Book Review: A SHORT HISTORY OF NEARLY EVERYTHING

This is something new for me. Usually this blog is strictly about knitting, however, there is more to me than being a knitter: I am also an avid reader. Most of the books that I read now are actually books from Audible since I have a 40 minute commute to work, but from time to time I will also plop down and read the book myself. I would like to use my Monday post as a time for me to review books of all sorts: those that I have listened to, those that I have read, and those that I have used as a knitting reference. Can't leave the knitting out! On occasion, I may also review an LYS or online store. We'll just have to wait and see what happens!

I love reading books by Bill Bryson. He is intelligent and entertaining. I was really looking forward to this book once I saw that it was available on Audible as I had listened to his previous book, IN A SUNBURNED COUNTRY. I was not disappointed.

Bryson's current book is a departure from his travel books as it delves into the world of science. The reader is taken from astronomy to physics, from biology to geology. He literally takes you from the beginning of time to the current day with lots of stops in between. As expected, he gives you interesting little tidbits of information regarding the different stops, such as the rivalries between scientists or their quirky and sometimes dangerous habits. I did find that there were times when the amount of information that he would divulge did seem to be a bit much, but I was highly entertained throughout the 17 hours of listening. Would I recommend this book? Absolutely. I will have to say that my interest in science helped me get through some of the information intensive parts. I would also say that I think that this book may be even better if it were read as opposed to the audio format. The amount of information given could be overwhelming at times and I think that I would have liked to have the written form handy for review.