A Short History of Nearly Everything by Bill Bryson is a book that’s talked about a lot. i liked it, but not to the same degree that others did.

the book is filled with great stories and anecdotes of cantankerous scientists and brilliant amateurs. it goes through the history of debates about how old the earth is and the formation of DNA. and i learned some really interesting tidbits (like that the Nobel Prize can only be awarded to someone that is currently living — just another incentive to lead a healthy life since many Nobels are awards 20 years after a discovery).

but overall, it was a good listen (downloaded it from Audible) but not worth a read.