Author:Anthony Barnett,Roger Scruton
It has become increasingly apparent that in Britain the relationship between town and country is breaking down and that both are in crisis: policies concerning urbanisation, industry, housing and transport are in disarray, while new issues have arisen concerning the environment, farming, the rural economy, food quality. . .
In Town and Country, members of the Town and Country Forum, a body established in 1995 to bring together influential and thoughtful people concerned with this issue, explore the many-faceted problem of the relationship between urban and rural communities, providing both a focus for debate and an authoritative reference point for contemporary argument. The contributors include academics, philosophers, writers, political activists, environmentalists and other experts on urban and rural affairs. The result is a book of immense importance raising fundamental questions about the way we live now.
Dawkins has a gift for making science enjoyable ... [He is] one of the greatest scientific writers/explainers of all time.
—— Bill GatesFrom the first sentence it reads with the force and fluency of a classic ... a luminous, authoritative prose that transcends age differences
—— The TimesStunning in appearance ... the book is a triumph
—— New ScientistThe text is persuasive whatever one's age ... the chapter on rainbows has the clearest explanation of how they appear that I've ever seen
—— Financial TimesI wanted to write this book but I wasn't clever enough. Now I've read it, I am
—— Ricky GervaisProdigiously illustrated and beautifully designed ... I cannot think of a better, or simpler, introduction to science
—— GuardianA charming and free-ranging history of science
—— The Sunday TimesIt's the clearest and most beautifully written introduction to science I've ever read. Again and again I found myself saying "Oh! So that's how genes work!" (or stars, or tectonic plates, or all the other things he explains). Explanations I thought I knew were clarified; things I never understood were made clear for the first time
—— Philip PullmanThe Magic of Reality provides a beautiful, accessible and wide ranging volume that addresses the questions that all of us have about the universe...written with the masterful and eloquently literate style of perhaps the best popular expositor of science, Richard Dawkins, and delightfully illustrated by Dave McKean. What more could anyone ask for?
—— Lawrence Krauss, author of Quantum Man, and A Universe from NothingThis book may be exactly what's needed to increase science literacy for readers of all ages
—— Publishers WeeklyThis book is primarily aimed at teenagers, but plenty of adults will get a kick out of it too...McKean's drawings bring the text to life brilliantly ... Dawkins writes convincingly about everything from chemistry to statistics
—— Independent on SundayDawkins uses a simple, brilliant technique highly appealing to young and old
—— The Washington PostFew scientists manage to reach a huge popular audience. Even among them Richard Dawkins is distinctive for the clarity and elegance of his prose. The Magic of Reality... will be appreciated by inquisitive children while illuminating much for the adult general reader.
—— The TimesAt once funny, prosaic, sinister and wise, Blum's tale is a beautifully written account of the true human cost of all our remote connectivity
—— Bella Bathurst, author of The Lighthouse StevensonsWith infectious wonder, Andrew Blum introduces us to the Internet's geeky wizards and takes us on an amiably guided tour of the world they've created ... the Internet that Blum's beautifully lucid prose makes real turns out to be if anything a more marvelous place than the cloudy dreamland we'd imagined
—— Donovan Hohn, author of Moby DuckAn illuminating journey of discovery
—— Sunday ExpressTotal immersive reading
—— The WharfA wonderful idea ... a hugely enjoyable and thought-provoking book
—— ScotsmanFascinating, absorbing
—— Good Book GuideA quick, absorbing read - a summer beach book with brains
—— BloombergIf you can stomach only one end-of-the world-as-we-know it story this summer, none is more audacious or interesting than Alan Weisman's The World Without Us
—— The Boston GlobeHis is an extraordinary story laced with tragedy
—— Mail on Sunday[Root's] life story, vividly related here, is crammed with incident and adventure. Curious, creative and fearless, he has diced with death on numerous occasions and been mauled several times in his efforts to capture the daily lives of everything from silver-back gorillas to leopards in the wild on film. A gripping account of a life well lived
—— Good Book Guide