The Quantum Astrologer's Handbook

‘Jerome Cardano is my all-time favourite mathematical rogue. Michael Brooks has brought him vividly to life in entertaining, informative, and highly original conversations about frontier physics, held across a gulf of centuries. A daring and successful experiment and a new kind of popular science writing.’

-- Ian Stewart

“A near-novelistic account that’s part quantum science, part biography, and part history, this story of 16th-century polymath Jerome Cardano delivers enjoyment on every level … The author breathes life into the intrigues of the 16th century, from a political crisis point which turns on a king receiving a favorable horoscope, to public math battles in the town square between bitter rivals. Brooks’s work offers a bewitching and intimate mix of biography and science.” STARRED REVIEW

* Publishers Weekly *

‘Michael Brooks is a magician in the old sense — both scientist and artist. He uses both disciplines to create a compelling, fresh look at the quantum world. A fantastic read for students of reality.’

-- Gwyneth Lewis, author of Sunbathing in the Rain

‘Michael Brooks is the canniest science writer around. He writes, above all, with attitude.’

* The Independent *

‘Brooks communicates difficult stuff in an amiable and lucid manner.’

* New Statesman *

‘[Brooks’s] history of [quantum theory] and his sketches of its principals — Einstein, Schrödinger, Bohr — are swift and precise, but he really shines in his lucid discussions of theory and experiment.’

* Financial Times *

‘4 stars ... Cardano turns out to be an intriguing figure, deserving of Brooks’ obsession ... [they] make for very entertaining and illuminating companions.’

* The Mail on Sunday *

‘An enthralling biography of the polymath Jerome Cardano, which doubles as a primer on the strangeness of quantum physics ... This vivid book offers belated recompense to a gambler who lost more than he won in an eventful and turbulent life.’

* The Sunday Times *

‘This beautifully written book is a kind of experimental scientific biography that mashes up science with what seems to be non‑science, the better to explore the boundaries of what we still don’t know … a quite superb book.’

* The Guardian *

‘A beautifully novelistic fusion of physics and biography.’

* The Daily Telegraph *

‘This unconventional biography reads like a playful, postmodern novel full of ambition, intrigue, tragedy and an amazing array of scientific discoveries … a risky conceit but Brooks pulls it off magnificently.’

* The Sydney Morning Herald *

‘Brooks is an exemplary science writer. His explanations have the sort of clarity you often yearn for when you read about science, but rarely find.’

* The Daily Telegraph *

‘[A] fascinating and accessible primer on some of the meatiest and most controversial ideas in modern science … Brooks is known for his ability to explain difficult science to non-specialist audiences, and his passionate interest in quantum physics and history animates every page of this engrossing book.’

* The Saturday Paper *

‘The premise of Michael Brooks’s book linking Cardano and quantum physics is bonkers but curiously effective.’

* New Statesman *

‘The most original non-fiction book I’ve read in years.’

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Andrea Wulf, author of The Invention of Nature and Founding Gardeners

‘This is one of the best & imaginative non-fiction books I’ve ever read. Hands down. US readers ... I promise. Absolutely fantastic.’

-- Andrea