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Isaac Asimov's _Understanding Physics_ is older (1966) but is meant for the general reader or to supplement a textbook. It uses algebra and only a little trig.

J. D. Bernal's _A History of Classical Physics_ (1972) begins with ideas from ancient Greece and goes to the end of the 19th century. No math, but lots of pictures and diagrams. I have a 1997 reprint.

Stephen F. Mason's _A History of the Sciences_ (1962) covers chemistry and biology as well as physics, from Babylonia and Egypt to the mid twentieth century.

I am sure there are many others, but these, which include history and biography as well as scientific content, are good, readable overviews.




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