200,000+ Books, Games & Puzzles in-stock 🇳🇿 

Black Friday Sale on Now! Save up to 25% off Books, Toys, Board Games, & Puzzles! ✨

The First of Everything

A History of Human Invention, Innovation and Discovery
By Stewart Ross
0.0 (0 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
The First of Everything by Stewart Ross explores a delightful journey through historical and scientific milestones, from the origins of the universe to pivotal moments in human history. It unravels fascinating stories of groundbreaking discoveries and inventions, offering an engaging narrative for those intrigued by the natural world and humanity's place within it. Each chapter invites readers to ponder how these firsts have shaped the world as we know it.
Read More
Format: Paperback / softback
$1299
OVERNIGHT NZ-WIDE DELIVERY

Found a better price? Request a price match

Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

You might enjoy this book if you're fascinated by groundbreaking discoveries and significant firsts that have shaped the world we live in. The author presents an engaging exploration of historical and scientific milestones, offering insights into how these pivotal moments in science and nature have defined the course of human progress.

Book Hero thinking about your next read

A lively and highly readable account of the origins, invention and discovery of just about everything on the planet, the truly global sweep of The First of Everything ranges from the Big Bang to driverless cars.

A lively and highly readable account of human invention, innovation and discovery. The First of Everything recounts the origins, invention and discovery of just about everything on the planet, from the Big Bang to driverless cars.

Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

A lively and highly readable account of the origins, invention, and discovery of just about everything on the planet, the truly global coverage of The First of Everything ranges from the Big Bang to driverless cars.

The First of Everything follows a context-setting introduction with seven stimulating sections:

In the Beginning: From the Big Bang to Homo Sapiens.

At Home: From the first glass windows to dentures and bikinis.

Health and Medicine: From herbs to heart transplants.

Getting About: From donkeys to double-deckers.

Science and Engineering: From the potter’s wheel to webcams.

Peace and War: From the first king to fighter-bombers.

Culture: From cave painting to rap.

This fascinating book takes in the full sweep of human development and ingenuity over twelve millennia. Africa, for example, gave us the first monarch; algebra and great religions emerged from the Middle East; democracy was born in Europe; and America made the first flying machines. More than just a string of dry lists, the colourful text’s intriguing insights and asides make it as enjoyable for the casual browser as for the more serious researcher.

Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781789292091

Publisher: Michael O'Mara Books Ltd

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 03 October 2019

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Michael O'Mara Books Ltd

Illustration: illustrations, maps and photographs throughout

Audience: Tertiary education, Professional and scholarly

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 24.0mm

Width: 129.0mm

Height: 198.0mm

Weight: 250g

Pages: 288

Collections

Best Sellers at Book Hero Education & Reference Engineering, Technology & Agriculture In Stock Books Non-Fiction Science & Nature Stewart Ross

About the Author

As well as fiction and non-fiction titles, Stewart Ross has written prize-winning books for children (his book The Story of Scotland won the Saltire Society prize). He is a French speaker and teaches and directs plays in France; he also gives workshops and talks in the UK and further afield.

Also by Stewart Ross

View all
  • The Middle East since 1945
    This much needed new edition provides a complete and essential guide to this fast developing, ever-changing, and often tense region. This book, fully updated for 2024, examines the origins and development of the events which have dominated the headlines for the last seven decades. Covering everything from religion and politics in the aftermath of the Second World War to the...
    By Stewart Ross
    Paperback
    $2999
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict
    The Israeli-Palestinian Conflict by Stewart Ross is the essential guide to the extraordinarily complicated and developing situation in Israel/Palestine. Fully updated to reflect the tense and troubling changes in the region since 7 October 2023, this book puts the present situation into its broader context. By examining all perspectives, it unravels the origins and development of issues which make the...
    By Stewart Ross
    Paperback
    $2999
    Available
    Ships in 4-6 weeks
  • Twisted Fairy Tales: Snow White and the Seven Robots
    Once upon a time, a fairy tale went very wrong! This new twist on a traditional children's story is packed with fun, humour, and energy. If you think you know the story of Snow White... think again! The evil Star Queen is determined to be the most beautiful woman in the galaxy, so she shipwrecks her pretty stepdaughter, Snow White,...
    By Stewart Ross
    Hardback
    $499
    Available
    Ships in 1 week
  • Twisted Fairy Tales: The Ninjabread Man
    Once upon a time, a fairy tale went very wrong! This new twist on a traditional story is packed with fun, humour, and energy. Long ago, in ancient Japan, two ninja warriors had everything they wanted in life, except for a child. So they decided to bake one! Out of the oven leaped a speedy, sneaky, and brave Ninjabread Man......
    By Stewart Ross
    Hardback
    $499
    Available
    Ships in 1 week
  • Twisted Fairy Tales: The Three Little Narwhals
    Once upon a time, a fairy tale went very wrong! This new twist on a traditional children's story is packed with fun. In this whale of a tale, the Big Bad Shark is looking for a tasty snack when he comes across three delicious-looking narwhals! The loveable, pointy-horned creatures—show-off Spike, arty Spiral, and shy Stubby—discover a sunken pirate ship and...
    By Stewart Ross
    Hardback
    $499
    Available
    Ships in 1 week
  • Queen Elizabeth II For Dummies
    The longest-reigning monarch in European history! If the news about Harry, William, Kate, Meghan, and the rest of the British royals has you wondering about how this latest generation of princes, princesses, dukes, and duchesses got their start, you’re not alone. Queen Elizabeth II For Dummies takes you on a fascinating journey through the life of Great Britain’s longest-serving monarch....
    By Stewart Ross
    Paperback
    Sold Out
  • Unfolding Journeys Amazon Adventure
    Jump in your trusty canoe and get ready for an unforgettable journey down the Amazon river. Sail past tribal villages and bustling jungle cities, and come face to face with incredible rainforest creatures in this beautifully illustrated wall frieze. Unfolding Journeys Amazon Adventure by Stewart Ross, Lonely Planet Kids offers a captivating exploration that will ignite your imagination. Perfect for...
    By Stewart Ross and Lonely Planet Kids
    Paperback
    Sold Out

Browse lists from our team

The Latest at Book Hero

View all

More from Science & Nature

View all
  • What If? 10th Anniversary Edition
    CELEBRATING TEN YEARS OF THE MILLION-SELLING POP SCIENCE CLASSIC WITH A SPECIAL EDITION. THIS IS WHAT IF? . . . x10. THE SUNDAY TIMES BESTSELLER 'Nerd royalty' — BEN GOLDACRE 'Totally brilliant' — TIM HARFORD 'Required reading across the world' — NEW YORK TIMES From the creator of the wildly popular xkcd.com, experience hilarious and informative answers to important questions...
    By Randall Munroe
    Hardback
    $4200
    Elsewhere:
    $5000
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Nuclear War
    The Sunday Times bestselling non-fiction thriller that has to be read to be believed. Baillie Gifford shortlisted, a favourite of Steven Bartlett, with an average reader rating of 4.6, sure to be a mass-market hit. Up to now, no one outside of official circles has known exactly what would happen if a rogue state launched a nuclear missile at the...
    By Annie Jacobsen
    Paperback
    $2500
    Elsewhere:
    $2800
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • On Sale
    17% off
    The Anxious Generation
    A powerful argument for reclaiming childhood—and all human relationships—from the online world, from the influential social psychologist and international bestselling author. Jonathan Haidt has spent his career speaking truth and wisdom in some of the most difficult spaces—communities polarised by politics and religion, campuses battling culture wars, and now the mental health emergency hitting teenagers today in many countries around...
    By Jonathan Haidt
    Paperback
    $1900
    Elsewhere:
    $3000
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • On Sale
    17% off
    Prisoners of Geography
    Prisoners of Geography looks at the past, present, and future to offer crucial insights into one of the major factors that determine world history – because if you don’t know geography, you’ll never have the full picture. Originally published in 2015, this completely revised and updated edition brings it up to date with the events and trends of the past...
    By Tim Marshall
    Paperback
    $2400
    Usually:
    $2899
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Diddly Squat: Home to Roost
    It's been another memorable year on Diddly Squat Farm - will the chickens finally come home to roost? Welcome back to Clarkson's Farm. The spring crop failed. Farming sheep, pigs, and cows was hardly more lucrative (better off breeding ostriches...) But in the face of uncooperative weather, bureaucracy, and the world's persistent refusal to recognise his genius, our hero's not...
    By Jeremy Clarkson
    Paperback
    $2600
    Elsewhere:
    $3000
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • On Sale
    30% off
    The Place of Tides
    To save the world, we have to start somewhere. One afternoon many years ago, James Rebanks met an old woman on a remote Norwegian island. She lived and worked alone on a tiny rocky outcrop, caring for wild ducks and gathering their down. Hers was a centuries-old trade that had once made men and women rich, but had long been...
    By James Rebanks
    Paperback
    $2100
    Usually:
    $3000
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • On Sale
    20% off
    Ultra-Processed People
    Launching the runaway bestseller with ambitions to be the biggest non-fiction paperback of the year IT'S NOT YOU. IT'S THE FOOD. "If you only read one diet or nutrition book in your life, make it this one" - Bee Wilson "You've got to get this book in your life . . . Completely compelling . . . Read a page...
    By Chris van Tulleken
    Paperback
    $2000
    Elsewhere:
    $2800
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Pokemon Encyclopedia: Updated and Expanded 2024
    The essential guide to all things Pokémon, this year’s Encyclopedia includes all of the details of Ash Ketchum’s battle to become Pokémon World Champion! The new updated and expanded final edition of the Pokémon Encyclopedia! Ash Ketchum’s journey to becoming a Pokémon Master, and winner of the Masters Eight World Championships, has come to an end. Travel through all 8...
    By Pokémon
    Hardback
    $3799
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • On Sale
    20% off
    Kitchen Confidential
    The classic bestseller from the star of Parts Unknown and No Reservations: 25th Anniversary edition, with a new introduction by Irvine Welsh. BEFORE THERE WAS THE BEAR, THERE WAS BOURDAIN. ‘Elizabeth David written by Quentin Tarantino’ — A.A. Gill ‘Fantastic: as lip-smackingly seductive as a bowl of fat chips and pungent aioli’ — Daily Telegraph After twenty-five years of sex,...
    By Anthony Bourdain
    Paperback
    $2000
    Elsewhere:
    $2799
    (2)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • That's not my... Zoo
    A perfect introduction to zoo animals with eye-catching illustrations, touchy-feely patches and a noisy finale! Discover the fun of the zoo in this sound-book addition to the bestselling That's not my... series. Turn the pages to explore the zoo and meet a monkey, an elephant, a tiger and a parrot in this larger format touchy-feely book. Press the sound button...
    By Fiona Watt
    Board book
    $2299
    Elsewhere:
    $2499
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Tim's Pick Tim's Pick
    Sapiens
    Sapiens by Yuval Noah Harari is an extraordinary exploration of humanity's history from the dawn of our species to the present day. Harari delves into our evolution, offering insights into the cognitive revolutions that allowed Homo sapiens to rise above other animal species. Traversing through various stages of human development, he examines the Agricultural Revolution, the unification of humankind through...
    By Yuval Noah Harari
    Paperback
    $2500
    Elsewhere:
    $3000
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow
  • Invisible Women
    Invisible Women by Caroline Criado Perez is a groundbreaking and meticulously researched exploration into the pervasive gender bias that infiltrates every aspect of our society. Through compelling case studies and thorough analysis, this book unveils the hidden ways women are systematically disadvantaged in a world predominantly designed by and for men. Perez's revelations stretch across various sectors including government policy,...
    By Caroline Criado Perez
    Paperback
    $2500
    Elsewhere:
    $2600
    (1)
    In Stock
    Ships tomorrow

Why buy from us?

Book Hero is not a chain store or big box retailer. We're an independent 100% NZ-owned business on a mission to help more Kiwis rediscover a love of books and reading!

Service & Delivery

Service & Delivery

Our warehouse in Auckland holds over 200,000 books, toys, board games and puzzles in-stock so you're not waiting for your order to arrive from overseas.

Auckland Bookstore

Auckland Bookstore

We're primarily an online store, but for your convenience you can pick up your order for free from our bookstore, which is right next door to our warehouse in Hobsonville.

Our Gifting Service

Our Gifting Service

Books make wonderful thoughtful gifts and we're here to help with gift-wrapping and cards. We can even send your gift directly to your loved one.