A Short History of Nearly Everything
The best entry point to Bryson's popular science and explanatory writing.
Author guide
Bill Bryson Books in Order
Bill Bryson is an American-British journalist and author born in Des Moines, Iowa, in 1951. His books include humorous travel writing, memoir, histories of language and private life, biography, and popular science. He is a former Chancellor of Durham University and an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society.
travel writingmemoirlanguagehistorybiographypopular science
Catalog record updated .
Not sure where to begin?
Start with one of these
Notes from a Small Island
A representative introduction to his humorous travel writing.
Read in order
Books by series
- 1 The Road to Little Dribbling: More Notes from a Small Island
Book 1 · travel · 2015
- 2 One Summer: America, 1927
Book 2 · history · 2013
The award-winning author of A Short History of Nearly Everything recounts the story of a pivotal cultural year in the United States when mainstream pursuits and historical events were marked by contributions by such figures as Charles…
- 3 At Home: A Short History of Private Life
Book 3 · history · 2010
From the author of that classic of modern science writing, A Short History of Nearly Everything, comes a work of what you might call domestic science: our homes, how they work, and the fascinating history of how they got that way. Bill…
- 4 The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid: Travels Through My Childhood
Book 4 · memoir · 2006
Bill Bryson's first travel book opened with the immortal line, âe~I come from Des Moines. Somebody had to.âe(tm) In this deeply funny and personal memoir, he travels back in time to explore the ordinary kid he once was, in the curious…
- 5 A Short History of Nearly Everything
Book 5 · popular-science · 2003
Bill Bryson describes himself as a reluctant traveller, but even when he stays safely at home he can't contain his curiosity about the world around him. "A Short History of Nearly Everything" is his quest to understand everything that has…
- 6 Down Under
Book 6 · travel · 2000
- 7 Notes from a Big Country
Book 7 · travel · 1999
When an old friend asked him to write a weekly dispatch from New Hampshire for the Mail on Sunday's Night and Day magazine, Bill Bryson firmly turned him down. So firm was he, in fact, that gathered here are nineteen months' worth of his…
- 8 A Walk in the Woods: Rediscovering America on the Appalachian Trail
Book 8 · travel · 1997
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…
- 9 Notes from a Small Island
Book 9 · travel · 1995
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…
- 10 Made in America: An Informal History of the English Language in the United States
Book 10 · language · 1994
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…
- 11 Neither Here nor There: Travels in Europe
Book 11 · travel · 1991
The adventures of the farmer Festus and his intrepid cat, this time with a rooster.
- 12 The Lost Continent: Travels in Small-Town America
Book 12 · travel · 1989
The Lost Continent: Travels in Small-Town America is a book by travel writer Bill Bryson, chronicling his 13,978 mile trip around the United States in the autumn of 1987 and spring 1988. It was Bryson's first travel book.
Outside the series
Bibliography by category
Nonfiction (6)
- The Penguin Dictionary of Troublesome Words
reference · 1984
- The Penguin Dictionary for Writers and Editors
reference · 1991
- Bill Bryson's African Diary
travel · 2002
From the author of A Short History of Nearly Everything and The Body comes a travel diary documenting a visit to Kenya. All royalties and profits go to CARE International. In the early fall of 2002, famed travel writer Bill Bryson…
- Shakespeare: The World as Stage
biography · 2007
William Shakespeare, the most celebrated poet in the English language, left behind nearly a million words of text, but his biography has long been a thicket of wild supposition arranged around scant facts. With a steady hand and his…
- The Body: A Guide for Occupants
popular-science · 2019
Planet Mensch - ein Reiseführer In seinem neuen Buch erzählt Weltbestsellerautor Bill Bryson die grandiose Geschichte des menschlichen Körpers, von der Haarwurzel bis zu den Zehen. Das ganze Leben verbringen wir in unserem Körper, doch…
Other (1)
- The Mother Tongue: English and How It Got That Way
language · 1990
With dazzling wit and astonishing insight, Bill Bryson--the acclaimed author of The Lost Continent--brilliantly explores the remarkable history, eccentricities, resilience and sheer fun of the English language. From the first descent of…
Frequently asked questions about Bill Bryson
Who is Bill Bryson?
Bill Bryson is an American-British journalist and author known for humorous, accessible nonfiction about travel, language, history, and popular science. He lives in England.
Sources: ljmu.ac.uk (opens in a new tab)penguinrandomhouse.com (opens in a new tab)
How did Bill Bryson begin his career as a writer?
After moving to England, Bryson began as a sub-editor at the Bournemouth Daily Echo and later worked at Financial Weekly, The Times, and The Independent. He left his newspaper job in 1987 to write books full time.
Sources: ljmu.ac.uk (opens in a new tab)publishersweekly.com (opens in a new tab)
What influenced Bill Bryson’s writing?
His journalist parents, his father’s books by P.G. Wodehouse and Robert Benchley, and National Geographic’s coverage of Europe shaped his love of language, humor, and travel. Adapting to British language and irony also influenced his style.
Sources: publishersweekly.com (opens in a new tab)ljmu.ac.uk (opens in a new tab)
What awards and honors has Bill Bryson received?
A Short History of Nearly Everything won the Royal Society’s 2004 Aventis Prize and the European Union’s Descartes Prize. Bryson was elected an Honorary Fellow of the Royal Society in 2013 and received Drake University’s Alumni Achievement Award in 2009.
Sources: royalsociety.org (opens in a new tab)royalsociety.org (opens in a new tab)news.drake.edu (opens in a new tab)
What is Bill Bryson’s legacy in popular science and nonfiction?
Bryson helped make complex subjects approachable through clear, humorous nonfiction aimed at general readers. The Royal Society recognized his role in communicating science and its history to a broad audience.
Sources: royalsociety.org (opens in a new tab)royalsociety.org (opens in a new tab)