I'm always looking for books that are interesting to read on topics that I don't know much about -- or have forgotten. In The Canon : A Whirligig Tour of the Beautiful Basics of Science, Natalie Angier, a science writer for the New York Times, re-introduces the science you left behind at high school and updates it, relating basic principles to current controversial issues and reporting conversations with leading scientists, in a style that is not only readable but enjoyable.

Though each chapter is an essay on its own, it's best to start with the first chapter, Thinking scientifically. Other topics include: probabilities , calibration, physics, chemistry, evolutionary biology, molecular biology, geology and astronomy.

Read an excerpt and listen to an interview at the author's website.