Author

Vaclav Smil

19 books, mostly science, for Penguin and Penguin Audio, 2012–2026

Vaclav Smil is a Canadian interdisciplinary nonfiction author and Distinguished Professor Emeritus at the University of Manitoba. Since publishing his first book, China’s Energy, in 1976, he has written more than 50 books and hundreds of papers on energy, the environment, food, population, technological change, growth, innovation, and economic history. His accessible, data-driven books—including How the World Really Works, Numbers Don’t Lie, and Energy and Civilization—translate complex scientific and historical subjects for general readers.