This is the BEST book I have ever read. I had never ever known astronomy in such a detail. I was able to impress my physics teacher by asking questions that brought even her in utter chaos and by answering some questions that were meant for 12th grader and above. You will start digesting astronomy after readin it!

I'm only sixteen and before I read this book I knew very little about space. With this book I was even able to prove my chemistry teacher wrong on several occasions, one dealing with nuclear force. This book is excellent for anyone looking to expand their knowledge on how we came to be.

Stephen Hawking's a Brief History of Time: A Reader's Companion was a time stoppingly good book. It made me think on a higher level about the universe, black holes, and time. Much of this information, like the fact that black holes give off radiation, I had not yet begun to comprehend in the far reaches of my younge mind. Stephen Hawking, unlike most people of his brain power (if there are any people with brain power equal to his), made his words in a form that even the most common of Joes could understand every atom of what he was trying to say. I recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more about time and how it effects the universe and its black holes. I hope everyone likes it as muck as I do. Thank you and, Stephen, keep up the good work.

To come to this review, you are obviously interested in either the work that Stephen Hawking does or are interested in Stephen Hawking the man. As such you are already somewhat familiar with the theories of General Relativity and Quantum Mechanics and understand the physical handicap that afflicts the body of this great mind. The "Complete Works Of Stephen Hawking", The Cambridge Unabridged Edition, consists of seven lectures on four audio tapes read by the author himself using a voice synthesizer machine which must be used to overcome the limitations that ALS has put upon his speech. It is ironic that this great mind is sinking within the event horizon of a communication black hole due to the disease. Despite this fact, Stephen is able to deliver a masterful presentation of his life's work in astrophysics, cosmology, and astronomy. His presentation is personal as well as informative and is peppered throughout with philosophy, academic humor, and personal insights. It does take some time to get used to the sound of his synthesized voice. Often it sounds robotic, alien, staccato, and certain phrases have a haunting Gregorian chant rhythm to them. I noticed that in a "Brief History Of Time", the words of the text are read by the famous British radio talk personality Michael Jackson. This is definitely a work that needs to be played over and over again stopping to study it along the way. I first listened to it on my 1 hour 1 way car trips to work but plan to listen to it again this summer under the stars at the campgrounds near the glow of an open fire. The tape consists of the following seven lectures (1) Ideas About the History of the Universe, (2) The Big Bang, (3) Black Holes , (4) Quantum Mechanics, (5) Origin of the Universe, (6) The Past and the Future, and (7) The Unified Theory . Now techies that should really wet your whistle! The tapes are a great value at the price. If you are a student of the subjects covered, have a philosophical interest in finding where science and God meet face to face, or just want to enjoy the triumph of human spirit over adversity, then these tapes are a must hear for you. In summary, I believe that after experiencing these tapes you'll come to the same conclusion that I made that Stephen Hawking is an example of how the glory of God and His majestic works can be made manifest in the form of one of His weakest vessels.

This is quite a phenominal book. Prof. Hawking really translates all that mathematical stuff to something even the layman can understand. Its was hard to put down. However some of the lectors have are the same things as a few of the chapters in his other book A brief history of time.

Hawking takes the most difficult concepts of black holes, the Big Bang and space-time and explains them in a simple logical manner. He allows the reader to understand the concepts but does not use complex mathematical formulae to do this.

Paul Strathern, author of the outstanding Philosophers in 90 Minutes series, hits the mark once more in a series about scientists. In this work, he gives the reader a comprehensive yet brief overview of Stephen Hawking's life & works. Strathern, as usual, is entertaining, informative & funny. Strathern cuts through the vernacular & brings the subject matter in plain, direct language. This book is definately a winner!

This collection of the original papers of one of the pioneers of black hole and big bang theory is an excellent compendium of work on the subject. It shows the development of the theory, along with various co-authors, such as Penrose, Hartle, Gibbons, etc., from 1970 to 1992, during which most of this theory was developed. He discusses various possible quantum states as well as topologies of the universe and their possible outcomes in terms of its evolution in time. Highly technical, for the specialist only, not the general public, as were some of his other books.

This a great book. Why? Because it REALLY makes you think. Hawking leads you smoothly from the beginning to the end of the universe. He shows the different ways things could be, why things weren't that way, why things are the way they are now. Sometimes is a little heavy, but if you read it slowly, it will all come to you. If I tell you more, I will spoil one of the greatest books I've ever read. Enjoy it, spent some time in it, you won't regret it. As a matter of fact, once you started it, you will carry it with you everywhere.

A Brief History of Time is a mind blowing insight to the advanced theories of the universe. Stephen Hawking is a modern expert of space theory and all science in general. He takes complicated ideas and puts them into a book that the general public can read and understand. He explains everything from black holes to the fate og the universe. This is a facsinating book.

The book is a masterpiece. It sold over 9 million copies. Prof. Hawking discusses general relativity, quantum mechanics and the uncertainty principle, particles and forces, black holes and how they are not really black (two full chapters on black holes), the origin and fate of the universe and the nature of time. Scientists are hoping to combine general relativity with quantum mechanics to form one single unified theory - the quantum theory of gravity. This is extremely difficult and Prof. Hawking discusses some of the things the theory will need to have. The book takes us on a fascinating journey through the universe. It also gives us an insight into the mind of a great thinker. The best thing about this book is that its very clear and for people who don't like books with equations, you have gotten lucky - this book has just one equation - Einstein's famous energy=mass times the speed of light squared - which shouldn't be much of a problem. Once again, this is the best book you will find today on the topic.

I am a college student, well versed in mathmatics and physics, and I stand in awe of the manner in which Hawking presents the most difficult concepts of science in a way that a layman can understand. This book should be required reading for all students of astronomy, physics, astrophysics, and even geology. Hawking's ability to explain abstract concepts in a clear, concise manner, without resorting to higher mathmatics is uncanny.

If you have ever wondered about the nature of our universe,and thought that it was beyond you, then this book is a must read.

I had read Stephen Hawking's Universe years ago, but when it was brought to my attention again recently I decided to reread it, something I rarely do. I have to admit, it fares well despite the passing of time ( it was written in the mid-80s). This is in part because it is one of the better and simpler introductions to cosmology and the history of the Big Bang Theory. It is also due to the charming personal details woven through the book by its author and relating to Stephen Hawking the man.

As most of those who follow cosmology probably already know, Stephen Hawking is afflicted with a serious neuromuscular disease. Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, ALS or Lou Gehrig's disease (after the baseball player who died of the disorder) had confined Hawking to a wheelchair by the writing of the book and has since put him on a portable ventilator. Having worked with people suffering with this disorder earlier in my career, I can attest both to the seriousness of the malady and to my surprise that the gentleman has survived as long as he has. Both facts make his intellectual achievements, the dedication of his caretakers, and his own personal tenacity for life very real to me and very impressive.

John Boslough, the author, is a scientific journalist. He appears to understand physics at least well enough to describe it for the layperson, and does so in a readable style. He also creates a biography that is flattering to the subject without diminishing the contributions of others to the field. The book is, however, extremely simple, more of a history of the development of the theory of the big bang and black holes than a thorough explanation of them, and the interested reader would do well to look at Hawking's own popular writings on the subject for a more thorough and professional point of view. My only complaint about the book would be that it does not contain any form of bibliography, a resource I always consider one of a book's most valuable assets. It helps the reader to find material for further study, and it also provides a measure of the preparedness of the author on his topic!

I'd recommend the book to any beginner who is curious about the Big Bang Theory, about black holes, the Theory of Relativity, the Theory of Quantum Mechanics, or about Stephen Hawking. I would also say that any person from junior high level or above would be able to understand the material.

This small book, originally written in 1984, was and is still revealing.
Firstly, on a personal level, Hawking admitted already at that time that "As far as theoretical physics are concerned, I'm already ... quite far over the hill'.
Secondly, it gives an excellent explanation of Hawking's contribution to theoretical physics (black holes and their similarities to the beginning of time).
Thirdly, Hawking has outspoken opinions about the anthropic principle (against), the universe of Eastern mysticism (an illusion), the many universes theory (not meaningful) or determinism ('Even if we do achieve a complete unified theory, we shall not be able to make detailed predictions in any but the simplest situations').

This booklet offers also excellent examples for the theories of relativity and quantum mechanics and contains Hawking's Inaugural Lecture 'Is the End in Sight for Theoretical Physics?'

Although this book is, from a theoretical point of view, out of date (no superstrings), it should not be missed.

As a non-science-type-person I read this book with the sense of shame and guilt that was customarily heaped upon purchasers of "Cliff Notes" by our school English teachers. This is a layman's guide to Hawking for people who are too intimidated to read Hawking, but as such it is a very good piece of work, and the discussion of the Big Bang, black holes, pulsars and quasars are well interspersed with aphoristic comments by Hawking himself.

I was a bit reluctant to like this book when I first read it because of its abundance of cartoons that appeared to be quite cheaply drawn. It also belonged to part of a larger series of 'Introducing' books and I'm always reluctant to like those because they always seem to be directed towards making a profit rather than providing good information.

Contrary to my first impressions, the book was actually fairly good and informative. It covers a good part of Stephen Hawking's life as well as some background in fundamentals of physics so you can grasp some of his ideas. Although soem cartoons are completely gratuitous others actually provide extra clarification on the ideas expressed.

The book gives a very broad overview over Stephen Hawking's ideas. Specifically his theories concerning black hole radiation. Some stuff was a bit hard for me to grasp (atleast to understand all the little details was near impossible) but the book illustrates the general ideas very well :)

I read this book as a science work, not as a promotional biography.

As popular writings of modern physics go this is a rather good account of modern cosmology. The author has a physics background thus making the science fairly honest. The writing is linear with ample asides to bring the reader up to speed on important concepts. The brevity of the writing bespeaks compatification, not loss.

The problem is that Hawking wants to win the Nobel Prize something fierce. The author is out to lend his support to a fellow Britisher by publishing this unabashed Nobel promo (the closing pages give a summation of why Hawking should win the big one). As far as the cartoony format goes the caricatures seem to be directed at those physicists and religious figures (generally dead) the author wants to relegate to supporting roles to the great one. If you can get around these prejudices you will find a good read.

Cartoons, comic book style, sumo wrestlers - all these will from now on be associated with astronomy and quantum theory, thanks to this book. If like me you are just reading for general interest this book will explain it all, but without bogging it down with detail. A good read, and now I feel confident to read Hawkings book 'A brief history of time'.

Before I've read the book "A brief history of time" and found it is very intestesting. Then this book reinforce me about what is the key points stated by Hawking and, most importantly, what is the problem still remained unsolved. This is a very good book to those outsiders of astronomy like me.

I enyoyed this book greatly. It provides an excellent introduction to the sometimes overwealming amount of material available on big bang cosmology and its philosophical implications. It also strikes a nice balance between the science and the religious aspects of thinking about the big bang. Wilkinson never over-states his case, taking pains to point out where uncertainties lie in both the science and the natural theology. His conclusions are therefore realistic and draw the reader to the understanding that God's revelation is primarily not found in nature (although strongly suggested by both Cosmological and Design arguments) but in the written revelation of Scripture. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in obtaining a fast and very readable understanding of how the Big Bang origin of the Universe ties in with faith.