SOURCE: "Universal Models," in Times Literary Supplement, No. 4464, October 21-27, 1988, p. 1167.

In the excerpt below, Reeves argues that while A Brief History of Time is well-written, Hawking fails to communicate that his ideas are based on assumptions which have yet to be proven.

A Brief History of Time is a document, both scientific and human, about a man who has fought against a terrible illness (motor neurone disease) to become one of the leading figures in contemporary astrophysics. Stephen W. Hawking is well on his way to matching the popularity of Einstein among the general public. The book tells us about the evolution of his thinking, which has deeply influenced the face of contemporary cosmology. It should be read by everybody interested in physics and astronomy. It is also highly readable, the style being brisk, sharp and often witty. The arguments, reduced to the essential, are clearly made...