Rating: 
Summary: A Short History of Nearly Everything
Review: We bought the AUDIO CD for a lengthy drive/vacation.... we listened to it all... 3 times! It was worth every penny! What else do you have, BILL?
Rating:
Summary: Lighten up, people.
Review: I give this book my highest rating because I really enjoyed reading it, and that's what I really value you in a book. There are some negative things about the book - some explanations can ramble and get a bit dry. But the book is densely packed with fun facts and history from the perspective of the layman and Bryson's writing style makes it fun to read while maybe learning some things as well. What I don't get are people that slam this book because it's poor science. It's Bill Bryson, not Stephen Hawking! This a common man who went on a quest for knowledge and is sharing what he learned. He doesn't claim to be writing a science textbook here. And I think he does a fair job acknowledging his weaknesses and portraying things in a tone that upholds his goal. However, readers should know that this is not the fun romp of 'A Walk in the Woods'. It's more dense and not as funny, but still funny.
Rating:
Summary: Best introduction to science I've ever read
Review: Ok. First of all, I know that Bryson probably wrote a lot on things he didn't completely understand. So what? I confess I didn't understand some of what I was reading. No one can claim to have a thorough understanding of each and every realm of science - even physicists, biologists and geologists tend to stick to one little corner of their field, eventually having a solid grasp of their particular research focus, but having a less than perfect grasp of what everyone else is doing. My sister is a plant pathologist, who knows the ins-and-outs of soybean diseases, but could barely tell you how to grow daisies if her life depended on it. So really Bryson's lack of a perfect understanding of everything he covers not only doesn't matter, it's not really possible. What he does instead is make you interested in the various fields of science - from geology to physics, by writing a book that reads like a fiction novel. If I ever have kids I'd like them to read this book, because it has the potential to make them want to learn more, and that is no small feat. I say big congratulations to Bryson for this well-researched and expertly written book. I highly recommend it to everyone I come across, and deservedly so.
Rating: 
Summary: A pleasurable romp through the cosmos
Review: Science and Mathematics majors out there: Your reviews of this book are making you out as incredibly stupid and churlish. Surely, you could not have picked up a book with a title like this with the idea that you were going to encounter a detailed technical account of a new way to do triple integrals with multiple variables, replicate DNA using some newfound technique or plumb the depths of cosmological philosophy. The author states his intentions in the Introduction: To give the non-specialist an understandable overview of what scientists have discovered about our universe. This Bryson does in a most enjoyable fashion. I would recommend this book to anyone, even Science Ph.D.'s, who simply enjoy lucid, competent, witty writing about what we know. I simply don't understand why those who obviously don't enjoy such works bothered to buy, read, and review the book in such a sneering, unctuous manner. - I don't buy or review Harlequin romances, condemning them for not being on a par with Shakespeare.---Four stars. Even I would have liked just a little more technical detail to be thrown in.
Rating:
Summary: Boggling subjects approached with Bryson's signature wit
Review: I loved this book. It took me nearly four months to read it (I started it in the hospital after having my second baby), but it was worth the time it took. Although some of the stuff (like quantum physics) was still over my head, I feel that I now have a better general understanding. Bryson's writing style made it much more approachable and interesting. I've talked about this book with at least a dozen people by now, and that doesn't often happen with me.
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Summary: Im only 14, yep im 14, yah u read right
Review: Hi every one i dont wan tto give u may back round so, i loved this book i recomeded it many of my firends, they got confused due to the big words (god (i dont realy believe in religion or god) i hate kids) o well... but i don't see why u found the title misleading, i mean u u had to do was scan a few pages of read the table of contents (i kwn ono one does that). I know a few other books similar to this one but it taek a few of then to summrize waht Mr. Bryson said so well. i would give this book a 4 out of 5 because if u give a book 5 then people hate u..
Rating:
Summary: Much stuff I'd mused over assembled into an enjoyable tome
Review: Probably not a whole lot of stunning new data here, but well-researched, extremely well-written--"So THAT'S what happened to the dinosours!"--segments. Much effort at illustrating how certain early phenomena affected historical events through the ages. I'm a slow reader, but I read through this one in record time. Highly recommend.
Rating:
Summary: Hillarious and Fascinating
Review: A great book for anyone who questions what they learned (or did not learn) in high school. Bryson's sense of humor gracefully and effortlessly tackles everything from nuclear physics to dinosaurs. He also gives a great sense of the people behind the theories-- reminding us that they were eggheads, not gods. Enjoyable from start to finish.
Rating:
Summary: Comprehensive
Review: This tome reminded me of the now classic BBC/PBS science series "Connections" (all three installments) with James Burke. Bryson shows again and again in chapter after chapter how one discovery or observation in mathematics, botany, geology, astronomy, chemistry or any other discipline has a tendency to create knowledge caches that sooner or later lead to fresh discoveries almost anywhere else where there's a quest for scientific truth. I thought he did a very good job in describing advancements in measuring techniques and how they impacted and made possible large breakthroughs later; for example, in looking for constants in distance estimations in deep space, time measurements with carbon and radioactive dating techniques, and time estimates concerning the age of fossils and the age of the earth. I came away with a greater appreciation of not only our planet, but also the painstaking way we have to sweat to have it give up its truths. Lastly, Bryson also incorporates details about the personalities who have made these quests over the last few centuries. Unfortunately, nothing is quite pristine as hatreds, bitter rivalries, and dishonestly with colleagues abounds in all ages. It seems the negative aspects of human nature roll on and it's a miracle anything progresses in science and engineering. But it does despite this festering. I guess this is a positive sign that we might all survive to the next millennium despite ourselves. Anyway, an overall entertaining and informative read!
Rating:
Summary: A good general science book
Review: Until I read some of the other reviews, I hadn't thought about the title. I knew this was a science book before I read it, but I suppose the title could be misleading. To those who feel somehow tricked, I would suggest that you peruse a book or read reviews before purchasing. Otherwise, this is a good general natural history science book, covering a fairly wide range of topics. Bryson offers the fresh, intelligent perspective of a curious lay person, although the writing is dry at times. At other times, I found myself wishing that Bryson had elaborated more, such as when making the remarkable observation that our world is still in an ice age. Bryson does inspire an appreciation for what we take pretty much for granted - our cosmic luck for the Earth, for any kind of stability and security, and for life itself. But don't I wish we knew more about the beginnings of life, the mass extinctions of species, and the origins, migrations, and development of homo sapiens! But that book, if it is ever written, won't be on the bestseller lists for centuries.
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