Cosmologist and theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking has devoted his life to very complicated subjects, but that hasn’t infringed on his ability to write a concise, clear sentence. In his new memoir My Brief History, Hawking’s life story converges with insight into black holes and time travel. Accomplished biographers could learn from his upholding of the brevity promised by its title.

Hawking is especially good when relaying the way he fell into his field, describing the coincidences and circumstances that opened the path for his life of discovery and innovation. As is so often the case with success stories, his path seems both arbitrary and pre-destined. Before discovering his love of physics, he almost became a civil servant, but forgot to take the exam. They told him he could try again in a year, but by then he was on a different journey.

Hawking tells readers that he was born on January 8, 1942, exactly 300 years to the day after the death of Galileo, the physicist-astronomer known as the father of modern science. Not many thinkers could make such a statement without seeming grandiose, but Hawking has earned it with his relative modesty throughout the memoir.

My Brief History also provides a nice little primer on the British education system, from the differences between public and private schools (clarifying that what Americans would call a private school is called a public school in England) to the surprisingly weak work ethic at Oxford. As Hawking tells it, he only learned to really study when he met his future wife Jane. The prospect of marrying her provided the motivation he needed to finish his Ph.D.

He became involved with Jane shortly after he was diagnosed with the neurodegenerative disease A.L.S., which could have permanently sidelined him. Whether it was love for Jane, a love for physics, or a lot of both that got him through his initial struggles, in My Brief History we meet a scientist who is passionate, humble, and practically fearless -- and an excellent writer, too.