Stephen (University of Cambridge) Hawking

The author has dazzled readers worldwide with a string of bestsellers exploring the mysteries of the universe. Now, for the first time, the most brilliant cosmologist of our age turns his gaze inwards for a revealing look at his own life and intellectual evolution. This book recounts his improbable journey.

In 2016 Professor Stephen Hawking delivered the BBC Reith Lectures on a subject that has fascinated him for decades - black holes. In these flagship lectures the legendary physicist argues that if we could only understand black holes and how they challenge the very nature of space and time, we could unlock the secrets of the universe.

A succinct, startling and lavishly illustrated guide to discoveries that are altering our understanding and threatening some of our most cherished belief systems, The Grand Design is a book that will inform - and provoke - like no other.

Was there a beginning of time? Could time run backwards? Is the universe infinite or does it have boundaries? This book examines these questions. It begins by reviewing the great theories of the cosmos from Newton to Einstein, before delving into the secrets which still lie at the heart of space and time, from the Big Bang to black holes.

Addresses the nature of space and time, the role of God in creation, the history and future of the universe. This book guides nonscientists in the search for the tantalizing secrets at the heart of time and space.

Was there a beginning of time? It begins by reviewing the great theories of the cosmos from Newton to Einstein, before delving into the secrets which still lie at the heart of space and time, from the Big Bang to black holes, via spiral galaxies and strong theory.