The Magic of Reality
What are things made of? What is the sun? Why is there night and day, winter and summer? Why do bad things happen? Are we alone? Throughout history people all over the world have invented stories to answer profound questions such as these. Have you heard the tale of how the sun hatched out of an emu's egg? Or what about the great catfish that carries the world on its back? Has anyone ever told you that earthquakes are caused by a sneezing giant? These fantastical myths are fun - but what is the real answer to such questions? The Magic of Reality, with its explanations of space, time, evolution and more, will inspire and amaze readers of all ages - young adults, adults, children, octogenarians. Teaming up with the renowned illustrator Dave McKean, Richard Dawkins answers all these questions and many more. In stunning words and pictures this book presents the real story of the world around us, taking us on an enthralling journey through scientific reality, and showing that it has an awe-inspiring beauty and thrilling magic which far exceed those of the ancient myths. We encounter rainbows, our genetic ancestors, tsunamis, shooting stars, plants, animals, and an intriguing cast of characters in this extraordinary scientific voyage of discovery. Richard Dawkins and Dave McKean have created a dazzling celebration of our planet that will entertain and inform for years to come.
Stats for nerds
2recommend
3mentions
3people
2012–2014years
67% recommend33% critical
Mentions per year
What Hacker News says
- Permission Marketing - Seth Godin, made me think about what he calls interruption marketing.
Purple Cow - Seth Godin, made me think about standing out.
The Lean Startup - Eric Ries, really changed the way I think about... Well, nearly everything that costs effort.
The God Delusion - Richard Dawkins, good theory about why God most probably doesn't exist.
The magic of reality - Richard Dawkins, great story about evolution, religion, etc.
A short history of nearly everything - Bill Bryson, brilliant book. Perfect summary of our scientific advancements during the last centuries. He made me think about possible natural disasters.
- I loved the McKean artwork after I've read the Magic of Reality, from Richard Dawkins. Amazing illustrations.
- I already have "The Magic Of Reality" by Richard Dawkins: http://www.amazon.de/exec/obidos/ASIN/1451675046/fractality-... .
I think the content would be what I am looking for, but unfortunately the artwork and layout is too overblown, making it hard to read. My kid is 3 - obviously the text would be too complicated anyway, but it would be nice to at least have some nice, clear pictures to talk about.
It has some good ideas, though - for example it shows a stack of photographs of our ancestors, one photograph for every ancestor, and talks about the height of that stack. Nice idea, but horrible graphics imo (artistically good graphics, but not so well suited as illustration).
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