James Watt, Chemist: Understanding the Origins of the Steam Age (Science and Culture in the ... Book

The mysteries of love unravelled! Well, almost. On the plus side, this book covers a huge amount of territory, summarizing a vast amount of research on a number of varied topics and it does so in a light, breezy and highly readable style. The overview of John Gottman's work is very well done.

On the other hand, many of the conclusions drawn from a single study or pop culture reference seem rather far-fetched. Some of the examples meant to bolster the author’s arguments about biology seem more to reflect American mores (it would have been interesting to hear about studies done in developed countries with greater social support and gender equality, such as the Scandinavian nations, for example). In addition, same-sex relationships are not mentioned at all – a glaring omission!

If this topic interests you, I would recommend “What's Love Got to Do with It?” by anthropologist Meredith Small and “Bonk” by Mary Roach.