– Customer review on 02/12/2008

As someone who has always been fascinated by engineered structures - particularly a big fan of bridges - but with no understanding of engineering at all, I thought this would be the perfect book to explain the mysteries of structures to the absolute novice.
And the book pretty much delivers.
The author has a very conversational way of writing often veering into passages of gossip - as in the bad relations between Robert Hooke and Isaac Newton - but this does have relevance, and in building a picture of the people and the times it gives context and helps explain the science in a very unscientific manner.
The sketches and photos throughout the book illustrate wonderfully some very mathematic concepts that I would otherwise have trouble comprehending.
Only occasionally I would have to take a break to allow my brain to digest some of the complex theories.
It is a book you could read cover to cover, or flip through at random and discover random insights into everyday principles of design.
Though written simply, it is not condescending - the author doesn't talk down to his audience, but explains sophisticated ideas in a witty and palatable manner.
Highly recommended.