Book excerpt: In this book, James McEvoy provides a brief, accessible introduction to the thought of Robert Grosseteste (c 1168-1253). Grosseteste was the initiator of the English scientific tradition, one of the first chancellors of Oxford University, and a famous teacher and commentator on the newly discovered works of Aristotle. Despite his importance, very little of his work is available in English. McEvoy translates into English brief passages from Grosseteste's own writings which are of central importance to his thought and builds around them the first general, inclusive overview of the entire range of Grosseteste's intellectual achievement.