Books › The Globe
The Globe
384 pages
A delightfully brainy collision of wizardly antics and real-world anthropology that explores why humans are so obsessed with telling stories.
What it feels like
Reading this book feels like sitting in a cozy, slightly chaotic university common room where a brilliant mathematician, a biologist, and a master satirist are having a spirited, wide-ranging debate about the nature of humanity. The experience is uniquely dual-layered: you are simultaneously swept up in a whimsical, high-stakes fantasy adventure and grounded by fascinating, accessible essays on human evolution, culture, and the origins of art. It moves at a steady, thoughtful pace, inviting you to pause and ponder the mechanics of our own reality before plunging back into the comedic chaos of bumbling wizards and malevolent elves. It is a deeply inquisitive, wryly funny journey that will delight curious minds who love to explore the intersection of myth, science, and the stories we tell ourselves.
- Mood
- intellectual
- whimsical
- curious
- expansive
- Tone
- wry
- inquisitive
- satirical
- educational
- philosophical
- Pace
- steady
- Themes
- the power of storytelling · human evolution · the nature of belief · origins of culture · myth-making
- The writing
- A uniquely engaging hybrid of sharp, footnote-laden comedic fantasy and lucid, conversational scientific exposition.
- The arc
- Begins with playful, wizardly bumbling and expands into a profound, awe-inspiring appreciation for the messy, narrative-driven nature of human consciousness.
- Who it's for
- Curious readers who love both clever fantasy and popular science, and who enjoy pondering why humans are so obsessed with making up stories.
Content notes
- existential themes
About the book
"In The Science of Discworld, the wizards of Unseen University unwittingly created Earth (aka Roundworld) and our universe. At the time, they were so concerned with the rules of this new universe that they overlooked its inhabitants completely. Now, they have finally noticed humanity. And humanity has company: Elves, who want very much to take over human society. In this second installment in the Science of Discworld miniseries, Terry Pratchett and acclaimed science writers Jack Cohen and Ian Stewart weave the history of the human mind, culture, language, art and science into a story in which the wizards compete with the elves for control of Roundworld and grapple with the nature of Good and Evil. All the while, the authors explore history as it is rewritten over and over, presenting a fascinating and brilliantly original view of the world we live in"--
Description from Open Library.
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