{"product_id":"9781805300540","title":"Sleeping Beauties : Why Good Ideas Go Dormant and How They Wake Up","description":"\u003cp\u003eby Byrne, David | History of science \u003cbr\u003ePublished 08\/10\/2026 by Canongate Books in the United Kingdom \u003cbr\u003eHardback | 416 pages, b\u0026amp;w integrated illustrations\u003cbr\u003e240 x 159mm | 0g\u003c\/p\u003e\u003chr\u003e\u003cp\u003eA 'Sleeping Beauty' is a brilliant idea that is ahead of its time.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e So many breakthroughs in arts or science were like this, lost on their initial audience and only later revived and acknowledged to be great.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e This book asks, why do some ideas fall asleep? And how do they wake up?We love to believe in a meritocracy of ideas - that greatness is always recognised, innovation always seized upon and rewarded. Yet so many of the people we now recognise as the world's great creators initially got little traction for their work. It was only later, often much later, that their work comes roaring back to life and made a lasting impact.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e Discoveries as diverse as dark matter to continental drift, technologies from solar panels to the steam engine, artists from Brueghel to Vermeer to Melville all created 'sleeping beauties'.  Ranging across many centuries and the full scope of human endeavour, Byrne explores their stories and gives us a lens for identifying future breakthroughs.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e Humbling yet hopeful, these stories celebrate the courage to try new things and the wisdom to embrace them.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"THE CLEEVE BOOKSHOP LTD","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":57289338650999,"sku":"9781805300540","price":26.0,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0758\/0729\/3737\/files\/9781805300540.jpg?v=1783592053","url":"https:\/\/thecleevebookshop.co.uk\/products\/9781805300540","provider":"The Cleeve Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}