12 Best Books By Genius Stephen Hawking [2021]

Have you ever wondered about the vastness of the Universe? Ever fascinated about the mysteries of life? That is what led a 13-year boy to become a renowned scientist in the future.

Yes, we are talking about Stephen Hawking, the great theoretical physicist, and cosmologist. He discovered many breakthroughs in cosmology and quantum mechanics. Few of them include Hawking radiation, Penrose-Hawking theorems, Hawking energy, Bekenstein–Hawking formula, and more.

Let us look at the timeline of the best books by Stephen Hawking that proves the genius he was.

A Brief History of Time

This book on cosmology is for non-technical readers. Hawking describes the origin, structure, development, and ultimate fate of the Universe. Also, he discusses the basic concepts of space and time in a non-technical manner. He also introduces readers to quarks, Big Bang, black holes, general relativity, and quantum mechanics. However, this book is for people who do not know about the universe and want to learn something new.

Black Holes and Baby Universes and Other Essays (1993)

This book is the first collection of lectures and essays written by Hawking. Moreover, it has 13 essays that discuss black holes, general and special relativity. Therefore, all these essays transform our thoughts about physics, reality, and the universe.

Hawking builds the works of Einstein to discuss imaginary time and the formation of the universe from black holes. He also writes about the struggle of scientists to find a complete unified theory. Besides, he also describes his personal life. For instance, he explains his struggle with motor neuron disease.

The Universe in a Nutshell (2001)

This book is considered a sequel to his “A Brief History of Time”. He writes about the history and principles of modern physics. It is a book of theoretical physics that explains new theories of M-theory and branes to the general audience.In other words, this is an illustrated version that provides insights into discoveries to the general audience.

On the Shoulders of Giants (2002)

In this book, scientific articles of great scientists Copernicus, Galileo, Kepler, Newton, and Einstein are given. Hawking describes how the research of these scientists changed the world. Hawking also describes challenges faced by all these scientists to provide their great contribution to the world. He also added how their work has helped modern scientists to transform out thoughts on the universe.

God Created the Integers (2007)

This book is an anthology by Hawking. Most importantly, it includes milestones of mathematical discoveries of about 2500 years. Hawking describes extracts from great work of 31 scientists including Euclid, Kurt Godel, Georg Cantor, Bernard Riemann, Augustin Cauchy, Alan Turing, and others.

The Dreams That Stuff Is Made of (2011)

This book is a collection of great research work by Niels Bohr, Werner Heisenberg, Max Planck, Erwin Schrodinger, Richard Feynman, J. Robert Oppenheimer, and Max Born. For the most part, Hawking discusses how each of them has changed the course of science. All these works caused a paradigm shift in physics to understand the universe in a whole new light.

My Brief History (2013)

This book takes the reader into the life of Hawking from teenage to his time of popularity. There are candid old pictures of Hawking and his life story. Readers get to know how he was called “Einstein” by his friends.Also how he grew up to become a good husband, father, and renowned scientist.

Brief Answers to the Big Questions (2018)

In this book, Hawking answers the big questions in each section of the book. The book is divided into sections named 1. Why Are We Here? 2. Will We Survive? 3. Will Technology Save Us or Destroy Us? 4. How Can We Thrive?. Hawking discusses threats to life on Earth. He also explains life, time, God, and the afterlife.

The Nature of Space and Time

This book is a documentation of debate between Hawking and Penrose on physics. This was based on the debate series between Neils Bohr and Albert Einstein. There are lecture series by Hawking and Penrose on Classical Theory, Structure of Spacetime Singularities, Quantum Black Holes, Quantum Theory and Spacetime, Quantum Cosmology, and The Twistor View of Spacetime. Finally, The Debate is documented.

The Future of Spacetime (2003)

Different scientists along with Hawking discuss the deepest mysteries of nature in this book. It includes “An Introduction to Spacetime Physics” by Richard Price, “Chronology Protection” by Stephen Hawking, “Can We Change the Past?” by Igor Novikov, “Speculations about the Future” by Kip S. Thorne, “On the Popularization of Science” by Timothy Ferris, and “The Physicist as Novelist” by Alan Lightman.

A Briefer History of Time (2010)

This book is an updated version of “A Brief History of Time”. Hawking wrote it to make the content of the older book to be more accessible to the general audience. He has removed the pure technical topics such as the mathematics of chaotic boundary conditions. On the other hand, interesting topics such as curved space, relativity, and quantum theory are given separate chapters. This reorganization has helped Hawking to include recent advancements and discoveries. It includes development in string theory and the unified theory of all the forces of physics.

The Grand Design (2010)

Hawking and Mlodinow explain the scientific explanations about the mysteries of the Universe. Fundamental questions about the origin of the Universe and life are explained scientifically.

They have discussed the existence based on quantum theory. It says that all history exists simultaneously with the Universe. They describe that history does not create us. Instead, we create history by observing it.

In conclusion, they assess the M-theory.If confirmed, it will be unified theory Einstein was looking for. Above all, it will be the victory of human reason.

Conclusion

Now you have seen the list of best books by Stephen Hawking that proves how genius he was. If you are a person with curiosity about the universe, the reality of life itself, these are the books for you. You may not even be acquainted with the concepts of physics and yet you can read and comprehend them. In conclusion, that is the magic of Hawking.