Tide

A spring tide of colour and historical anecdote laps over the more austere mudflats of the actual science. So much so that I find myself looking forward to the next piece of technical exposition -- Tom Whipple * The Times * Imagine, if possible, a gently studious Bill Bryson crossed with an upbeat and relaxed WG Sebald. It is a superb book... a delight to read. It is profound and powerful, and should win prizes. -- James McConnachie * Sunday Times * This fascinating book deftly explores the dramatic history, critical importance, and scientific wonder of the tides. Hugh Aldersey-Williams is a marvelous guide who takes the reader on a sweeping and thought-provoking adventure into the heart of one of the most captivating, mysterious, and elemental forces of nature -- Eric Jay Dolin, author of Brilliant Beacons: A History of the American Lighthouse Prepare for a voyage with the best of companions - Hugh Aldersey-Williams is a storyteller supreme, and he's found a subject worthy of his talents -- Edward Dolnick, author of The Clockwork Universe: Isaac Newton, the Royal Society, and the Birth of the Modern World Science writing at its best ... fascinating and beautiful -- Matt Ridley on 'Periodic Tales' Immensely engaging and continually makes one sit up in surprise -- Richard Cohen on 'Periodic Tales' * Sunday Times * Aldersey-Williams is full of good stories and he knows how to tell them well -- Graham Farmelo on 'Periodic Tales' * Sunday Telegraph * Engaging and thoughtful... Like some of the most compelling biographers, Aldersey-Williams partly inhabits his subject * Literary Review on The Adventures of Sir Thomas Browne in the 21st Century * Exposes new facts and ideas every other page -- Horatio Clare * Observer * Aldersey-Williams's corrective meshes a history of the science with tide-related technologies and tidally sculpted events. It's an eloquent ebb and flow * Nature *

Hugh Aldersey-Williams studied natural sciences at Cambridge. He is the author of several books exploring science, design and architecture - including Periodic Tales, Anatomies and The Adventures of Sir Thomas Browne in the 21st Century - and has curated exhibitions at the Victoria and Albert Museum and the Wellcome Collection. He lives in Norfolk with his wife and son.