Hammersmith Library’s Saturday reading group was one of six reading groups who shadowed the Royal Society Winton Prize for Science Books this year. The group was invited to attend the award ceremony on 25 November 2013. A member of the group describes the event:
Seeing a gaggle of excited people queuing outside one of London’s grander Georgian houses was unexpected: surely not for an evening lecture on science books at the venerable Royal Society?
Yes, but this was the Royal Society Winton Prize for Science Books award ceremony hosted by famously brainy comic Dara Ó Briain, so the winning formula ran:
6 popular science authors ÷ generous prize x stand-up comedian (+ fast-talking charm) = a packed auditorium.
As a representative from Hammersmith Library’s reading group, which had won copies of Tim Birkhead’s Bird Sense, and really enjoyed reading and reviewing the work, it was an unexpected and delightful bonus to be invited to the ceremony, hear the author bring his book to life – and have him sign a copy, afterwards, too.
Dara Ó Briain hosting the Royal Society Winton Prize for Science Books award ceremony.
The contenders each read a taster from their books, were interviewed by Dara (deftly combining light banter and serious content), and then joined in a debate which ran gloriously overtime. Sean Carroll’s book on the Higgs Bosun particle emerged as the winner, announced by the Royal Society’s president, Sir Paul Nurse, with amusing showmanship.
However, perhaps the most fascinating element was listening to the writers speak eloquently about their research. Their topics included the strange ways in which the human brain perceives art, the fallibility of human memory and the legal injustices it perpetrates, and the peculiar lives of other, humbler species on the planet. Hearing about the pitiful ravaging of ocean wildlife by plastic waste and thereby the scary arrival of new, uncharted toxins into our food chain moved me profoundly. I felt inspired not only to hurry back to my library and read all the shortlisted books but also to modify my behaviour, so reading groups really can change everything – maybe even the planet!
Get involved
Read the first chapter of each of the shortlisted titles on the Royal Society’s website.
Find out about some of our other great offers for reading groups.
