'The end-product is a massive but exciting book, covering in depth many aspects of the field, from colour centres and dislocations to band theory of solids and collective phenomena. Photographs, together with personal reminiscences, enliven the presentation.' Jacques Friedel, Physics World, September 1993
'a valuable start to an ambitious project and the book is likely to become an authoritative secondary source for anyone trying to follow up some aspect of the history in depth' David Shoenberg, University of Cambridge, Nature, Vol. 365, September 1993
'here is a book which contains some very good accounts of the physics involved ... It also has lots of interesting facts, descriptions and anecdotes about the origins and development of the physics of solids ... many physicists will enjoy dipping into it.' Professor J.S. Dugdale, University of Leeds, Contemporary Physics, 1993, volume 34, number 3
'this is a "big history" of which more will always remain to be written ... But it is much more than a beginning for the academic vivisection of solid-state physics .... For all those interested in the physics of the 20th century, whether as historians, scientists, or both, this splendidly produced book is essential reading.' Times Higher Education Supplement
'This book searches out the scattered origins of solid-state physics among the scientific establishments and industrial research laboratories of the late 19th and early 20th centuries.' Times Higher Education Supplement
a most readable nonmathematical overview of the development of the various fields of solid-state physics, suited to the nonspecialist ... Parts of this volume, designated as assigned reading, would add materially to the education of undergraduate and graduate students enrolled in the usual academic courses. Indeed, there are many fascinating nuggets that an instructor could introduce into a course on solid-state physics ... The book contains very extensive notes and references at the end of each chapter. It is a volume well worth having on one's bookshelf. * Hugo Steinfink, University of Texas, Acta Cryst. (1994) A50 *