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emenendez1's review against another edition
3.0
Took me forever to read and for a reason. It is a difficult read! Too much accompanying information, too many details about the life of people, but I learned a lot and that is the important part.
scheu's review against another edition
4.0
A 2/3 interesting study of the gentleman scientists of the 18th century, and 1/3 not-as-interesting study of the Royal Society. Definitely worth checking out if you have an interest in the history of science.
audaciaray's review against another edition
3.0
I picked up this book because I saw it listed on several "best of 2009" lists, I've been on a history of science kick lately, and because anything about the Romantics gets me geekishly excited.
All of the scientists/explorers and their stories really came to life, and I feel like I understand a whole lot more about the birth of modern science and the exploration of the natural world, especially the way it was entangled with poetry and artistic creation. In this way, big chunks of the book read like a lively novel, which is a really engaging approach to the writing of history.
There were, however, some spots that just got too mired down in detail. Especially later in the book, there is a lot more stuff about the in-fighting in the scientific community and bickering over who did what first and who should be the president of this or that association. I found those details spectacularly boring and found myself skipping around a bit to bypass that detail. Some of the initial strong storytelling got a bit lost toward the end of the book, as Holmes tried to bring it all together and wrap it up. Although the conclusion of a historical period strongly tied to individual personalities is pretty obvious (spoiler: everyone dies), I felt like there could have been a bit more effort to bring the gap into the next generation of scientists, which include the Charleses Babbage and Darwin.
All of the scientists/explorers and their stories really came to life, and I feel like I understand a whole lot more about the birth of modern science and the exploration of the natural world, especially the way it was entangled with poetry and artistic creation. In this way, big chunks of the book read like a lively novel, which is a really engaging approach to the writing of history.
There were, however, some spots that just got too mired down in detail. Especially later in the book, there is a lot more stuff about the in-fighting in the scientific community and bickering over who did what first and who should be the president of this or that association. I found those details spectacularly boring and found myself skipping around a bit to bypass that detail. Some of the initial strong storytelling got a bit lost toward the end of the book, as Holmes tried to bring it all together and wrap it up. Although the conclusion of a historical period strongly tied to individual personalities is pretty obvious (spoiler: everyone dies), I felt like there could have been a bit more effort to bring the gap into the next generation of scientists, which include the Charleses Babbage and Darwin.
brendan_h's review against another edition
4.0
The first time since High School I've had more than glancing contact with the physical sciences... and it kicked ass.
balletbookworm's review against another edition
4.0
A very well-written history of the development of scientific inquiry at the intersection with the Romantic era in literature and art. The foundations of the modern scientist and disciplines of astronomy, chemistry, physics, botany, etc., all date from this period (mid-18th century to early 19th) and it was very interesting to see how many "men of science" also wrote poems/prose (i.e. Sir Humphrey Davy) and how many "men of letters" also dabbled in science (i.e. Coleridge). Additionally, Caroline Herschel (sister of Sir William Herschel) was a major historical figure in this book which was so good to see because the contributions of women to science are very often overlooked (cf. Rosalind Franklin in the race to find the structure of DNA) and Caroline's astronomical work was essential in mapping stars and comets.
I was also quite pleased to find that explanations of scientific theories weren't "dumbed down" in the text. And there were pictures and diagrams :)
I was also quite pleased to find that explanations of scientific theories weren't "dumbed down" in the text. And there were pictures and diagrams :)
barium_squirrel's review against another edition
5.0
This is the most interesting non-fiction book I've read in years. It is a series of mini-biographies tying together to form a portrait of the scientific world at the turn of the 19th century. The portions about Sir Humphrey Davey were especially interesting.
60degreesn's review against another edition
5.0
Starts great, weaker finish - but a fantastic lively group biography.
tiffanie39e8e's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
informative
reflective
relaxing
slow-paced
4.0
bxferg13's review against another edition
3.0
While interesting, I think he relies too much on case studies to reflect the whole. Not as well balanced as I would like in my history books.