Bill Bryson can always be counted
on for taking his readers on memorable journeys, and his newest
book is no exception. This time, however, the path Bryson
travels is a different sort from the two-lane blacktops and
woodland trails that have made him one of America's favorite
writers. In A Short History of Nearly Everything, Bryson
takes his readers on an unforgettable adventure into the annals
of science and natural history. The audio book version, read
by Bryson himself, is an especially enjoyable way to join
Bryson on his odyssey through time.
One of the most striking and ultimately rewarding
aspects of A Short History of Nearly Everything is
the decidedly non-linear approach Bryson takes in telling
the history of the world. Rather than starting "at the
beginning" and recounting historical events along a traditional
textbook time line, Bryson leads his readers on a wild armchair
adventure leaping years, generations, and even epochs at will
as he skillfully spins out explanations and innovations that
were often unrealized or overlooked at the time of their discovery.
For instance, he describes efforts to eliminate disruptive
static on a long-range solar telescope. This accidentally
led to a new understanding of the "Big Bang" theory
of the origin of the Universe.
Bryson has an uncanny ability to take the most
arcane scientific theories and beliefs and transform then
into real world common sense. I wish I could have read this
book when I was struggling with university science classes.
Bryson accomplished in about an hour's worth of CD play what
two years of college physics failed to deliver—a basic
understanding of Einstein's relativity and quantum theories.
Likewise, his treatment of Darwin's theory of evolution and
its strained relationship to the current understanding about
the rise of man from a common ancestor is compelling and fascinating.
Some of Bryson's revelations are also chilling, like the behavior
and longevity of bacteria and viruses. His handling of the
concept of the creation of life, with all of its implications,
is especially riveting.
An entertaining aspect of this book is that it
dispels the notion that anything resembling "pure science"
has ever existed or is even possible. Scientific advances
and the evolution of ideas occur along with and often in spite
of the same petty infighting, professional jealousy, and flaming
egos that characterize the rest of human endeavors. Bryson's
book shares a wealth of little known facts and anecdotes.
Did you know that Madame Curie's home cookbooks are still
dangerously radioactive, or that Einstein worked as a Swiss
patent office clerk who couldn't get promoted?
In A Short History of Nearly Everything,
Bryson succeeds in creating a framework from which one can
view the entire history of the Universe. It's like being in
the center of a vast, clear, transparent onion. With Bryson
as tour guide, the context in which scientific discoveries
were made becomes clear, and it's easy to see how all of the
various disciplines and cultural evolutions fit together.
Although this book has a decidedly "Western" bias,
it encourages readers to reexamine commonly held notions of
natural history and the place of humans within it. It is truly
a delight, and I found the six hours that Bryson read his
book to me flew by at the speed of light—relatively speaking,
of course.
