Reviews

Reviews: UNNATURAL: The Heretical Act of Making People

Unnatural: The Heretical Idea of Making People. A book by Philip Ball

“A beautifully written, deeply intelligent book that will force every reader to rethink at least some of their preconceptions.” Jim Endersby, Daily Telegraph

“A fascinating and impressive cultural history.”Manjit Kumar, The Guardian

“Labelling Ball a science writer sells his writing short, for its value lies above all in a range that dissolves the awkward silences between science and the larger culture of which it is part.” Marek Kohn, The Independent
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Reviews: UNIVERSE OF STONE: Chartres Cathedral and the Triumph of the Medieval Mind

Universe of Stone: Chartres Cathedral and the Triumph of the Medieval Mind, a book by Philip Ball

UNIVERSE OF STONE

“impressively erudite, refreshingly undogmatic, and delightfully discursive… It will make many readers rush to see its subject for themselves.” Financial Times

“Ball presents an impressive amount of technical information in lucid and engaging form. There is no better general introduction to the subject.” Wall Street Journal
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Reviews: THE SUN AND MOON CORRUPTED: A novel

The Sun and Moon Corrupted, a book by Philip Ball

“How do you write a novel about science? Many people do it badly, but with ‘The Sun and Moon Corrupted’, Philip Ball succeeds at his first attempt. Six steps lead to a good read, and Ball has aced them all.” Nature

“Ball has still written a fine novel which achieves a kind of well-wrought luminescence and purity of its own: much like the glowing result of an alchemical experiment.” The New Humanist

“Neder is as elusive, crazed and compelling as Nabokov’s John Shade.” Financial Times

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Reviews: THE DEVIL’S DOCTOR: Paracelsus and the World of Renaissance Magic and Science

The Devil’s Doctor: Paracelsus and the World of Renaissance Magic and Science, a book by Philip Ball

“Ball brings to light a largely forgotten phase of human understanding. It is a considerable achievement.”Peter Ackroyd, Times

“Wonderfully rich… Ball does an excellent job of recreating this strange and wonderful age, with its wandering wizards and its magical worldview. [He] succeeds in convincing us that, despite [Paracelsus’s] arcane ideas, his vision of the ‘strangeness and the beauty of the magical universe’ remains both inspiring and important.” P.D.Smith, Guardian

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Reviews: CRITICAL MASS: How One Thing Leads to Another

Critical Mass: How One Thing Leads to Another, a book by Philip Ball “Ball delves far beyond today’s headlines… substantial, impeccably researched and generally persuasive. For anyone who would like to learn about the intellectual ferment at the surprising junction of physics and social science, Critical Mass is the place to start.” Steven Strogatz, Nature

“Philip Ball makes physics sexy again in Critical Mass.” Vanity Fair

“Lively and wonderfully informative.” George Scialabba, Boston Globe

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Reviews: THE INGREDIENTS: A Guided Tour of the Elements

The Ingredients: A Guided Tour of the Elements, a book by Philip Ball.

“A delight of a book· It could become a classic. Hold on to your first edition”New Scientist

“This provocative book· is surely worth a read by both general readers and chemists.”Nature

“With [a] good-tempered twinkle Ball provides an extended essay on the culture, history, and nature of the chemical elements. His range is somewhat sweeping, but Ball is choosy about what he shares, and the immensity of the topic is never overwhelming.”Chemical & Engineering News
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