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This is where we will discuss the book after we start reading it in November.

Please remember to mark spoilers by using spoiler tags: [spoiler]...[/spoiler], but replace [ by < and ] by >

Last night I read the foreword by Eddie Remayne, which was lovely, and the introduction by Kip Thorne about Hawking's (and his own) research, which was a bit daunting. I followed a few courses on thermodynamics and quantum physics in uni, so I recognized the words, but I don't understand gravitational waves at all, haha.
Hopefully, the rest of the book is not too complicated.

He does seem to be explaining things to be mostly understandable to my non scientific mind. I’m still just taking it in smallish doses.

I'm sorry to say that much of this book went over my head, so I can't really comment on the science.

I listened to the audiobook, primarily narrated by British actor Ben Whishaw. At the end of each chapter, there is a recording of an original Q&A, with Hawking's answers delivered via speech synthesizer -- with an American accent.

I am reminded that having heard this as Hawking's voice all my life, in a time when there were no information searches at my fingertips, I assumed this brilliant man was American. Only in more recent decades did I learn of my error. Oops!

TerryJane wrote: "I listened to the audiobook, primarily narrated by British actor Ben Whishaw. At the end of each chapter, there is a recording of an original Q&A, with Hawking's answers delivered via speech synthesizer -- with an American accent."

I was wondering what the last part of each chapter was in the ebook! Makes a lot more sense as audio.

I also thought he was American until recently, TerryJane!

I just finished chapter 3, it's been a slow read so far. Chapter 1 & 2 where meh for me, apart from not understanding all of it, Hawking repeatedly voices how his theories are better than those of his colleagues, which got a bit annoying.
I liked that Chapter 3, finally some biology!

Halfway through and it’s getting to be struggle�.

Couldn’t get through Kip Thorne’s intro.

I’ve finished chapter 1. A bit slow going.

I did laugh when a discovery was cited as named for Hawking (Hawking radiation, maybe others?)

Hawking voiced a twisted version of himself in a Futurama episode and takes credit multiple times for things.
� Fry: So then my chair tilted back and I almost fell into this freezer thingy.�
Hawking: I call it a "Hawking Chamber".

� Nichols: Wait. I'm getting an idea. What if Fry was supposed to get frozen?�
Hawking: Yes. Shove him in the tube. It was my idea.

� Nichols: It's about that rip in space-time that you saw.�
Hawking: I call it a "Hawking Hole".

� (Fry: Hey, Stephen Hawking. Aren't you that physicist that invented gravity? Hawking: Sure, why not?)

He was also on The Simpsons multiple times. Apparently he had quite the sense of humor. 😂

Sheila wrote: "Halfway through and it’s getting to be struggle�."

I found that the second half of the book was easier to read that the first half.

I started this one today and got through the Introduction. It does require your attention - playing it in the background while you do other stuff doesn't seem to work with this book.

Stephen Hawking really liked Elon Musk, huh? That's an exhausting bit of name-dropping that really didn't age well.