Anchorage Public Library has partnered with Science Friday to bring the Sci Fri Book Club to the science and reading enthusiasts in our community. The SciFri Book Club is a program created by Science Friday to bring people together around all things science reading – anything from sci-fi short stories to nonfiction science books to science articles from various publications to science-y poetry!
There’s lots of ways to participate: Read the book, join our community space, attend an event, or send a message on the SciFri VoxPop app.
This December, the SciFri Book Club will read The Biggest Ideas in the Universe: Space, Time, and Motion by Sean M. Carroll. This New York Times bestseller transforms intimidating physics equations into meaningful insights about reality—from Einstein’s general relativity to the marvel of calculus itself. Carroll’s gift for making complex concepts entertaining means you don’t need a physics degree to grasp ideas about warped space-time, black holes, and the fundamental forces shaping our cosmos. Whether you’re science-curious or science-savvy, this book offers an accessible, engaging journey through the building blocks of modern physics. Let’s discover together why these “biggest ideas” are surprisingly understandable—and genuinely fun.
The Biggest Ideas in the Universe brings together a range of topics, including space, technology, physics, mathematics and much more—and we’ll touch on these ideas throughout this Book Club season.
Get the ebook or audiobook from the Alaska Digital Library. You can also get a copy from your local bookstore.
This Book Club season kicks off Monday, December 1, and you can read along with us! We’ll be (loosely) following this schedule, but all our readers are welcome to join us at their own pace:
- December 1-8: Introduction and Chapters 1-3
- December 9-15: Chapters 4-6
- December 16-22: Chapters 6-9
- December 23-29: Final Thoughts
Plus, we’ll be hosting events throughout the month! Keep an eye out on our website or join our Book Club newsletter to be the first to know.
There are so many ways to dive in and participate! You can purchase a copy of the book (and support the author and SciFri), join the discussion in our online Book Club community, sign up for our email newsletter, or RSVP for our upcoming Book Club events
Join the SciFri Book Club community forum here.
Book Club Meeting
Want to meet other SciFri Book Club members, talk about the book selection, and find more resources for deeper learning—all without leaving your home? Our community meeting is the place for you!
The Biggest Ideas in the Universe
Thursday, December 18
4 PM | Zoom
This discussion meeting will focus on themes and topics featured in The Biggest Ideas in the Universe. You’re welcome to join us no matter your reading progress—come chat with other science-interested folks about space, technology, physics, mathematics and much more.
Author Live Stream
Join us online for a livestream all about the science topics featured in the SciFri Book Club pick. Come with your queries and wonderings—we’ll be taking your questions in the livestream comments!
The Biggest Ideas in the Universe Q&A with Sean M. Carroll
Monday, December 15
9 AM | Science Friday's YouTube Livestream
In The Biggest Ideas in the Universe, Sean M. Carroll guides readers toward grasping the very equation Einstein used to describe his theory of general relativity and shows why high school calculus is itself a centuries-old marvel as worthy of our gaze as the Mona Lisa.
Upcoming Selections
- January: The Kissing Bug: a True Story of a Family, an Insect, and a Nation's Neglect of a Deadly Disease by Daisy Hernández.
