In his preface to Fundamentals: Ten Keys to Reality, theoretical physicist, mathematician and Nobel laureate Frank Wilczek explains that his aim with this book is to “convey the central messages of modern physics as simply as possible” — and as valiant as his efforts seem to be, and as essentially interesting as I find the material, I’m afraid that these “central messages” conveyed “simply” did strain the limits of my comprehension. This might not be exactly the layman’s general interest science book that I hoped it would be, but Wilczek’s writing is straightforward, often engagingly personal, and he is obviously (and contagiously) filled with awe for what he does more perfectly understand about the underpinnings of reality.

While I couldn’t quite get my mind wrapped around everything he laid out here, I do wholeheartedly recommend this book — the ideas are complex but worth trying to understand; this is actually our reality after all.