A Brief History of Time

Name: A Brief History of Time
Author: Stephen Hawking
ISBN: 9780857501004

by Stephen Hawking

1988 · 248 pages · Nonfiction

73 Classic ★ 4.21 on Goodreads · 496K ratings

Critics' pick · Lifetime bestseller

≈ 6 hours to read · about 2 weeks at 30 minutes a day

What it's about

Stephen Hawking's attempt to explain the biggest questions in physics to ordinary readers: where the universe came from, how it might end, what black holes are, why time only moves forward, and whether physics can ever find a single theory of everything. He takes readers from Newton and Einstein through the big bang, quantum mechanics and his own discoveries about black holes, with only one equation.

Why it's worth reading

It's one of the best-selling science books ever because Hawking makes mind-expanding ideas feel within reach, with wit and wonder. It's the classic starting point for anyone curious about the universe.

You'll love it if you liked

Cosmos, Gödel, Escher, Bach: An Eternal Golden Braid or The Making of the Atomic Bomb

Good to know

It's short, about 250 pages, but some middle chapters on quantum physics get abstract; it's fine to read them lightly. Some science has moved on since 1988.

By the numbers

73Must-Read Score

Readers76 out of 100 · counts 40%+35
Critics51 out of 100 · counts 14%+8
Bestseller85 out of 100 · counts 32% (its stronger lane)+30
Buzz0 out of 100 · counts 15%+0

Critics and Bestseller are two ways to earn a place: a book's stronger one counts more. Buzz rewards recent bestseller weeks and prizes, so older books start at zero.

On the Guardian 100 Best Nonfiction Books of All Time list. One of the best-selling books ever (about 25 million copies). 4.21★ from 496K Goodreads ratings.