Bang!: The Complete History of the Universe

This is as comprehensible a book as you can expect to get considering the subject. It is still not for the absolute layman. It does presuppose a working understanding of basic physics concepts. However, it still does a wonderful job of explaining an extremely complex subject with relative clarity and depth.

Good read

I have based my rating on the hardback edition which I previously owned but gave away. The illustrations in that are superb and helpful as is the clear, well written explanation of the history of the universe and Big Bang. This is great for adults and older children because it does not seek to baffle or confuse, but clarify, explain and demonstrate in straightforward but interesting terms. Well worth the price for the hardback. BUT do not buy the kindle edition if you want the illustrations as these are missing. I was furious when my kindle version was delivered and discovered it contains just text. I would definitely not have bought if this had been clearly stated. So be warned.

Ordered this book. Paid £20 - got book with a £5 sticker on it - see photo .

As soon as I saw this book and read the reviews I had to buy it, On receiving the book you can tell immediately a lot of hard work and thought has gone into it, the book itself is beautifully put together the front cover has a striking hologram on the front, it's a well executed graphical representation of the Big Bang and is a really nice bonus.I liked how the book puts forward fairly complicated astronomy and science in an easy and enjoyable way, without the feeling you're being spoken down to.The book is ideal for a younger audience too as it's layout is striking while at the same time being useful and intuitive, there seems to be a very good reason for everything in this book. The science, the layout, the graphics and the stunning illustrations are all top class.

Overall this is a good book, but i found it a little bit too simplistic. That said that may have been due to the fact that at the same time i was reading Big Bang: by Simon Singh which i have to say is really excellent, and therefore in comparison this book suffered.The book is well set out with a logical continuity of the history. It is colourful with great pictures, but many times I was left feeling a little short of detail. I guess you can start with this book as an introduction and then explore each of the topics further in other books.

A concise and informative introduction to the history of the universe with extracts of contributors to astronomical research and development.