Greatest Story Ever Told - So Far

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  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Mean spirited rant against religion

I bought this book because I love listening to popular science books. I expected this book to be about the origins of the universe and the history of scientific explorations of our cosmos. This book turned out to be a very nasty, petty rant against religions and the people who believe in them with a thin veneer of scientific exploration. The author is incapable of saying anything about science without accompanying it with snide remarks about religion. I love reading books written from different perspectives but the problem here is not the author's perspective; it is the relentless, single minded, mean spirited harping about the evils of religion and the foolishness of anyone who takes religion seriously. What an ugly book! The only reason I haven't returned it is that I've been busy and I'm procrastinating. I need to put "return that horrible book" at the top of my to do list.

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174 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Wonderful read/listen.

I was concerned that this sort of book may not be suited to an audible book because of continued references to figures and images from the printed version.
To make this a little less jarring, and confusing a PDF file is supplied with the requisite images.
If you are going to listen while driving, please take a long hard look at the images so that you can bring them to mind when mentioned in the book.

I will need to listen through again, as there is a lot that I do not yet understand.

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136 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Too many "see PDF" ... for a audio book imo.

Any additional comments?

It's a good book, but listening on audible didn't really work for me. I usually listen on a run, drive, etc... This book has TONS of attached PDF's to reference when you're listening, which isn't very practical in my opinion for the average audible listener. If I am going to sit down and reference and study a bunch of PDF's I would rather just buy the physical book.

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117 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Good grief! The narrator is just fine.

It's Krauss. I would rather hear him speak than anyone else. It's like attending one of his lectures.

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96 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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" Not Physics for Dummies "

This is a fantastic book and not dumbed down for your average reader. It's extremely challenging and makes you want to research all the different aspects of current physics. Another fantastic book from Lawrence Krauss

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89 people found this helpful

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    1 out of 5 stars
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consequence of modern secular opinion

It's sad that people in top positions such as universities frame their supposed careers on attacking a people's faith. In this book the only take aways are billions of tax dollars are spent to give these ivy league schools generations to study concepts only a very few people can understand or apply to useful utility. The over arching structure of this book alike so much other garbage coming out of the modern secularist acedimia is God doesn't exist and my brief little existence and learning can prove it because I am a professor with a degree. People like this author live in the clouds high above the common person. Their life's and lifestyle's are a direct consequence of the structures that have been formed by all of the regular common folks strivings over the mallinia. They cannot explain how life or the universe began or how it will end but they can declare in their pathetic hatred of generations of peoples faith that there is no God and creator of it all. So you want to misquote the holy scripture. I have a couple verses for you: 2 Timothy 3:7. Romans 1:22.
It seems extremely unfortunate that such people that are in such positions give lipservice to being open minded but close their minds to the fact that God does indeed exist and has utilized everything that we seek to understand in the creation of us and it all. I love science and the advancements made and the one to come. I also believe in and love God. So to every generation that has come before us you had it right even though you didn't have it all explained by egocentric phyisist in high offices. To the real scientist that indeed will keep an open mind and will attack ignorance instead of a peoples faith and God the questions and answers and benefits are already ours.

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84 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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Fascinating stuff, but...

I've loved Krauss' writing in the past and this book is no exception. He does a pretty good job of covering a lot of reasonably complex ideas in a relatively short fashion and provides practical meaning to otherwise esoteric concepts. His narration is equally terrific. That said, for myself personally, while he made the subject accessible, I nevertheless found listening to this book a bit more challenging than usual, as I had to construct mental frames of reference to consider movement, spin and energies from whole cloth rather than be able to refer to the valuable diagrams and illustrations found in the book.

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72 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Entertaining and awe-inspiring

Wonderfully entertaining. Might need to read some sections more than once, but generally very graspable and absolutely worth the time.

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61 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars

Too heady for audio.

Books with challenging material should be read, not listened to. I will purchase the print version.

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46 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Anti-reilgion? Pro-physics? Pro-readers Please!

I beleive Dr. Kraus to be a very good physicist, but this is a study into why there are professional readers; there was only one Feynman, as Kraus himself pointed out in Quantum Man.
Besides the reading, I wasn't sure how much Kraus actually dislikes the Bible as he states clearly in the prologue, because he kept using passages from it, to start chapters. I would have preferred to just listened to the science and the history. It seemed like he was still convincing himself of how much he hates organized religions. I want to know as much about facts and figures and turmoils behind the scenes of science, not how silly Kraus thinks mystical beleives are backwards thinking and the cause of wars and strife (which might be right, but not what I thought I was buying).
Lastly, I buy "audio books" because of a hectic life style and time limitations, so the continued reference to pdf images was off-putting, especially when I am driving or working.
I hope Dr. Kraus decides to leave the future readings to professionals and comes to term with his feelings towards religion so we can enjoy the brilliance behind the science.

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42 people found this helpful