I am reminded of Arthur Schopenhauer's quote: "Talent hits a target no one else can hit. Genius hits a target no one else can see." And the problem Smolin points out plaguing the world of physics (at least at the time of it's publication), is that no one trusts the guy who's interested in a target everyone else can't see.

Though written for a lay audience, unless you have an interest in theoretical physics, you might find yourself slogging through the meat of the book as I sometimes did. Perhaps the most interesting section was the last (Part IV), his commentary on the current state of science in general and physics in particular. University physics departments, specifically large ones, have become sclerotic and risk averse. Rather than bet on a budding scientist with fresh ideas, the money - and tenure track positions - usually goes to the safe bet, that is the graduate students who choose to follow fashionable research. Sure and steady wins the race, or in this case, makes for happier faculty, but the field as a whole suffers as a result.