Quantum: A Guide for the Perplexed, By Jim Al-Khalili

Appropriately for a discipline characterised by Schrödinger's cat "in the embarrassing state of being both dead and alive simultaneously", this guide may leave the reader enlightened and perplexed at the same time.

Reassuringly, the pros feel the same. After guiding us through such tantalising phenomena as decoherence, Al-Khalili notes that the "harmless nonsense" of Star Trek may not be all nonsense. "Teleportation is theoretically possible if only at the quantum scale for the time being."