Author:Steven Johnson
From Steven Johnson, the bestselling author of Where Good Ideas Come From, comes How We Got to Now, the companion book to his six-part BBC One television series exploring the power and the legacy of great ideas.
How did photography bring about social reform? What connects refrigeration to Hollywood? And how did our battle against dirt help create smartphones? In this story of ingenious breakthroughs and unsung heroes, Steven Johnson explores the essential innovations that changed the world and how we live in it.
'A new Steven Johnson book is something not to be missed. The author has become the leading writer on how inventions happen' Daniel Finkelstein, The Times, Books of the Year
'Graceful and compelling ... you'll find yourself exhilarated' The New York Times Book Review
'Readable, entertaining, and a challenge to any jaded sensibility that has become inured to the everyday miracles all around us' Peter Forbes, Guardian'This nimble history of invention . . .is a many-layered delight' Nature
Prepare to be astounded. There are moments when this book is so gripping it reads like a thriller
—— Mail on SundayOne of the most eloquent and genuinely thoughtful books on science over the past decade. You will not find a better, more balanced or up-to-date take on the origin of life or synthetic biology. Essential reading for anyone interested in the coming revolution, which could indeed rival the Industrial Revolution or the internet
—— ObserverFascinating. The reader's sense of awe at the well-nigh inconceivable nature of nature is suitably awakened. The extraordinary science and Rutherford's argument are worth every reader's scrutiny
—— Sunday TelegraphThe perfect primer on the past and future of DNA
—— GuardianAmazing and amusing . . . unputdownable
—— The LadyA story which will inspire many
—— Clitheroe Advertiser and TimesInspirational reading
—— The WeekA wondrous telling of the history of the very English love affair with gardens and growing things
—— Jon Snow, Channel Four NewsThe Brother Gardeners is a delightful book. It brings the story of 18th-century gardening to life in a remarkably vivid way, and sheds new light on the personality clashes and prejudices which lay at the root of the Georgians' passion for plants
—— Adrian TinniswoodThe Brother Gardeners were a group of men involved in the 18th-century quest for new plants, at a fascinating period in garden history. Andrea Wulf brings their personalities vividly to life in her thoroughly researched and lively account.
—— Jane Fearnley-WhittingstallA totally engrossing read
—— Rosie Atkins, Curator, Chelsea Physic GardenImmaculately written and researched, this book brings to life the dramas and dangers of eighteenth-century plant collecting
—— Catherine Horwood[An] engrossing history of botanical obsession in England in the 18th century ... The author has a good eye for interesting detail and a fine sense of literary economy
—— Tim Richardson , Country LifeA 'biography' of the quintessential English garden, taking in Captain Cook, Carl Linnaeus, and the simultaneous rise of the British Empire and flower arranging - a delightful look at horticultural history
—— Scotland on SundayAs Wulf triumphantly shows, plants and gardens reveal a wider view of the forces that shape society ... An antidote to dry garden history; rarely has the story of English plants been told with such vigour, and such fun
—— Jennifer Potter , TLSThe best book this year is The Brother Gardeners: Botany, Empire and the Birth of an Obsession
—— Leo Hollis , Independent on SundayAndrea Wulf has written a wonderful book, using a clutch of fascinating men to remind us the British Empire was once as much about white pine and Camellia japonica as it was about guns and steel ... enthralling story ... brilliantly readable book
—— Kathryn Hughes , Mail on Sunday