Brought to you by Penguin.

A COMPLETE, UNCOMPLICATED GUIDE TO THE SCIENCE OF LIFE, THE UNIVERSE AND EVERYTHING

Have you ever wondered why you exist?

What had to happen for you – and all life on Earth – to come into being?
What is the true answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe and everything?
In The Universal History of Us, Tim Coulson – Professor of Zoology at Oxford – takes us back to the beginning of everything: the Big Bang 13.8 billion years ago. From there, he leads us step by step along the path to the most astonishing thing we have yet encountered – the staggering complexity of the modern human mind.
Covering physics, astronomy, chemistry, geology, the emergence of life, evolution, consciousness and the rise of humankind, yet written to be understood by anyone with a child’s curiosity, this book takes the biggest story of all and tells it simply, grippingly and, above all, entertainingly.
It is the history of you, me and everything – of how we all came to be. In short, it is the greatest story ever told.

‘Most scientists know only their own field. Tim Coulson is at home with science as an integrated whole. A pleasure to read, and a lasting accomplishment’ Richard Dawkins

''Step aside Star Wars – ours is the most astonishing origin story you’ll ever hear and its beautifully told by Tim Coulson’ Professor Ken Norris, Deputy Director of Science at the Natural History Museum

Previously published as The Universal History of Us.

© Tim Coulson 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025

Brought to you by Penguin.

A COMPLETE, UNCOMPLICATED GUIDE TO THE SCIENCE OF LIFE, THE UNIVERSE AND EVERYTHING

Have you ever wondered why you exist?

What had to happen for you – and all life on Earth – to come into being?
What is the true answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe and everything?
In The Universal History of Us, Tim Coulson – Professor of Zoology at Oxford – takes us back to the beginning of everything: the Big Bang 13.8 billion years ago. From there, he leads us step by step along the path to the most astonishing thing we have yet encountered – the staggering complexity of the modern human mind.
Covering physics, astronomy, chemistry, geology, the emergence of life, evolution, consciousness and the rise of humankind, yet written to be understood by anyone with a child’s curiosity, this book takes the biggest story of all and tells it simply, grippingly and, above all, entertainingly.
It is the history of you, me and everything – of how we all came to be. In short, it is the greatest story ever told.

‘Most scientists know only their own field. Tim Coulson is at home with science as an integrated whole. A pleasure to read, and a lasting accomplishment’ Richard Dawkins

''Step aside Star Wars – ours is the most astonishing origin story you’ll ever hear and its beautifully told by Tim Coulson’ Professor Ken Norris, Deputy Director of Science at the Natural History Museum

Previously published as The Universal History of Us.

© Tim Coulson 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025

Brought to you by Penguin.

A COMPLETE, UNCOMPLICATED GUIDE TO THE SCIENCE OF LIFE, THE UNIVERSE AND EVERYTHING

Have you ever wondered why you exist?

What had to happen for you – and all life on Earth – to come into being?
What is the true answer to the ultimate question of life, the universe and everything?
In The Universal History of Us, Tim Coulson – Professor of Zoology at Oxford – takes us back to the beginning of everything: the Big Bang 13.8 billion years ago. From there, he leads us step by step along the path to the most astonishing thing we have yet encountered – the staggering complexity of the modern human mind.
Covering physics, astronomy, chemistry, geology, the emergence of life, evolution, consciousness and the rise of humankind, yet written to be understood by anyone with a child’s curiosity, this book takes the biggest story of all and tells it simply, grippingly and, above all, entertainingly.
It is the history of you, me and everything – of how we all came to be. In short, it is the greatest story ever told.

‘Most scientists know only their own field. Tim Coulson is at home with science as an integrated whole. A pleasure to read, and a lasting accomplishment’ Richard Dawkins

''Step aside Star Wars – ours is the most astonishing origin story you’ll ever hear and its beautifully told by Tim Coulson’ Professor Ken Norris, Deputy Director of Science at the Natural History Museum

Previously published as The Universal History of Us.

© Tim Coulson 2025 (P) Penguin Audio 2025