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OVERVIEW
10 Questions Science Can't Answer (Yet)	Michael Hanlon	A truly thought-provoking and fascinating exploration of areas of science that aren't fully understood, from dark matter to why so many people are fat.	Overview
13 Things that don't make sense	Michael Brooks	A fun and informative read on 13 anomalies of science that surprises and delights in equal measures.	Overview
25 Big Ideas	Robert Matthews	Condensed book style makes this introduction to the key areas of modern science useful but a little dry	Overview
30 Second Theories	Paul Parsons (Ed.)	An attempt to cover all of science in 50 snippets. A curate's egg of a book that leaves you wanting more.	Overview
Armageddon Science	Brian Clegg	The science behind the many ways that humanity can destroy itself (with a bit of destructive nature thrown in). Mad scientists may be scary, but it's a strangely enjoyable cocktail.	Overview
Art & Science	Siân Ede	Flawed examination of the interplay between art and science. Worth reading, though, to see what the problem is	Overview
The Artful Universe Expanded	John D. Barrow	Attempt to link the arts and the science of the universe that allowed them to emerge - good idea, but sinks in pomposity	Overview
The Apple and the Atom	Sebastien Balibar	Enjoyable and very personal views on a series of scientific topics from a French low temperature physicist.	Overview
Are Angels OK?	Bill Manhire & Paul Callaghan (Eds.)	Mix of science, science fiction and lab lit from New Zealand. Mixed content, but explores well how science and literature sit alongside each other.	Overview
As Far As We Know	Paul Callaghan & Kim Hill	Transcripts of entertaining radio conversations covering a wide range of scientific issues from human gender to thermodynamics.	Overview
Atomic: the first war of physics	Jim Baggott	Riveting and detailed history of the development of nuclear weapons in Germany, the UK, the US and Russia. Fascinating in its depth and the lost possibilities for alternatives to nuclear proliferation.	Overview
Bad Science	Ben Goldacre	Funny and devastatingly accurate exposure of the way bad science is used to sell products and fool the press.	Overview
Bang!!! A Curriculum Vitae of the Universe	Siegfried Eckleben	Interesting attempt to trace where we come from, from big bang to human evolution, let down by poor editing and odd narration.	Overview
Beyond the Hoax	Alan Sokal	Hugely insightful look into the nature of science based on Sokal's hoax academic paper, but could have better put together.	Overview
Biohazard	Ken Alibek and Stephen Handelman	Gripping spy story of a history of a personal involvement in the Soviet biological weapons programme - but somewhat lightweight on the science.	Overview
The Blind Spot	William Byers	Challenges the validity of our approach to science from a philosophical standpoint. Makes some interesting points, but rather impenetrable writing style.	Overview
Boffinology	Justin Pollard	Fun set of stories behind scientific discoveries and the scientists who made them. Very readable, often surprising and entertaining.	Overview
Bones, Rocks and Stars	Chris Turney	An interesting look into the science behind dating, deciding how old things are and working out when things happened	Overview
Branches	Philip Ball	Part of Ball's wide-ranging study of form, this book looks at branching in nature, with a sideline in the concept of scientific models.	Overview
A Brief History of Science	Thomas Crump	The history of science through the development of scientific tools and instruments	Overview, technology
Bright Earth: the invention of colour	Philip Ball	Wonderful subject of the history of artists' colours and the science behind them - sacrifices a little readability for comprehensiveness.	Overview
The Canon	Natalie Angier	The basics of all science in an accessible and surprisingly full little book.	Overview
The Cause of Mosquitoes' Sorrow	Surendra Verma	Chronological trip through scientific breakthroughs, beginnings and blunders providing quick tasters.	Overview
Children of the Sun	Alfred W. Crosby	A sweeping and inspiring trip through humanity's relationship with energy, from simple agriculture to nuclear power. Style not to everyone's taste, but magnificent.	Overview
Complexity: a guided tour	Melanie Mitchell	Enjoyable and engaging exploration of complexity, genetic algorithms, networks and more.	Overview
Cosmic Imagery: key images in the history of science	John D. Barrow	Barrow often tries to pull together art and science and here succeeds well in an exploration of archetypes of scientific imagery.	Overview
Critical Mass	Philip Ball	Overlong and inconclusive but still fascinating look at the statistical behaviour of humanity	Overview
Deep Simplicity	John Gribbin	Chaos, complexity and simplicity related to the origins of life, but sadly not very well explained.	Maths, overview
The Demon Haunted World	Carl Sagan	An eloquent plea for reason and the scientific method instead of wide-eyed acceptance	Sceptics, overview
A Devil's Chaplain	Richard Dawkins	Collection of essays from our foremost spokesperson for neo-Darwinian thinking. Superb and challenging (in a positive sense).	Overview
Different Engines	Mark L. Brake & Neil Hook	Interesting topic - the interplay between science and science fiction - with some good points, but not hugely readable, and some glaring omissions.	Overview
Don't be Such a Scientist	Randy Olson	Excellent book on how scientists can communicate better and learn from the movies, but not really for a general audience.	Overview
Einstein's Refrigerator [A Matter of Degrees]	Gino Segre	Excellent exploration of temperature, heat and cold, taking in a trip through much of science	Physics, overview
Einstein's Refrigerator	Steve Silverman	Rather 'gee whiz' exposition of weird but true, mostly science-based tales	Overview
Elegance in Science	Ian Glynn	Usefully puts some well-known theories into historical context, but less effective at establish its argument about elegance.	Overview
The End of Discovery	Russell Stannard	Accessible exploration of some of the most difficult topics facing scientists today, and whether we will ever get satisfactory answers.	Overview
Eureka! The Birth of Science	Andrew Gregory	Although it's arguable the ancient Greeks didn't do science, they certainly laid the foundations: this book is essential reading	Overview
Everyday Practice of Science	Frederick Grinnell	Excellent as an academic study of the real nature of the scientific method, but hopeless as popular science.	Overview
Faster	James Gleick	A description of the way we are constantly demanding to fit more and more into our time - probably Gleick's weakest book, but still interesting	Overview
The Fellowship	John Gribbin	History of the founding of the Royal Society built on biographies of the key figures - comes alive with Hooke, but elsewhere can be dull..	Overview
Findings	Hugh Aldersey-Williams	Examination of 20th century science by pulling apart in detail a scientific paper for each decade. Heavy going but full of insights.	Overview
The First Scientist	Brian Clegg	Readable biography of thirteenth century friar and proto-scientist, Roger Bacon.	Biography, overview
Flow	Philip Ball	A study of the science of flow that offers many pleasures to the reader (but a clear statement of the book's aims is not one of them)	Overview
Free Radicals	Michael Brooks	An unusual look behind the facade of cool, rational thinkers that scientists like to project to show the way some great science came from off-the-wall thinking and how scientists are all too human.	Overview
The Friar and the Cipher	Lawrence & Nancy Goldstone	Limited biography of proto-scientist Roger Bacon coupled with speculation on supposedly connected enciphered manuscript	Overview
The Fruits of War	Michael White	A huge sweep - effectively a brief history of all of technology, pointing out where its development was accelerated by war proves interesting but too much to cover	Overview
The Future of Food	Brian J. Ford	A sharp assessment of what's wrong with the way we produce and consume food, and how things might change. Idiosyncratic tone might irritate, but will also interest.	Overview
Future Proof	Nick Sagan, Mark Frary and Andy Walker	Good, if unoriginal concept of showing how the future technology of earlier days hasn't come into being. Glossy, but not very inspiring.	Overview
Galileo's Daughter	Dava Sobel	Biography of Galileo and exploration of his work, cunningly linked by a series of letters from his daughter	Biography, overview
Galileo's Finger	Peter Atkins	Attempt to identify the key scientific breakthroughs of history	Overview
Giant Leaps	John Perry & Jack Challoner	Light and surprisingly good collaboration between the Science Museum and the tabloid newspaper, The Sun, covering our greatest scientific advances.	Overview
Gödel, Escher, Bach	Douglas Hofstadter	Linking the music of Bach, the art of Escher and the maths of Gödel to illustrate human thought	Psychology, overview
God's Philosophers	James Hannam	Highly informative and surprisingly readable book filling in just what developments were made in the history of science during the medieval period.	Overview
The Hidden Reality	Brian Greene	Nine different options of parallel universes explored with Greene's usual elan and plenty of background science.	Physics, cosmology
How Slow Can You Waterski?	Simon Rogers (ed.)	... and other puzzling questions. Yes, it's another collection of mini-science articles, but this is one of the better ones, culled from the Guardian	Overview
How it Ends	Chris Impey	Slightly depressing exploration of how everything from human life to the universe ends. Lots of good content, but presentation sometimes offputting.	Overview
How to Clone the Perfect Blonde	Sue Nelson & Richard Hollingham	Eight fascinating applications of science, beautifully explained, but let down a little by childish humour	Overview
How to Dunk a Doughnut	Len Fisher	Interesting idea of turning the full weight of experimental science on everyday happenings, but doesn't entirely deliver.	Overview
How to Fossilise Your Hamster	Mick O'Hare (Ed.)	Building on their Q&A books, now an experiments book from the New Scientist's reliable Last Word column.	Overview
How to Live Forever	Alok Jha	One of those 'all of science' books squeezed into a 'funky questions' format. Doesn't quite work.	Overview
I Used to Know That: General Science	Marianne Taylor	A pocket book providing a reminder of high school/GCSE level science in a more approachable fashion than a textbook.	Overview
Inflight Science	Brian Clegg	A celebration of the wonder of powered flight that covers the science of flying but is mostly about the science observed through the aircraft window.	Overview
Ingenious Ireland	Mary Mulvihill	An enjoyable guidebook of Irish scientific and technological wonders - rating reflects reference use, not contents	Overview
Is There Life After Death?	Tony Peake	Interesting attempt to use scientific theory to pose a mechanism for life outside our normal experience.	Physics
Just Another Day	Adam Hart-Davis	Excellent concept of going through a composite everyday life and exploring the science and technology. A lot of the author in it, so a book you'll love or hate.	Overview
Knowledge is Power	John Henry	Flawed but interesting exploration of the work of Francis Bacon	Overview
Kuhn vs Popper	Steve Fuller	Great opportunity to explain philosophy of science lost in a tangle of words	Overview
Leaps in the Dark	John Waller	Uncovering the myths of science to show that those "Eureka!" moments might be rather different. Excellent.	Overview
Litmus	Ra Page (Ed.)	A collection of short stories, each illustrating a key moment in science, each with an explanatory essay. Worthy idea, but not great.	Overview
Little Book of Big Ideas: Science	Pete Moore	Nice collection of quick summaries of the achievements of key individuals in science, clearly written, but highly oversimplified	Overview
The Little Book of Scientific Principles, Theories and Things	Surendra Verma	A delightful collection of 175 vignettes, illuminating scientific theories and the people who devised them. Highly recommended	Overview
The Little Book of Unscientific Principles, Theories and Things	Surendra Verma	A fun collection of 100 articles on subjects on the fringes of science from good but unlikely science to downright lunacy.	Overview
Magic Universe	Nigel Calder	Alphabetic collection of articles on modern science that are fascinating to read and give a good overview.	Overview
The Manhattan Project: Big Science and the Atom Bomb	Jeff Hughes	The Manhattan Project is just an example in this slightly disappointing story of the growth of megascience	Overview
The March of Unreason	Dick Taverne	Interesting counter to the anti-science, anti-practically everything tone that is so popular these days.	Overview
The Martian Rice Pudding Programme and the Art of Why	Richard Lester	Attempt to cover all of science, mostly reasonable in content, but with an unconvincing theme and a rather wearing style.	Overview
The Meadowlands	Robert Sullivan	Mix of industrial archaeology, travel and natural history in this warm exploration of the swamps and tips on the edge of New York City	Overview
Not Exactly	Kees van Deemter	A study of vagueness in language, logic, computing, and everyday life. Highly original but often abstract, and could be more cohesive.	Overview
On Being	Peter Atkins	Interesting attempt to apply scientific thinking to the 'great questions of existence' - specifically the beginnings and endings of everything.	Overview
The One True Platonic Heaven	John L. Casti	Cleverly written fictional encounter between key physicists and mathematicians at the IAS - with some politics thrown in for fun	Overview
The Oxford Book of Modern Science Writing	Richard Dawkins	Interesting collection of extracts from many great science writers and scientists. Excellent sampler.	Overview
The Oxford Dictionary of Scientific Quotations	W. F. Bynum and Roy Porter	Absolutely brilliant collection of quotations from scientists and about science. An absolutely must-have reference.	Overview
Pathfinders	Jim Al-Khalili	Fascinating stories of the amazing figures of Arabic science who built the foundations of the renaissance. The analysis is less effective, but that's not important.	Overview
Pavlov's dogs and Schrödinger's cat	Rom Harré	Rather strained and low key book on the use of animals and plants as scientific instruments and experimental equipment.	Overview
The Presence of the Past	Rupert Sheldrake	Interesting idea of 'morphic resonance' shaping everything from crystals to human beings, but rather dull reading and in the end not convincing.	Overview
Q&A: Cosmic Conundrums and Everyday Mysteries of Science	Robert Matthews	Lots of fun and some significant surprises in this selection of answers to the scientific questions we'd all like to ask, but haven't	Overview
Radiation and Reason	Wade Allison	Powerful arguments for a better assessment of the risk of nuclear power, but could do to be more approachable.	Physics, human science
Real Mosquitoes Don't Eat Meat	Brad Wetzler	A collection of delightful and fun answers to those questions that always puzzle us, in this case about the natural world	Overview
The Rough Guide to the Future	Jon Turney	Interesting idea of exploring the future, well written, but let down by the lack of science and often rather dull topics that have to be covered but don't inspire.	Overview
Science 1001	Paul Parsons	Lovely idea of covering all of science in 1001 readable short articles, and very well written. But it's hard to see how it will be used.	Overview
Science: a four thousand year history	Patricia Fara	Magnificent and very readable account of all of science, putting it into its social and political context.	Overview
Science, A History	John Gribbin	Everything from the Renaissance to the present - lots there, but a dipping book	Overview
Science and Islam: a history	Ehsan Masood	An enlightening and very accessible survey of Islamic science during the so-called Dark Ages and beyond.	Overview
The Science Delusion	Rupert Sheldrake	Some superb thoughts about the limitations of science and the ways that scientists take a blinkered view. Sadly, though, other elements of this book make it easy to ignore the powerful message.	Overview
Science of Discworld	Terry Pratchett, Ian Stewart & Jack Cohen	Clever mix of Pratchett's fantasy and science covering the "construction" of the earth. Not the best in the series, but good	Overview
The Science of the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy	Michael Hanlon	The wacky world of Douglas Adams opened up to the scientific spotlight. Sometimes too brisk, but otherwise good	Overview
The Science of Middle Earth	Henry Gee	Surprisingly effective study of Tolkein's attitude to science and its appearance on his writings	Overview
Science: the definitive guide	Piers Bizony	Attempt to do the whole of science in a two page spreads style picture book. Very bitty and not enough content, but worst of all, the huge format makes it practically unreadable.	Overview
Scientific without the Boring Bits	Ian Crofton	A chronologically arranged collection of fun factoids and strange pseudo-science snippets. Each entry is only a paragraph or two, so too bitty to enjoy end to end - better to dip in.	Overview
Scientific Curiosity/A Book of Scientific Curiosities	Cyril Aydon	A jumble of short pieces on people in the history of science and scientific topics. Weak on modern physics but otherwise reasonable	Overview
The Scientists	See Science, A History
The Second Mouse Gets the Cheese	Colin Spedding	Very slim book on proverbs, based on the author's use of them in science lectures. A real oddity.	Overview
Seen | Unseen	Martin Kemp	A thick, glossy attempt to find parallels in the way scientists and artists perceive the world - not entirely successful.	Overview
Seven Wonders of the Universe	C. Renée James	Very chatty, friendly format for a quick overview of science (particularly physics) around us. A bit too 'wow, gee whiz!' and vague for us, but will appeal to some.	Overview
Sex, Drugs & DNA	Michael Stebbins	Powerful indictment of the failings of the US political system on scientific and medical issues, written in a highly approachable style	Overview
Shapes	Philip Ball	Over-technical and detailed, but still fascinating exploration of how natural shapes emerge.	Overview
A Short History of Nearly Everything	Bill Bryson	Triumphant charge through all of science	Overview
The Single Helix	Steve Jones	One hundred light and enjoyable newspaper columns, collected to give an excellent dip into pretty well every area of science.	Overview
Space on Earth	Charles Cockell	Uncomfortable mix of space exploration and environmentalism that tell you more about the author's interests than anything else.	Overview
Sync: the emerging science of spontaneous order	Steven Strogatz	A wonderful, cross-disciplinary jaunt that mixes real life scientific experience with exploration of synchronicity	Overview
The Ten Most Beautiful Experiments	George Johnson	Engaging look at ten real desktop experiments through history. You can dispute if he's got the best, but certainly makes them highly readable.	Overview
Thank God for Evolution	Michael Dowd	Remarkable attempt to frame a religious view based on science, only let down by the religious book style of writing.	Overview
The Tunguska Fireball	Surendra Verma	Fascinating story of the Siberian puzzle of 1908 told in an ultimately unsatisfactory fashion	Overview
The Undercover Scientist	Peter J. Bentley	Attempt to link basic science introduction by describing why various disasters happen to the second person protagonist - a little wince-making.	Overview
The Universe Next Door	Marcus Chown	Strange concepts at the edge of scientific theories	Overview, physics
Unweaving the Rainbow	Richard Dawkins	An excellent attempt to counter the argument that science spoils the beauty of nature, slightly tainted by attitude	Overview
The Velocity of Honey	Jay Ingram	23 fun excursions into the science of the everyday from falling toast to skipping stones	Overview
Virtual Words	Jonathon Keats	Delightful collection of essays on the origins and meanings of a series of words from science and technology.	Overview
Weighing the Soul	Len Fisher	Seven examples of challenges to scientific beliefs, from the weight of the soul to the nature of lightning, delightfully told	Overview
Weird Science and Bizarre Beliefs	Gregory L. Reece	Should be a great book about strange scientific ideas and related science fiction, but in fact is dull and rambling.	Overview
What does the Moon Smell Like	Eva Everything	Multiple choice science quiz book that isn't easy enough to read through, but makes a good gift book.	Overview
Why are Orangutans Orange?	Mick O'Hare (Ed.)	The latest in New Scientist's reliable Last Word column originated books gets extra oomph by being based on reader's photos of odd things they've seen..	Overview
Why does a ball bounce?	Adam Hart-Davis	The UK's favourite TV boffin explains 101 phenomena - much too short, but still great fun	Overview
Why Can't Elephants Jump?	Mick O'Hare (Ed.)	Weird science question and answer book from the New Scientist's Last Word column. The format is getting a bit stale now.	Overview
Why Don't Penguins' Feet Freeze	Mick O'Hare (Ed.)	One of the better "weird science question and answer" books from the New Scientist's reliable Last Word column.	Overview
Why People Believe Weird Things	Michael Shermer	Powerful and effective exploration of where strange beliefs come from and how they take hold.	Sceptics, overview
Why Us?	James Le Fanu	Puts forward arguments against evolutionary theory and the idea that the electrochemical workings of the brain explain consciousness. A good idea, but a muddled book.	Overview
Wordplay	John Langdon	Clever graphic designs that can be read in more than one direction, as used by Dan Brown - but the "science" is weak to say the least	Overview
PHYSICS
50 Physics Ideas you Really Need to Know	Joanne Baker	Quite a reasonable and approachable summary, despite a few errors, but not a great end-to-end read.	Physics
Air: the excellent canopy	Frank Fahy	A slim but packed book on the nature of air, aerodynamics, sound, weather and more. Lots of content, but not very approachable.	Physics
The Amazing Story of Quantum Mechanics	James Kakalios	Despite promising to be 'math free' this introduction to quantum mechanics peppered with examples from comic books is quite hard work for the reader, but rewards that work with more depth than is usual.	Physics
Antimatter	Frank Close	Intriguing guide to antimatter: what it is, how it's made and how it's unlikely to be a serious component of a weapon.	Physics
Atom	Piers Bizony	A good mix of biography and science as we follow the trail of just what atoms are. Could do with a bit more depth in the human interest side, but well-written.	Physics
The Beautiful Invisible	Giovanni Vignale	A unique look at the importance of imagination and beauty in physical theories, exploring the difference between fact and representation.	Physics
Before the Fall-out: From Marie Curie to Hiroshima	Diana Preston	Moving and human account of the discoveries that would lead to the nuclear bomb, and of those involved in its first use.	Physics
Beware Invisible Cows	Andy Martin	A totally subjective, Impressionist look at where the universe came from. Some might like it, but for us it doesn't work.	Physics, cosmology
The Big Questions: Physics	Michael Brooks	A strange notebook-like format for a book that summarizes particularly modern physics well, but lacks a popular science context.	Physics
Black Bodies & Quantum Cats	Jennifer Ouellette	Extremely readable collection of articles on physics. Great fun, but sadly too many errors.	Physics
The Book of Time	Adam Hart-Davis	Heavily illustrated book on the nature of time and its measurements that has enough in to interest adults but is presented in a way that will appeal to older children too.	Physics
The Born-Einstein Letters	Max Born & Albert Einstein	Fascinating letters between two of the 20th century greats of physics.	Biography, physics
Breaking the Time Barrier	Jenny Randles	Intriguing ride on the mind storms of inventors who think they've built time machines, and the real physics that hints at time travel, but more like TV popsci than popular science	Physics
Build Your Own Time Machine [How to Build a Time Machine]	Brian Clegg	A tantalising exploration of the physics of time travel and the different possibilities for making it happen, including the everyday time travel that special relativity already brings.	Physics
Collider: the search for the world's smallest particles	Paul Halpern	Useful introduction to the Large Hadron Collider, particular good on the history of accelerators and particle research.	Physics
Cosmic Numbers	James D. Stein	An introduction to physics through some of the essential constants of the universe. Nice enough concept, but the approach is too mathematical for the general reader.	Physics
The Dancing Wu Li Masters	Gary Zukav	Dated but reasonable attempt to explain "new" physics flawed by unnecessary mysticism	Physics
Deciphering the Cosmic Number	Arthur I. Miller	Though mostly on physicist Wolfgang Pauli, intertwines the life and work of Carl Jung. Interesting science, but too much mystical claptrap and dream analysis.	Physics, biography
Deep Down Things	Bruce A. Schumm	Introduces the standard model of particle physics in some depth. Has elements of popular science, but will be too technical for many.	Physics
Decoding Reality	Vlatko Vedral	Fascinating subject - the significance of information in the universe - but could have been much better written..	Physics
The Demon and the Quantum	Robert J. Scully with Marlan O. Scully	Interesting exploration of thermodynamics that unfortunately loses the reader as it tries to tie into quantum theory.	Physics
A Different Universe	Robert M. Laughlin	An argument for a different kind of physics, that is more dependent on emergent properties, rather than bottom up. Interesting but not entirely convincing.	Physics
The Double Helix	James D. Watson	Forget the tendency to disregard this book because it's not politically correct - it's a wonderful personal account of the discovery of the structure of DNA	Biology, physics
E=mc2	David Bodanis	Great historical storytelling, if a little sketchy on the science in this biography of an equation, reviewed on E=mc2's 100th birthday	Physics
The Edge of Physics	Anil Ananthaswamy	Great science-as-travel-writing, visiting the places where some of today's most exciting science is under way.	Cosmology, physics
Einstein: A Life in Science	Michael White & John Gribbin	Between them, White & Gribbin iron out each others faults to produce a good, balanced Einstein biog	Biography, physics
Einstein and Relativity	Paul Strathern	Compact book on Einstein's life and work - a good introduction, but quite short.	Physics
Einstein's Refrigerator [A Matter of Degrees]	Gino Segre	Excellent exploration of temperature, heat and cold, taking in a trip through much of science	Physics, overview
Einstein's Heroes	Robyn Arianrhod	Excellent exploration of the move of maths to centre stage in physics, mostly focussing on the life and work of James Clark Maxwell	Physics, maths
Einstein's Moon	F. David Peat	Good simple explanation of quantum theory coupled with rather fuzzy exploration of what reality is	Physics
Einstein's Mistakes	Hans C. Ohanian	Brilliantly different exposition of Einstein's work, only slightly let down by smugness and at least one error.	Physics
Einstein's Universe: the layperson's guide	Nigel Calder	Short and useful book which outlines special and general relativity - good start for anyone who is first encountering the subject.	Physics
The Electric Life of Michael Faraday	Alan Hirshfeld	A fascinating look at the life and particularly the work of this pre-eminent Victorian physicist.	Biography, physics
Electric Universe	David Bodanis	Excellent as a teen introduction to the wonders of electricity, but a bit too gushing for some adults.	Physics
The Elegant Universe	Brian Greene	Precursor to Fabric of the Cosmos with considerable overlaps. Not as good on relativity/quantum theory but more on string theory.	Physics, cosmology
The Elegant Universe of Albert Einstein	Tom Barnes et al	Collection of essays based on radio broadcasts linked to the 100th anniversary of Einstein's great year. A little fragmented, but some very good.	Physics
Energy: the subtle concept	Jennifer Coopersmith	Though by no means an easy read with many physics concept taken as read, this book is a valuable exploration of the nature of energy and our increasing knowledge of it.	Physics
Entanglement	Amir Aczel	Over-technical background to the workings of quantum entanglement	Physics
An Entertainment of Angels	Patricia Fara	Interesting if compact story of eighteenth century electrical psuedo-science	Physics
The Essential Einstein: His Greatest Works	Albert Einstein	Stephen Hawking edits and comments on Einstein's best work - but you probably need a physics degree.	Physics
The Fabric of the Cosmos	Brian Greene	Great exploration of the nature of space, time and matter, starting with relativity and quantum theory and reaching out to the universe	Physics, cosmology
Faster Than Light	Nick Herbert	Age and so-so writing pull down the rating for this book, but still has good insights on getting around the light barrier	Physics
The Fly in the Cathedral	Brian Cathcart	Brilliant story of the race to crack open the atomic nucleus: a must!	Physics
Four Laws (that drive the Universe)	Peter Atkins	A good concise introduction to the four laws of thermodynamics that would be great for a physics undergraduate, but just doesn't hack it as popular science.	Physics
From Eternity to Here	Sean Carroll	The book A Brief History of Time should have been - really does explore time and the significance of entropy to cosmology. Excellent book.	Physics, cosmology
Froth	Mark Denny	The science of beer - starts well with a good history, but then becomes much too technical on yeast populations, beer thermodynamics and more.	Physics
Galloping with Light	Felix Alba-Juez	A self-published attempt to explain Einstein's theories to the general reader. Too plodding and too concerned with words rather than science.	Physics
God Does Play Dice with the Universe	Shan Gao	Interesting theory on the random and discontinuous nature of movement, but poorly written.	Physics
The God Effect	Brian Clegg	Remarkable exploration of quantum entanglement, a bizarre effect that has amazing applications. Excellent explanation of the science	Physics
The God Particle	Leon Lederman & Dick Teresi	In-depth and often funny look at the history of particle physics and the development of the standard model, viewed by an insider.	Physics
God's Equation	Amir Aczel	An exploration of 'Einstein's greatest mistake' - the cosmic constant	Biography, cosmology, physics
The Grand Design	Stephen Hawking & Leonard Mlodinow	Very glossy (though illustrations sometimes wrong) attempt to explain everything with science, disposing of philosophy and religion. Good physics summaries, but poor thesis.	Cosmology, physics
How the Hippies Saved Physics	David Kaiser	Quite entertaining about a group of far-out fringe physics, and informative on quantum entanglement - but the premise doesn't hold up.	Physics
The Infinity Puzzle	Frank Close	Essential reading for anyone interested in really understanding QED, weak and strong forces and the Higgs boson - but has some issues.	Physics
In Search of Schrödinger's Cat	John Gribbin	One of Gribbin's best books providing a good introduction to quantum theory, which doesn't suffer too much from age despite being over 20 years old.	Physics
In Search of the Multiverse	John Gribbin	A speculative but highly entertaining trip around the different concepts that take us beyond a single universe to a multiverse.	Physics
The Instant Physicist	Richard A. Muller	Fun idea of small two page spreads with an amazing factoid illustrated by a cartoon on one side and explanation on the other. But rather limited range and odd layout.	Physics
Instant Egghead Guide: Physics	Brian Clegg	Entertaining and readable pocket guide to the essentials of physics.	Physics
Introducing Chaos	Ziauddin Sardar & Iwona Abrams	Wacky illustrated introduction to the concepts of chaos - pure marmite	Maths, physics
Introducing Quantum Theory	J.P. McEvoy & Oscar Zarate	Wacky but good illustrated introduction to the concepts of quantum theory	Physics
Introducing Relativity	Bruce Bassett & Ralph Edney	Wacky illustrated introduction to the concepts of relativity - pure marmite	Physics
Introducing Stephen Hawking	J.P. McEvoy & Oscar Zarate	Interesting illustrated intro to Hawking's work with good mini-bio, but suffers from lack of stuff that is Hawking's, plus age	Physics
Introducing Time	Craig Callender & Ralph Edney	Occasionally bizarre but very effective pocket illustrated tour of the concept of time, giving more than many longer books.	Physics
Isaac Newton	James Gleick	Newton biog with good insight into his physics	Biography, physics
Isaac Newton, the Last Sorcerer	Michael White	Newton biog with emphasis on personal development and his interest in alchemy	Biography, physics
The Labyrinth of Time	Michael Lockwood	Attempt to explore the universe through a better understanding of time that doesn't quite make it	Physics, cosmology
Latitude: The Magnetic Earth	Stephen Pumfrey	Good consideration of the impact of the little-known Elizabethan, William Gilbert	Physics, earth science
Light Years	Brian Clegg	The story of humanity's exploration of light. Combination of good history with fascinating new light science. New edition.	Physics
The Magic Furnace	Marcus Chown	Where atoms come from - a remarkable story that takes us from the big bang to now	Physics, astronomy, cosmology
The Many Worlds of Hugh Everett III	Peter Byrne	Interesting biography of the man behind the many worlds quantum interpretation and a major contributor to game theory. Bio parts good, science a bit impenetrable.	Biography, physics
Massive	Ian Sample	The search for the Higgs boson and the source of mass. The story of the development of the colliders is great, but the physics is rather summary.	Physics
Michael Faraday and the Electrical Century	Iwan Rhees Morus	Combines skimpy biography of Faraday with interesting insights into early attitudes to electricity	Biography, physics
Middle World	Mark Haw	Dull looking book, which is a shame because it's a brilliant, very readable tour of the nanoscale from Brownian motion to biological machines.	Physics
Mr Tompkins in Paperback	George Gamow	Early attempt at popularizing hard physics, beloved of many scientists, but hasn't aged well	Physics
Neutrino	Frank Close	Small but totally fascinating book on the hunt for this most elusive of quantum particles. Superb insight into the way real science works.	Physics
The Never Ending Days of Being Dead	Marcus Chown	A clear exploration of some of the big questions in physics, bringing in a range of weird and wonderful theories	Physics, cosmology
New Theories of Everything	John D. Barrow	Hard to read, but insightful exploration of the nature of theories in science and how they are constructed, particularly around physics and theories of everything.	Physics
The Northern Lights	Lucy Jago	Kristian Birkeland, the Norwegian scientist who first uncovered the secret of the Northern Lights	Biography, physics
Nothing: a very short introduction	Frank Close	Turns out to be more 'basic ideas in modern physics', often well presented, though very compact - but not quite what the title promises.	Physics
Not Even Wrong	Peter Woit	Stunning but hugely difficult book describing the failing of string theory and why it perhaps isn't even science. [UNRATEABLE]	Physics
Once Before Time	Martin Bojowald	Explanation of loop quantum gravity, the main competitor to string theory. Knows his stuff, but not how to write about it.	Physics, cosmology
Parallel Worlds	Michio Kaku	Fascinating ideas on parallel universes, cosmology and string theory only slightly let down by oversimplification and mixed writing.	Cosmology, physics
Physics and Technology for Future Presidents	Richard A. Muller	Excellent as a textbook for a physics course for arts majors, but if you want great popular science, turn to its sister, Physics for Future Presidents.	Physics
Physics for Future Presidents	Richard A. Muller	One of the cleverest concepts we've ever come across - the physics you ought to know if you are going to be US president - and wonderfully delivered too.	Physics
The Physics of Star Trek	Lawrence M. Krauss	How much can real science make the wonders of Star Trek possible?	TV, physics
The Physics of Superheroes	James Kakalios	One of the better 'science of'/'physics of' books, using the exploits of superheroes to explore everything from mechanics to electromagnetism.	Physics
Physics of the Impossible	Michio Kaku	Remarkable span of ideas, pulling together everything from robots and phasers to time travel and teleportation. Looks at why they are currently impossible and how they make become possible in the future.	Physics
Physics of the Impossible	Michio Kaku	Look at the realities of science fiction technology - good on near future, but more speculative depends too much on SF.	Physics
Plastic Fantastic	Eugenie Samuel Reich	The gripping story of the biggest known fraud in physics, but could have been told better.	Physics
The Prism and the Pendulum	Robert P. Crease	The ten most beautiful experiments in science (well, physics), with good insights into the people behind them.	Physics
Programming the Universe	Seth Lloyd	An attempt to make quantum theory and quantum computers more approachable by using information theory just makes things harder	Physics
Quantum	Manjit Kumar	Long, rather dull and too technical history of the development of quantum theory.	Physics
Quantum Enigma	Bruce Rosenblum & Fred Kuttner	Not so much physics as metaphysics in this exploration of the interpretations of quantum theory and their implications (if any) for consciousness. Good if you're interested in quantum interpretations.	Physics
Quantum Man	Lawrence M. Krauss	On the surface a biography of Richard Feynman, the book is much more an explanation of his science. Some intriguing stuff, but could have been better explained.	Physics
Quantum Physics: A Beginner's Guide	Alistair I. M. Rae	Worthy if dull introduction that is reminiscent of a university lecture. Strangely omits some key aspects of quantum physics.	Physics
Quantum Physics for Poets	Leon Lederman & Christopher Hill	A workmanlike introduction to quantum physics but not great at explaining to the general reader. Better for physics students than poets.	Physics
Quantum Reality	Nick Herbert	Stodgy and impenetrable trip around the metaphysics underlying quantum theory	Physics
The Quantum Universe: everything that can happen does happen	Brian Cox & Jeff Forshaw	A superb primer on quantum physics for anyone about to start a physics degree, but incredibly hard work for a general reader.	Physics
The Quantum Zoo	Marcus Chown	The best introduction to quantum physics and relativity we've seen with some superb examples and great explanation	Physics
The Quest for the Quantum Computer	Julian Brown	Very good exploration of the weird world of quantum computing. Five star for techies, but actual rating reflects over-technical approach.	Physics, technology
QED: The Strange Theory of Light and Matter	Richard Feynman	Great insight into Feynman's genius in these transcribed lectures, in not popular science	Physics
Relativity: a very short introduction	Russell Stannard	A concise and effective summary of both special and general relativity, but more suited to a physics student than the general reader.	Physics
Relativity for the Questioning Mind	Daniel Styler	Introduction to relativity that takes the form of a workbook plus FAQs - works surprisingly well if you like the approach (probably not best as a first book to read on relativity though)	Physics
Richard Feynman: A Life in Science	John Gribbin & Mary Gribbin	Plodding style and under-done explanation of the science make this biog of super-scientist Feynman disappointing	Biography, physics
Rising Force	James D. Livingston	The history and science of levitation. Not just maglev trains (though they feature large), but the characters, inventions and patent wars, making an enjoyable read.	Physics
The Road to Reality	Roger Penrose	Remarkable tour-de-force exploration of physics and its mathematical basis, but almost totally incomprehensible!	Physics, maths
Schrödinger's Kittens	John Gribbin	Sequel to In Search of Schrodinger's Cat. Some interesting material on further development of quantum theory	Physics
Schrödinger's Rabbits	Colin Bruce	Introduction to quantum theory concentrating more on the interpretation than the theory itself. Rather confusingly written.	Physics
Seven Tales of the Pendulum	Gregory L. Baker	Some really interesting material on pendulums, but hard to get through because of the impenetrable writing.	Physics
The Shadow Club	Roberto Casati	Very promising book about shadow that simply can't deliver, because there's not much to tell	Physics
Six Easy Pieces	Richard Feynman	The essentials of physics in a chatty textbook that just scrapes into pop-sci	Physics
Sky in a Bottle	Peter Pesic	Shows how the apparently simple question "why is the sky blue?" has challenged thinkers over the years, and follows their ideas and experiments (with some to try)	Physics
Surely you are Joking, Mr Feynman	Richard Feynman	Wonderful anecdotes from the great physicist	Biography, physics
The Strangest Man	Graham Farmelo	Very detailed and well researched biography of the most secretive of the quantum physicists, Paul Dirac. A welcome addition.	Biography, physics
The Tao of Physics	Fritjof Capra	Classic book drawing parallels between physics (particularly quantum physics) and Eastern religions, still interesting despite blatant misuse by new-agers.	Physics
The Theory of Elementary Waves	Lewis E. Little	An alternative to quantum theory. Probably not right, but worth taking a look as a semi-plausible theory.	Physics
Time Travel: a writer's guide	Paul J. Nahin	Useful if slightly dated guide to the science of time travel for writers with lots of examples from science fiction.	Physics
The Time Traveller	Ronald Mallett & Bruce Henderson	Moving and highly readable story of a physicist's mission to build a time machine to visit his dead father - just finishes a bit too soon.	Physics
The Trouble with Physics	Lee Smolin	Absorbing exploration of the problems with string theory and how it has become an ineffective panacea.	Physics
The Universe in a Nutshell	Stephen Hawking	Workings of the universe, well illustrated, for lay readers	Cosmology, physics
The Universe Next Door	Marcus Chown	Strange concepts at the edge of scientific theories	Overview, physics
The Void	Frank Close	Flawed attempt to use the idea of the void to explore the science of matter and light.	Physics
We need to talk about Kelvin	Marcus Chown	Uses everyday observations to plunge into quantum theory, thermodynamics and cosmology. Great fun and very readable.	Physics, cosmology
What Einstein didn't know about Time	Keith Ashworth	A strange concoction combining a vituperative attack on Einstein personally with an alternative theory to replace relativity.	Physics
What is Time?	G. J. Whitrow	A good introduction to the nature of time, but could have been even better if written for a modern audience	Physics
Why Balloons Rise and Apples Fall	Jeff Stewart	Very good beginners introduction to classical physics, slightly let down by style and some of the modern content	Physics
Why Does E=mc2	Brian Cox & Jeff Forshaw	Explanation of the derivation of the world's most famous equation, exploration of the standard model master equation and great exposition of Higgs - but too technical for the general reader.	Physics
The Wonderful World of Relativity	Andrew M. Steane	An attempt at a popular science book that is really a watered-down text book on special relativity. Shame.	Physics
PSYCHOLOGY
De La Mettrie's Ghost - The Story of Decisions	Chris Nunn	Enjoyably written but patchy exploration of the scientific basis for free will and how we choose to act	Psychology, human science
Freedom Evolves	Daniel Dennett	Fascinating (if long-winded) exploration of free will, only low scoring as more philosophy than science	Psychology
Gödel, Escher, Bach	Douglas Hofstadter	Linking the music of Bach, the art of Escher and the maths of Gödel to illustrate human thought	Psychology, overview
How the Mind Works	Steven Pinker	Exploration of thought and the mechanisms behind it	Psychology, human science
Trust: from Socrates to spin	Kieron O'Hara	Trust dissected in a book explores the psychology and sociology of this key to scientific advance	Human science, psychology

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Last update 16 April 2011