Grace in All Simplicity: Beauty, Truth, and Wonders on the Path to the Higgs Boson and New Laws of Nature Hardcover – Import, 7 November 2023

A comprehensive history of the physics of matter from the earliest of times of recorded history to the present. It is not told systematically from beginning to present, but each chapter generally covers a thread of the story from an early start to the end for that thread and then the following chapter generally goes back, sometimes even earlier, for the next thread. In this way the discoveries are advanced from the atomic structure by Rutherford and others, to the Higgs Boson, and finally to speculation of what the universe is made of and its connection to life.The story is not only of subatomic particles, but also of the advances in the theory and accelerator technologies enabling the discoveries. It is an entertaining read with many interesting anecdotes, both historic and that of the authors who participated in much of the recent work. It does require some rereading in some sections as some of the meaning of the terminology becomes apparent. I would recommend it to anyone curious to learn more about the excitement of recent discoveries in particle physics.

I purchased the book after being impressed by the author on a podcast. For me personally, when attempting the book I was just not in mood for the squishy concepts and fanciful explorations therein. Others might find it extremely readable and likeable.I just ordered anther crack at it: Matt Strassler's "Waves in an Impossible Sea", also after hearing from the author on the same podcast. I'll post my review of that in a couple weeks.