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THE BOOK THAT HAPPENED - Is Reality but Sheer Coincidence?

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This is the book of awkward questions.
It doesn’t promise easy entertainment—it provides understanding at a level that we never reached in school.

Do the past, present, and future exist?
What are miracles made of?
Why can’t science define what time truly is?
Is it that simple to understand infinity?

You will find a multitude of logical deductions and thought experiments in this book. You will realize how astonishingly wonderful our reality is. This book aims to provide an understanding of the universe. It will help you understand time and space, dimensions, infinity, and coincidence.

Did the universe simply happen? By sheer chance? And the people in it? Are we just a product of coincidence? Or were we called to existence by some higher power?

The answers will be provided by you—the reader. The book brings up a series of questions that spark up thoughts, inspire, provoke, and point out contradictions and paradoxes. It doesn’t try to persuade you. It doesn’t shove the author’s truth down your throat.
It shows things. It reveals things.
It shows that one inch is extremely far from being an exact distance measurement. It reminds you that the speed of an arrow shot from a truck, equals the truck’s and its own speed, whereas the same logic doesn’t work with a ray of light.

The book takes the scientific definitions of time, space, geometric points, and line segments – and shows you their incompetence. You’ll see how ungrounded of a scientific base we have, and yet we build our daily lives on it.
Can you define the present time? What really is the present? Just think about it: you started reading this blurb half a minute ago: in the past. You will pay for the book in five minutes: in the future. Right? And now? Are you reading at home, having bought the book two hours ago?

Only one thing is for sure: you are a winner if you can talk about reading The Book that Happened in the past tense. Come along now. Start the adventure with Attila Pergel and get your ticket for this fantastic journey that will send you flying from the atomic nucleus to the edge of the universe!

228 pages, Paperback

Published April 15, 2011

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2811 people want to read

About the author

Attila Pergel

1 book27 followers
I wrote my very first computer program at the age of thirteen; it was a dice program. I did that back in 1985 on a ZX81 Sinclair home computer. I’ve been a software developer for more than thirty years, and in the past ten years I’ve been working for financial institutions.

I am not a writer, but I know for certain what I want to say.

THE BOOK THAT HAPPENED did not set out to be a success, but it did set out to get its message across to as many people as possible. In 8 months, it has sold more than 2,000 copies in its home country - Hungary - so it is considered a bestseller in many places. The reception of the book's message has been positive, with letters from readers suggesting that it has been, and is, a real help to many.

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5 stars
11 (50%)
4 stars
5 (22%)
3 stars
5 (22%)
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1 (4%)
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
Profile Image for Laura .
123 reviews29 followers
May 23, 2021
After a hectic week, I found “The Book that Happened- Is Reality but Sheer Coincidence?” by Attila Pergel as an astounding, thought-provoking book that uproots our tension and anxiety for a moment.
The book discrete the readers from the real world and take them on a new journey. The author inspires the reader, by asking questions that you never think of. You might find these questions are too simple to answer, but the reality behind these simple questions is quite complicated if you miss the point.
The explanation of the time concept is much intriguing.
“as I grew older, and I had more to do, time passed quicker and quicker. The older I get, the faster the days, weeks, months, and years go. Often, I can’t even say how I spent the past few years. Why did that year or month fly by so quickly?”
The author creates a discussion with the reader. The language is scientific yet simple, thus the reader will not get bored. The facts are logical and convincing with the given examples. The book is well-written, informative and gives a pleasant experience to the reader with tiny experiments.
Even though this might not be everyone’s cup of tea, it is worth turning few pages to have a second thought of life. If your ticket is ready, enjoy the journey with Attila Pergel.
Profile Image for Simran Mehendi.
133 reviews26 followers
July 6, 2021
4.5 Stars!

I generally think of non-fiction books as long, boring essays in which the writer just dumps all his/her knowledge. This wasn't the case with 'The Book That Happened'. It felt like being in a class with your favorite professor. He'll conduct experiments with you, explain it in a fun way, help you understood the topic, and make sure you gain something useful from each chapter.

The best thing I'll walk away with, is not that light is massless yet the formula of energy is E=mc^2 (although that is pretty cool), it will be the importance of always asking questions. It made me wonder why I just accepted all the definitions given by my teachers. It made me regret all the times I'd chosen to not ask a question because I was scared of being wrong. It also provided me with a new outlook on many basic concepts.

Attila Pergel (Author) doesn't ask you to agree with him. He just asks you to give his opinion a chance. He even encourages disagreeing with him in the afterword!

Some quotes/statements I liked:-
• If you do something today, how will you prove tomorrow that you did it yesterday?
• Denying won’t make it non-existent.
• We are content knowing that we are right and condemn those who happen to question the
system


Overall, great book. It exceeded my expectations. Recommended to all science lovers. His was so easy to understand that even I- a fourteen-year-old- was able to understand everything.
Profile Image for Carlos Gameiro.
60 reviews
October 22, 2022
Didn't know/was not expecting this to be a physics book. I liked how he challenges our pre conceived notions of time, light, distance and a bunch of other stuff. That was interesting. However very few pages dedicated to coincidence itself and didn't really feel he explored much on it.
Profile Image for Krisz.
Author 23 books36 followers
April 17, 2021
If you are ready to unlearn, if you want to know how little you know, and you are brave to find your own explanations to the questions you haven't even asked since you were 3.
This book is a basic explanation of the world around us: time, light, speed, the 3D space we live in, infinity and coincidence.
Profile Image for Ellie.
134 reviews23 followers
May 13, 2021
I’ll be the first to say that popular science isn’t my typical genre. I’ve shied away from it in the past, haunted by flashbacks to school lessons in which I struggled to keep up with the teacher, and have generally believed, if I’m being honest, that I just wasn’t smart enough to properly ‘get’ it. Despite this I know that it is a genre hugely popular among non-fiction readers, and I have long been looking for a book that would serve as a great starting point that I wouldn’t find too complex or overwhelming. If you, too, find yourself in a similar boat, then I can highly recommend diving into The Book That Happened. Incredibly immersive, thought-provoking and, arguably most important of all, so much fun to read, this is a fantastic deep dive into the wonders of the universe that readers of all ages will enjoy.

As science has always been such a confusing and overwhelming subject for me, I was amazed by the ease with which Attila Pergel was able to explain such intricate subjects in such a manageable and understandable way. Trust me when I say you do not need to be a science whizz to enjoy this book; Pergel’s writing was not only easy to follow and enjoyable to read, but really made me question why I’d been turned off the subject for so long. Breaking down subjects such as time, space and our place within the universe (completely mind-boggling, I know!) into really manageable and digestible chunks in a way that will inspire you to move on to further research of your own, Pergel’s work was an absolute joy to read from start to finish. There were so many times while reading that I had to stop to share or discuss something I’d come across with my partner, leading to some very enthusiastic and interesting conversations about subjects I had previously thought to be beyond my comprehension.

The Book That Happened may have been the first popular science book that I’ve read but it certainly won’t be the last, and I have to thank Attila Pergel for my new-found interest in the genre. As I said, I think this is fantastic starting point for beginners, although I’m sure whatever your prior knowledge you’re sure to find something in here to get you both thinking and talking! Fantastically researched with thorough explanations and discussions throughout, it is a book that will make you see the world we live in from a fresh and new perspective. Wonderful!
Profile Image for Krisz.
Author 23 books36 followers
November 8, 2020
Ez az a könyv, amit (mondjuk 14-től felfelé) szerintem mindenkinek olvasnia kellene. Mert eszünkbe juttatja, milyen a valóság.
Kb. háromévesen óvodába kerülünk, s innentől fogva életünk fő célja a rutinba való beletanulás: hogy megy az élet ebben a közösségben? Mik a szabályok, hogyan viselkedjem, hogy minél többen kedveljenek? Ebbe a csapdába mind beleesünk, márpedig az idomulás fő szempontja mind az iskolában, mind a munkahelyen – de gyakran még a házasságban és a gyereknevelésben is – az lesz: NE KÉRDEZZ! Fogadd el, amit mondanak neked, ne gondolkodj rajta, és ha különvéleményed van, tartsd meg magadnak.
PA fogta magát és megette ezt az egészet, megrágta és kiköpte.
Elővette a laptopját és teleírta kérdésekkel, összerendezte őket, keresett ugyan magyarázatokat, de kimondta, hogy szerinte nincsenek, szerinte csak kérdések vannak – és ez az igazán bámulatos ebben a könyvben. Felnyitja a szemünket a saját kérdéseinkre, a saját válaszainkra, a saját világunkra. Lefogadom, hogy mindenkinek lesz olyan élménye e könyv kapcsán, ami csak és kizárólag az ő egyéni felismerése, még csak nyomokban sem emlékeztet majd a könyv tartalmára. Nekem is van ilyenem. Majd elmondom a szerzőnek, ha találkozunk, mert szerintem érdekli…
5 reviews
May 11, 2021
Reading this book was a scientific adventure indeed!
It was a very intriguing, deep, informative, and well-written book! Everything flowed and was in good sequence and on point with intricate details and wholesome facts to back every notion from light to time to space! The Author asked all these intriguing questions which got me thinking and excited in wanting answers too. What is the deal with the future? How we manipulate future events from the present and many more.

I also enjoyed the little mental experiments, which made me as the reader feel as if I was part of the book too. The Author also shared snippets of his life and the lives of other prominent figures from the past as examples in the explanations. The whole book was well researched and had really meaningful substance. Highly recommend! It is a very resourceful book and will have you excited about science.
Profile Image for Lola.
6 reviews2 followers
July 22, 2021
When you think about some things, you get more confused. The more you try to ponder their meanings, the more you encounter new realities that sends waves of uncertainty and confusion to the inner core of your brain. To say the least, I enjoy intertwining myself in such questions as a way to ‘jog’ my mind and widen my scope. “THE BOOK THAT HAPPENED – Is Reality but Sheer Coincidence?” is an adventurous trip into the world of such questions. It is filled with awkward and confusing questions that you can’t ever find anywhere else. The book’s logical deductions were very interesting and they gave me alternative perspectives that enabled me to view the questions differently. The book turned out to be a great way to exercise the brain and get to understand new realities about the universe. Deserves a recommendation!
Profile Image for Mohiuddin Samrat.
1 review
April 19, 2021
Simplicity, the first word regarding this book that came into my mind is simplicity. As a student of science, I always wonder how could a person narrate the basics of science in such a beautiful way. The writer has a clear view regarding the scientific terms, as well as the public pulse to transfer it in a proper manner. This book is highly recommended for the kids, to explore things, to learn, to make a proper base of science, to enjoy, and to conquer.
Profile Image for Sagar Bhowmik.
1 review
April 20, 2021
This is an absolute treat to the entire science community where the writer simplified the basic terms of science in a very decent way. The explanations were real and an absolute noob to the science fraternity will find this book as interesting as never before. I find this book very much real the way it’s been elaborated and narrated. The orientation is also perfect. I wish the much success with this book and good luck for the writer for the next masterpiece because this book already is…
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews

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