The Planets
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With her bestsellers Longitudeand Galileo's Daughter, Dava Sobel introduced readers to her rare gift for weaving complex scientific concepts into a compelling narrative. Now Sobel brings her full talents to bear on what is perhaps her most ambitious topic to date-the planets of our solar system. Sobel explores the origins and oddities of the planets through the lens of popular culture, from astrology, mythology, and science fiction to art, music, poetry, biography, and history. Written in her characteristically graceful prose, The Planetsis a stunningly original celebration of our solar system and offers a distinctive view of our place in the universe.
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* A New York Timesextended bestseller
* A Featured Alternate of the Book-of-the-Month Club, History Book Club, Scientific American Book Club, and Natural Science Book Club
* Includes 11 full-color illustrations by artist Lynette R. Cook BACKCOVER: "[The Planets] lets us fall in love with the heavens all over again."
-The New York Times Book Review
"Playful . . . lyrical . . . a guided tour so imaginative that we forget we're being educated as we're being entertained."
-Newsweek
" [Sobel] has outdone her extraordinary talent for keeping readers enthralled. . . . Longitudeand Galileo's Daughterwere exciting enough, but The Planetshas a charm of its own . . . . A splendid and enticing book."
-San Francisco Chronicle
"A sublime journey. [Sobel's] writing . . . is as bright as the sun and its thinking as star-studded as the cosmos."
-The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
"An incantatory serenade to the Solar System. Grade A-"
-Entertainment Weekly
"Like Sobel's [Longitudeand Galileo's Daughter] . . . [The Planets] combines masterful storytelling with clear, engaging explanations of the essential scientific facts."
-Physics World
Liked The Planets? Here’s where I’d start.
These suit anyone who liked The Planets. Sign in and mark a few books for picks shaped around your own taste.
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Tycho and Kepler: The Unlikely Partnership That Forever Changed Our Understanding of the Heavens Shares science, astronomy, nonfiction -
The Sun's Heartbeat: And Other Stories from the Life of the Star That Powers Our Planet Shares science, nonfiction, astronomy -
The Five Ages of the Universe: Inside the Physics of Eternity Shares science, nonfiction, astronomy -
The Pluto Files: The Rise and Fall of America's Favorite Planet Shares science, nonfiction, astronomy
“People who read The Planets tend to reach for these next.”
“If you want more of the same (science about nature), start with these.”
“If it was the astronomy that hooked you, try one of these.”
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How I Killed Pluto and Why It Had It Coming
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StarTalk: Everything You Want to Know About Space Travel, Sci-Fi, the Human Race, the Universe and Beyond
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Your Atomic Self: The Invisible Elements That Connect You to Everything Else in the Universe
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The Interstellar Age: Inside the Forty-Year Voyager Mission
