Bill Bryson Boeken

Overzicht van belangrijke wetenschappelijke ontwikkelingen op het gebied van de natuurwetenschappen vanaf de achttiende eeuw.

Wat betekent eigenlijk klimaatverandering? Hoe zal de opwarming van de aarde ons dagelijks leven veranderen? Is zij nu al de oorzaak van hevigere stormen in sommige gebieden en vaker voorkomende droogte in andere? En zijn deze gebeurtenissen onontkoombaar? Tim Flannery schrijft op een toegankelijke manier over zulke dringende kwesties. Hij vertelt het fascinerede verhaal van de ontwikkelingen in het klimaat gedurende miljoenen jaren en laat onz zien in wat voor kritieke toestand de wereld zich nu bevindt. Want door fossiele brandstoffen te gebruiken verhogen wij de concentratie van broeikasgassen in de atmosfeer, waardoor onze planeet alleen maar warmer wordt. Ieder land op aarde wordt op een of andere manier door deze verandering beïnvloedt. Eén feit is echter onomstotelijk vast komen te staan: inmiddels maken wij het weer. Dit nieuwe, door ons geschapen klimaat vormt een bedreiging voor de toekomst van mens en dier. In dit boek laat Tim Flannery zien hoe wij deze problemen kunnen bestrijden en onze planeet redden.

Een naar zijn geboorteland teruggekeerde Amerikaanse schrijver vertelt over zijn ervaringen met het Amerikaanse leven.

Het verloren continent is een hilarisch, scherpzinnig en ontluisterend portret van het hedendaagse Amerika. Na de dood van zijn vader maakt Bill Bryson een reis door de Verenigde Staten op zoek naar het land van zijn jeugd. Hij begint en eindigt zijn tocht in zijn geboortestad Des Moines, Iowa en bezoekt onderweg achtendertig staten.

The book has achieved bestseller status in both hardback and paperback formats, highlighting its widespread popularity and appeal among readers. Its compelling narrative and engaging characters have resonated with a diverse audience, contributing to its commercial success. This recognition underscores the book's impact and relevance in contemporary literature.

'A sure fire winner . . . sparkles with interest and excitement throughout' Guardian Best Children's Books of 2023 'Offers children a series of fascinating scientific facts' Daily Telegraph We spend our whole lives in one body and yet most of us have practically no idea how it works and what goes on inside it. Want to know why the skin is the biggest organ? Why our brains can see into the future? Or why your eyes are back to front? Packed full of facts, big numbers (such as the amount of microbes that make you) and small numbers (the size of those very tiny microbes) all in full-colour. This non-fiction book, packed with wonder from the globally bestselling Bill Bryson is a head-to-toe tour of the most amazing thing about you - YOUR BODY!

"Originally published in hardcover in the United States by Doubleday, a division of Penguin Random House LLC, New York, and simultaneously published in hardcover in Great Britain by Doubleday, an imprint of Transworld Publishers, a division of Penguin Random House Ltd., London, in 2019."--Title page verso.

Britain's favourite writer of narrative non-fiction Bill Bryson travels back in time to a forgotten summer when America came of age, took centre stage, and, in five eventful months, changed the world for ever. In the summer of 1927, America had a booming stock market, a president who worked just four hours a day (and slept much of the rest of the time), a semi-crazed sculptor with a mad plan to carve four giant heads into an inaccessible mountain called Rushmore, a devastating flood of the Mississippi, a sensational murder trial, and a youthful aviator named Charles Lindbergh who started the summer wholly unknown and finished it as the most famous man on earth. (So famous that Minnesota considered renaming itself after him.) It was the summer that saw the birth of talking pictures, the invention of television, the peak of Al Capone's reign of terror, the horrifying bombing of a school in Michigan by a madman, the ill-conceived decision that led to the Great Depression, the thrillingly improbable return to greatness of a wheezing, over-the-hill baseball player named Babe Ruth, and an almost impossible amount more. In this hugely entertaining book, Bill Bryson spins a story of brawling adventure, reckless optimism and delirious energy, with a cast of unforgettable and eccentric characters, with trademark brio, wit and authority.

Bill Bryson drove 14,000 miles in search of the mythical small town of his youth. Instead he found a lookalike strip of gas stations, motels and hamburger joints; a continent lost to itself through greed, pollution and television, and lost to him because he had become a foreigner in his own country. A funny and serious view of smalltown America.

Bill Bryson's beautifully illustrated book explores the evolution of the English language, from its earliest words to the first dictionaries. Suitable for all ages, it answers intriguing questions about language origins, including Viking influences and Shakespeare's contributions, making it an extraordinary journey through words and humor.

After nearly two decades in Britain, Bill Bryson took the decision to move Mrs Bryson, little Jimmy et al. back to the States for a while. But before leaving his much-loved Yorkshire, Bryson insisted on taking one last trip around old Blighty, a sort of valedictory tour of the green and kindly island that had for so long been his home. The resulting book, Notes from a Small Island, is a eulogy to the country that produced Marmite, George Formby, by-elections, milky tea, place names like Farleigh Wallop, Titsey and Shellow Bowels, Gardeners' Question Time and people who say, 'Mustn't grumble'. Britain will never seem the same again.Once ensconced back home in New Hampshire, Bryson couldn't resist the invitation to write a weekly dispatch for the Mail on Sunday's Night & Day magazine. Notes from a Big Country is a collection of eighteen months' worth of his popular columns about that strangest of phenomena - the American way of life. Whether discussing the dazzling efficiency of the garbage disposal unit, the exoticism of having your groceries bagged for you, or the mind-numbing frequency of commercial breaks on American TV, Bill Bryson brings his inimitable brand of bemused wit to bear on the world's richest and craziest country.The Complete Notes combines two of Bill Bryson's best-loved travel books in one volume, It demonstrates his unique take on life - from either side of the pond.

Omnibus edition of A Walk in the Woods and Down Under, which is also published under the title In a Sunburned Country.Combined in one volume are Bryson's "Down Under/In a Sunburned Country", an account of his memorable walk across Australia, and "A Walk in the Woods", that tells of his lengthy stroll along the longest continuous footpath in the world - The Appalachian Trail, with his old friend Stephen Katz. The Trail stretches along the East Coast of the United States, from Georgia to Maine, through some of the most arresting and celebrated landscapes in America - the Smoky Mountains, Shenandoah National Park, the Berkshire Hills of Massachusetts and the Great North Woods of Maine.

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER • The classic chronicle of a “terribly misguided and terribly funny” (The Washington Post) hike of the Appalachian Trail, from the author of A Short History of Nearly Everything and The Body “The best way of escaping into nature.”—The New York Times Back in America after twenty years in Britain, Bill Bryson decided to reacquaint himself with his native country by walking the 2,100-mile Appalachian Trail, which stretches from Georgia to Maine. The AT offers an astonishing landscape of silent forests and sparkling lakes—and to a writer with the comic genius of Bill Bryson, it also provides endless opportunities to witness the majestic silliness of his fellow human beings. For a start there’s the gloriously out-of-shape Stephen Katz, a buddy from Iowa along for the walk. But A Walk in the Woods is more than just a laugh-out-loud hike. Bryson’s acute eye is a wise witness to this beautiful but fragile trail, and as he tells its fascinating history, he makes a moving plea for the conservation of America’s last great wilderness. An adventure, a comedy, and a celebration, A Walk in the Woods is a modern classic of travel literature. NOW A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE

It is the driest, flattest, hottest, most desiccated, infertile and climatically aggressive of all the inhabited continents and still Australia teems with life - a large portion of it quite deadly. In tact, Australia has more things that can kill you in a very nasty way than anywhere else. Ignoring such dangers - and yet curiously obsessed by them - Bill Bryson journeyed to Australia and promptly fell in love with the country. And who can blame him ? The people are cheerful, extrovert, quick-witted and unfailingly obliging : their cities are safe and clean and nearly always built on water ; the food is excellent ; the beer is cold and the sun nearly always shines. Life doesn't get much better than this...

In these pages, the beloved Bill Bryson gives us a fascinating history of the modern home, taking us on a room-by-room tour through his own house and using each room to explore the vast history of the domestic artifacts we take for granted. As he takes us through the history of our modern comforts, Bryson demonstrates that whatever happens in the world eventually ends up in our home, in the paint, the pipes, the pillows, and every item of furniture. Bryson has one of the liveliest, most inquisitive minds on the planet, and his sheer prose fluency makes At Home one of the most entertaining books ever written about private life.

This guide to Sardinia opens with a 16-page section featuring photography of the island's highlights from the beaches of the southern coast to the evocative prehistoric ruins of the nuraghi. The following chapters provide informative accounts of all the sights, from the lively capital of Cagliari to the Smerelda coast. There are reviews of the best places to eat, drink and sleep in every region and practical advice on exploring the island whether by bicycle, car, boat or on foot. Finally, there is comprehensive coverage of Sardinia's history, culture, art and festivals.

A classic from the New York Times bestselling author of A Walk in the Woods and The Body. After living in Britain for two decades, Bill Bryson recently moved back to the United States with his English wife and four children (he had read somewhere that nearly 3 million Americans believed they had been abducted by aliens—as he later put it, "it was clear my people needed me"). They were greeted by a new and improved America that boasts microwave pancakes, twenty-four-hour dental-floss hotlines, and the staunch conviction that ice is not a luxury item. Delivering the brilliant comic musings that are a Bryson hallmark, I'm a Stranger Here Myself recounts his sometimes disconcerting reunion with the land of his birth. The result is a book filled with hysterical scenes of one man's attempt to reacquaint himself with his own country, but it is also an extended if at times bemused love letter to the homeland he has returned to after twenty years away.

Why should I avoid discussing the 'weather conditions'? Can a woman be 'celibate'? When can I use 'due to', or should I play safe and always use 'because of'? What's wrong with the way I'm using 'crescendo'? This book provides a simple guide to the more perplexing and contentious issues of standard written English. The entries are discussed with wit and common sense, and are illustrated with examples of questionable usage taken from leading British and American newspapers. No familiarity with English grammar is needed to learn from this book, although a glossary of grammatical terms is included and there us also an appendix on punctuation. Journalists, copy-writers and secretaries will find this an invaluable handbook, and it will also be a highly enjoyable book for the word-buff.

Bill Bryson's first travel book opened with the immortal line, `I come from Des Moines. Somebody had to.' In this deeply funny and personal memoir, he travels back in time to explore the ordinary kid he once was, in the curious world of 1950s Middle America.

How did English, 'treated for centuries as the inadequate and second-rate tongue of peasants' become the undisputed global language? How did words like shampoo, sofa and rowdy (and others drawn from over fifty languages) find their way into our dictionary? In this revealing and often hilarious book, Bill Bryson examines the mother tongue and explores the countless varieties of English and the perils of marketing brands with names like Pschitt and Super Piss. With entertaining sections on the oddities of swearing and spelling, spoonerisms and Scrabble, and a consideration of what we mean by 'good English', "Mother Tongue" is one of the most stimulating books yet written on this endlessly engrossing subject. Show More Show Less

After nearly two decades in Britain, Bill Bryson took the decision to move back to the States for a while, to let his kids experience life in another country, to give his wife the chance to shop until 10 p.m. seven nights a week, and, most of all, because he had read that 3.7 million Americans believed that they had been abducted by aliens at one time or another, and it was thus clear to him that his people needed him. But before leaving his much-loved home in North Yorkshire, Bryson insisted on taking one last trip around Britain, a sort of valedictory tour of the green and kindly island that had so long been his home. His aim was to take stock of the nation's public face and private parts (as it were), and to analyse what precisely it was he loved so much about a country that produced Marmite, a military hero whose dying wish was to be kissed by a fellow named Hardy, place names like Farleigh Wallop, Titsey and Shellow Bowells, people who said 'Mustn't grumble', and Gardeners' Question Time -- Back cover

The author's first travel book, The Lost Continent, was unanimously acclaimed as one of the funniest books in years. In this book, he deals with Europe as he shoulders his backpack, keeps a tight hold on his wallet, and journeys from Hammerfest, the northernmost town on the continent, to Istanbul on the cusp of Asia.

Cover Illustration: Trevor Scobie Set the controls for the heart of the sun. The Captain bent in the warm air, cursing, felt his hands run over the cold machine, and while he worked he saw a future which was removed from them by the merest breath. He saw the skin peel from the rocket beehive, men thus revealed running, running, mouths shrieking, soundless. Space was a black mossed well where life drowned its roars and terrors. Scream a big scream, but space snuffed it out before it was half up your throat. Men scurried, ants in a flaming matchbox; the ship was dripping lava, gushing steam, nothing! Journey with the century's most popular fantasy writer into a world of wonder and horror beyond your wildest dreams. Contents: - The Fog Horn (1951) - The Pedestrian (1951) - The April Witch (1952) - The Wilderness (1952) - The Fruit at the Bottom of the Bowl (1948) - Invisible Boy (1945) - The Flying Machine (1953) - The Murderer (1953) - The Golden Kite, the Silver Wind (1953) - I See You Never (1947) - Embroidery (1951) - The Big Black and White Game (1945) - A Sound of Thunder (1952) - The Great Wide World Over There (1952) - Powerhouse (1948) - En la Noche (1952) - Sun and Shadow (1953) - The Meadow (1953) - The Garbage Collector (1953) - The Great Fire (1949) - Hail and Farewell (1953) - The Golden Apples of the Sun (1953)

In true Bryson style, in a study that manages to be witty, amusing and anecdotal as well as informative, on one of the greatest British dramatists that has ever lived, he recounts his travels during which he discusses Shakespeare and his life with expert academics, actors, directors and theatre managers, while following the Stratford route.

Twenty years ago, Bill Bryson went on a trip around Britain to celebrate the green and kindly island that had become his adopted country. The hilarious book that resulted, Notes from a Small Island, was taken to the nation's heart and became the bestselling travel book ever, and was also voted in a BBC poll the book that best represents Britain.Now, to mark the twentieth anniversary of that modern classic, Bryson makes a brand-new journey round Britain to see what has changed. Following (but not too closely) a route he dubs the Bryson Line, from Bognor Regis to Cape Wrath, by way of places that many people never get to at all, Bryson sets out to rediscover the wondrously beautiful, magnificently eccentric, endearingly unique country that he thought he knew but doesn't altogether recognize any more. Yet, despite Britain's occasional failings and more or less eternal bewilderments, Bill Bryson is still pleased to call our rainy island home. And not just because of the cream teas, a noble history, and an extra day off at Christmas. Once again, with his matchless homing instinct for the funniest and quirkiest, his unerring eye for the idiotic, the endearing, the ridiculous and the scandalous, Bryson gives us an acute and perceptive insight into all that is best and worst about Britain today.

Bill Bryson turns away from the highways and byways of middle America, so hilariously depicted in his bestselling The Lost Continent, for a fast, exhilarating ride along the Route 66 of American language and popular culture. In Made in America, Bryson de-mythologizes his native land - explaining how a dusty desert hamlet with neither woods nor holly became Hollywood, how the Wild West wasn't won, why Americans say 'lootenant' and 'Toosday', how Americans were eating junk food long before the word itself was cooked up - as well as exposing the true origins of the G-string, the original $64,000 question and Dr Kellogg of cornflakes fame. Buy this book at once and have a nice day!

First published in 1956, The Ascent of Rum Doodle quickly became a mountaineering classic. As an outrageously funny spoof about the ascent of a peak in the Himalayas, many thought it was inspired by the 1953 conquest of Everest. But Bowman had drawn on the flavor and tone of earlier adventures, of Bill Tilman and his 1937 account of the Nandi Devi expedition. The book’s central and unforgettable character, Binder, is one of the finest creations in comic literature.

Edited and introduced by Bill Bryson, with contributions from Richard Dawkins, Margaret Atwood, Richard Holmes, Martin Rees, Richard Fortey, Steve Jones, James Gleick and Neal Stephenson amongst others, this beautiful, lavishly illustrated book tells the story of science and the Royal Society, from 1660 to the present.

Bill Bryson goes to Kenya at the invitation of Care International, the charity dedicated to working with local communities to eradicate poverty around the world. It is a country that shares many serious human and environmental problems with the rest of Africa : refugees, AIDS, drought and grinding poverty. Travelling around the country, Bryson casts his inimitable eye on a continent new to him, and as a result publishes - the diary. (Adapted from verso)

Following the success of A Portrait of England this book focuses on icons that are quintessentially English. Published in association with the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE) and introduced by their President, Bill Bryson, this beautifully designed tome is a a celebration of our shared rural heritage. Icons of England combines stunning photography and quotes, poetry, reminiscences and celebrity anecdotes. Highlights include: A full introduction from CPRE President Bill Bryson. A share of the book's profits will go to help support CPRE campaigns. • Bill Bryson explains his fascination with Red Telephone boxes • The Iron Bridge, built in the eighteenth century as the first crossing of the Severn Gorge • The life and history of the great oak trees that dominate our countryside • The thatched cottage and it’s unique welcoming charm • The robin red-breast and friends Contributors include: • Michael Palin • David Lodge • Tony Robinson • Richard Mabey • Joan Bakewell • Simon Jenkins

Dieses außergewöhnliche großformatige Reisebuch stellt über 1000 Alternativen zu den bekanntesten Reisezielen in aller Welt vor, die zwar weniger bekannt, jedoch ebenso faszinierend und spannend sind. Wer die Pyramiden von Gizeh beeindruckend findet, dem könnten auch die Pyramiden von Meroe gefallen. Wer gerne einmal die Lebensfreude des südamerikanischen Karnevals erleben möchte, den interessiert sicherlich statt Rio de Janeiro auch der Karneval von Salvador. Und auch in den bekannten Metropolen wie New York oder London lässt sich noch viel Neues entdecken. In neun Kapiteln kann jeder neue Traumziele entdecken, die seinen Interessen entsprechen. Schon beim Durchblättern kann sich der Leser dank der prächtigen Fotos und informativen Texte inspirieren lassen. Praktische Informationen und nützliche Hinweise zu den Reisezielen helfen zudem bei der konkreten Urlaubsplanung.

Die Welt verstehen ohne einen Fuß vor die Tür zu setzen Was bleibt nach der »Geschichte von fast allem« eigentlich noch zu schreiben? Die Geschichte von fast allem anderen, natürlich. Bill Bryson hat sich daher in seinen vier Wänden umgesehen und sich gefragt: Warum leben wir eigentlich, wie wir leben? Warum nutzen wir ausgerechnet Salz und Pfeffer, und weshalb hat unsere Gabel vier Zinken? Aber es bleibt nicht bei Geschichten von Bett, Sofa und Küchenherd. Die Geschichte des Heims ist auch immer eine der großen Entdeckungen und Abenteuer. Ohne die Weltausstellung in London hätte man vermutlich das Wasserklosett nicht so schnell zu schätzen gelernt. Und ohne die großen Entdecker müssten wir wohl ohne Kaffee, Tee oder Kakao auskommen. Bill Bryson zeigt uns unser Heim, wie wir es noch nie gesehen haben. Und wir verstehen ein wenig mehr, warum es so ist, wie es ist. Ausstattung: 19 sw-Abbildungen