The Age of Wonder

How the Romantic Generation Discovered the Beauty and Terror of Science

| 4.18 | 9,688 ratings and reviews

Recommended by Philip Ball, Ed Cooke, Caspar Henderson, and 4 others. See all reviews

Ranked #6 in History Of Science, Ranked #38 in Chemistry — see more rankings.

'The Age of Wonder' is Richard Holmes' first major work of biography for a decade. It has been inspired by the scientific ferment that swept through Britain at the end of the 18th century, and which Holmes now radically redefines as 'the revolution of Romantic Science'. less
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Reviews and Recommendations

We've comprehensively compiled reviews of The Age of Wonder from the world's leading experts.

Philip Ball The wonder that Richard Holmes is thinking about in this book was an emergent appreciation of the awesomeness of nature. (Source)

Ed Cooke [Ed Cooke recommended this book in the book "Tools of Titans".] (Source)

Caspar Henderson Among Holmes’s qualities are is his warmth, his extraordinary depth of knowledge and the fluency in his writing. It’s just a really enjoyable read. (Source)

John Shepherd This is a cross-cultural book, all about how, even in the age of romanticism, science was an important part of cultural life. (Source)

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