Description
Book SynopsisMelvyn Bragg''s In Our Time series regularly enlightens and entertains substantial audiences on BBC Radio 4. For this book he has selected episodes which reflect the diversity of the radio programmes, and takes us on an amazing tour through the history of ideas, from philosophy, physics and history to religion, literature and biology.
We can discover the reasons for the fall of the Byzantine empire, and why women were persecuted as witches in the seventeenth century. What shape is the origin of life? Where does our calendar come from? We can unearth the influence of prime numbers, Socrates and Tectonic plates.
Melvyn Bragg orchestrates the ideas of leading academics in each field so that the dynamic and lively discussion from the programmes comes through vividly on the page. IN OUR TIME brings to life the signposts of history, the moments that significantly changed the world as we know it, and the individuals and ideas that made us what we are today.
Trade ReviewIN OUR TIME's success derives in part from the interested public having Melvyn Bragg in their corner... his lack of intellectual vanity is impress, but so is his grasp of the subjects at hand. *
Times Literary Supplement *
These transcripts select a treasure-trove of discussions from a decade of the Radio 4 jewel. * the
Independent *
'The best programme on Radio 4 is
In Our Time...it informs, educates and entertains'. *
Sunday Telegraph *
Melvyn Bragg's matchless colloquies on Radio 4 * Stephen Fry *
The best programme coming out of the entire corporation these days * David Sexton,
Sunday Telegraph *
Melvyn Bragg's consistently superb In Our Time * John Banville *
What might be the best radio programme ever * Oliver Burkeman,
Guardian *
Bragg's excellent radio programmes on the subject ....are the basis of this history of English over the past 1,500 years. *
Guardian on
The Adventure of English *
Always readable, often thought-provoking, and consistently entertaining. *
Independent on
The Adventure of English *
This is a highly readable, jargon-free treatise on a notoriously prickly subject. Bragg's affection for his subject is infectious. *
Observer on
*
Melvyn Bragg's superb new history of the English language is told as an adventure story, and rightly so. There is much splendid intellectual firepower in this book. * Andrew Roberts, Spectator on The Adventure of English *
Beautifully clear and, indeed, thrilling * Waterstone's Books Quarterly on The Adventure of English *
Bragg's approachable account...gleams with little gems. His enthusiasm is appealing...he digs beneath modernity and examines our bedrock with a sympathetic eye. It has power and clarity...this adventure is rewarding. * Sunday Herald on The Adventure of English *
