The Sorcerer's Apprentices: A Season at elBulli

  • Lisa Abend
Simon and Schuster 304 pp. £18.99 (2011)

Similar to star scientists, top chefs are an exacting breed. So what is it like to work in the kitchen of the restaurant voted as the world's best for three years in a row? In a behind-the-scenes peek, Lisa Abend relates her experience of enrolling in chef Ferran Adrià's culinary laboratory at his restaurant elBulli in Catalonia, Spain. Abend describes how she adapted to the innovative and technological cooking techniques, and how she and other apprentices learned to push themselves to the extreme of their abilities in order to achieve perfection night after night.

The Language of Science and Faith: Straight Answers to Genuine Questions

Karl Giberson & Francis Collins. SPCK Publishing 224 pp. £12.99 (2011)

For scientists who hold religious beliefs, it can be hard to disentangle the two world views. Geneticist Francis Collins follows on from his 2006 best-seller The Language of God (Free Press), in which he reconciled his scientific knowledge with his Christian faith, joining with physicist Karl Giberson to answer questions about Charles Darwin, evolution and the age of Earth and the Universe. Pointing out that the Bible is not a scientific text, they aim to satisfy the spiritual mainstream while challenging atheists and creationists.

Britain's War Machine: Weapons, Resources and Experts in the Second World War

  • David Edgerton
Allen Lane 464 pp. £25 (2011)

By putting resources, machines and experts at the centre of a global story of the Second World War, historian of science David Edgerton paints a different picture of British military success in the mid-twentieth century. Far from being the plucky underdog, the wealthy nation was a great power at the heart of a global production system. Strategic in its thinking about technology, and ruthless in the pursuit of its interests with formidable arms, Britain's victory was ultimately a cheap one, Edgerton argues.

Chinnovation: How Chinese Innovators are Changing the World

  • Yinglan Tan
Wiley 288 pp. £19.99 (2011)

It is often said that China makes products but does not invent them. Business professor Yinglan Tan dispels that myth through case studies of Chinese companies that are leading the way in entrepreneurship. Businesses in technology-related fields are overcoming barriers to innovation, scaling up rental networks of hybrid cars nationwide or offering user-led travel and restaurant guide websites. He discusses harnessing resources, navigating legal restrictions, dealing with risk and the attraction and retention of talent in China.

You're Looking Very Well: The Surprising Nature of Getting Old

  • Lewis Wolpert
Faber and Faber 256 pp. £14.99 (2011)

Considering it is something we must all endure, most of us know remarkably little about ageing. In researching his book, developmental biologist and octogenarian Lewis Wolpert admits that much of it came as a surprise even to him. He explores the implications of an ageing population, explains why we age through cellular wear and tear and examines attitudes to death and euthanasia. He also raises concerns that we are not doing enough to plan for our old age, either individually or as a society.