A collection of short essays from one of the most prominent science writers of our time. Rovelli is well known for writing small books on big subjects. Seven Brief Lessons on Physics and The Order of Time earned a devoted audience through their accessible and elegant communication of the findings of modern physics. Though his latest book extends his brand, it differs crucially from its predecessors. While exhibiting his concise prose and easy erudition, this one lacks the sense of unity of previous works. Such is often the nature of collections of previously published pieces, yet even in that context, the text is scattershot. Intermixed with the author's trademark astute scientific and philosophical writing are reminiscences, travelogues, and opinion pieces, some of which are mere filler. Even some of the science writing doesn't hold up. But at his best--and there are plenty of sections that spotlight his best--Rovelli delights. His facility with science and philosophy is exemplary. In a defense of Aristotle's physics, he writes, "the bad reputation of Aristotle's physics is also due to the silly gulf that has opened up between scientific culture and humanist philosophical discourse. Those who study Aristotle generally know little about physics, and those who are engaged in physics have little interest in Aristotle." He offers not just a defense of Aristotle's physics, but a defense of his physics on the grounds of scientific provincialism. While many scientists write as if their specific expertise earns them general expertise, Rovelli knows enough to know what he doesn't know. How beautiful and inspiring is his humility when he assesses his own interpretation of black holes: "Is this really the case? I don't know for sure. I think it might well be. The alternatives seem less plausible to me. But I could be wrong. Trying to figure it out, still, is such a joy." A book so worthy in its heights that it compensates for its lows. Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

Theoretical physicist Rovelli (The Order of Time) considers politics, art, philosophy, and science in this provocative collection of 46 previously published essays. In "Dante, Einstein and the Three-Sphere" he muses on how Dante anticipated Einstein's theory on the shape of the universe, noting that "poetry and science are both manifestations of the spirit that creates new ways of thinking the world." In "Which Science Is Closer to Faith" he encourages readers to set "aside the traditional conflict between science and religion and to focus on what they have in common, rather than on their differences," while in the powerful "A Day in Africa" Rovelli reflects on a day spent exploring rural Senegal after having visited a mosque: "Perhaps I have actually learned something, one small additional thing, about the complexity of being human." Some of the pieces haven't aged well, as when he writes in an essay about Covid that "the reality is that this disaster has no culprits" and that "the number is far lower than the deaths each year from cancer." Still, Rovelli's fans will enjoy having this on their shelves. (May)