Reviews

Dave Randle's entertaining book on science, its origins, uses and misuses, is published by Bank House Books and Media. Within its 228 pages Mr.Randle has constructed scores of short chapters in which he seeks to clarify how modern science is affecting the world and us, and in doing so frequently debunks what he sees as the self-serving nature of many of its adherents. Whether you dip into the book at random or read it from first to last, you'll immediately recognise the quality of the writing, which is not prose designed to give Sun readers an easy time. Here is incisive vocabulary used to widen the reader's perspective, and it certainly requires concentration if the thrust is to be followed sensibly. Dave likes to provoke discussion and argument, and my guess is that here he'll be short of neither, which is exactly what he wants. You'll undoubtedly find much with which to agree, and be glad that the author has coherently made the point. But I'd be surprised if you don't also locate a few passages which cause a raised eyebrow or two. Dave isn't averse to big, wide statements, and such boundless pronouncements can be difficult to grasp, and even harder to agree with. Turn the page however, and there you'll trip over sentences you'd love to have written yourself; only the lack of time, thought, talent and velvet prose have prevented them. A chapter called Mistaken Identity is a convincing example: one page, a dozen sentences and what Dave Randle does best - makes you laugh, and makes you think. Peter Cracknell

Dave Randle s entertaining book on science, its origins, uses and misuses, is published by Bank House Books and Media. Within its 228 pages Mr.Randle has constructed scores of short chapters in which he seeks to clarify how modern science is affecting the world and us, and in doing so frequently debunks what he sees as the self-serving nature of many of its adherents. Whether you dip into the book at random or read it from first to last, you ll immediately recognise the quality of the writing, which is not prose designed to give Sun readers an easy time. Here is incisive vocabulary used to widen the reader s perspective, and it certainly requires concentration if the thrust is to be followed sensibly. Dave likes to provoke discussion and argument, and my guess is that here he ll be short of neither, which is exactly what he wants. You ll undoubtedly find much with which to agree, and be glad that the author has coherently made the point. But I d be surprised if you don t also locate a few passages which cause a raised eyebrow or two. Dave isn t averse to big, wide statements, and such boundless pronouncements can be difficult to grasp, and even harder to agree with. Turn the page however, and there you ll trip over sentences you d love to have written yourself; only the lack of time, thought, talent and velvet prose have prevented them. A chapter called Mistaken Identity is a convincing example: one page, a dozen sentences and what Dave Randle does best makes you laugh, and makes you think. Peter Cracknell "