Customer Rating: 
Summary: Incredible book, I couldn't put it down
Comment: I have just read this book straight from cover to cover and I was deeply enthralled the entire time. Hawking is able to break complicated concepts down to chunks that are easily digestible by laymen. I found that I rarely needed to re-read sections in order to properly decipher them. The hardest chapter for me to get through was the one on particle physics, but it was downhill from there. Every page filled me with a sense of awe of the Universe and unanswered questions that I have had since childhood have been explained clearly. I could not recommend this book more.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Timeless
Comment: I recently re read my old copy of this Hawking classic and was amazed at just what a timeless masterpiece Stephen Hawking managed to produce.
The current holder of Oxford's prestigious Lucasian chair (once held by Isaac Newton himself), Stephen Hawking distinguished himself in the early 1970s for helping to nail down proof that the universe arose from a singularity...John Wheeler's aptly dubbed "Big Bang." Additionally, Hawking shocked the physics community by proving that Black Holes radiate (shocking because their gravitational pull is so great it supposedly should prevent such radiation).
A dubious blessing of Hawkings status as a Lou Gehrig's Disease sufferer is that he has been forced to use a great deal of forethought in constructing his sentences...a quality obviously put to great use in this book which in oracular like fashion litterally explains the currrently understood mysteries of the universe.
It is also proper that in describing the state of cosmology -- from the Big Bang singularity at one of time to Black Hole singularities at the other end of time -- Hawking takes us to territory that from the confines of his wheelchair he has done so much to pioneer.
Still a highly recommended read!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Hawking's Classic is Still Worth Reading
Comment: While I've heard this book described as the least read best-seller, it is really worth the read. It can be difficult due more to Hawking's writing style than due to the subject matter. If you already struggle with the subject matter you may wish to consider his The Universe in a Nutshell because it is filled with explanatory diagrams that aid the reader's comprehension.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Good read- even if your not a scientist
Comment: Very interesting, but a slow, fairly difficult read with complex subject matter. It is worth the time, even if you have no science background, just don't expect to read it all in one sitting, it takes time to sink in.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Very informative
Comment: A Brief History of Time is a fascinating book that really delves into the hypothesized fabrics of our universe. Hawkins may be a genius, but he is still able to explain his works in ways that the rest of us can understand. Very informative if you are interested in this sort of thing.
Summary: Incredible book, I couldn't put it down
Comment: I have just read this book straight from cover to cover and I was deeply enthralled the entire time. Hawking is able to break complicated concepts down to chunks that are easily digestible by laymen. I found that I rarely needed to re-read sections in order to properly decipher them. The hardest chapter for me to get through was the one on particle physics, but it was downhill from there. Every page filled me with a sense of awe of the Universe and unanswered questions that I have had since childhood have been explained clearly. I could not recommend this book more.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Timeless
Comment: I recently re read my old copy of this Hawking classic and was amazed at just what a timeless masterpiece Stephen Hawking managed to produce.
The current holder of Oxford's prestigious Lucasian chair (once held by Isaac Newton himself), Stephen Hawking distinguished himself in the early 1970s for helping to nail down proof that the universe arose from a singularity...John Wheeler's aptly dubbed "Big Bang." Additionally, Hawking shocked the physics community by proving that Black Holes radiate (shocking because their gravitational pull is so great it supposedly should prevent such radiation).
A dubious blessing of Hawkings status as a Lou Gehrig's Disease sufferer is that he has been forced to use a great deal of forethought in constructing his sentences...a quality obviously put to great use in this book which in oracular like fashion litterally explains the currrently understood mysteries of the universe.
It is also proper that in describing the state of cosmology -- from the Big Bang singularity at one of time to Black Hole singularities at the other end of time -- Hawking takes us to territory that from the confines of his wheelchair he has done so much to pioneer.
Still a highly recommended read!
Customer Rating:
Summary: Hawking's Classic is Still Worth Reading
Comment: While I've heard this book described as the least read best-seller, it is really worth the read. It can be difficult due more to Hawking's writing style than due to the subject matter. If you already struggle with the subject matter you may wish to consider his The Universe in a Nutshell because it is filled with explanatory diagrams that aid the reader's comprehension.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Good read- even if your not a scientist
Comment: Very interesting, but a slow, fairly difficult read with complex subject matter. It is worth the time, even if you have no science background, just don't expect to read it all in one sitting, it takes time to sink in.
Customer Rating:
Summary: Very informative
Comment: A Brief History of Time is a fascinating book that really delves into the hypothesized fabrics of our universe. Hawkins may be a genius, but he is still able to explain his works in ways that the rest of us can understand. Very informative if you are interested in this sort of thing.