Dava Sobel's
The Glass Universe
will be available from Viking in December 2016
With her bestsellers
Longitude
and
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 Planets
is a stunningly original celebration of our solar system and offers a distinctive view of our place in the universe.
* A
New York Times
extended 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
"[
] 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. . . .
were exciting enough, but
has 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 [
] . . . [
] combines masterful storytelling with clear, engaging explanations of the essential scientific facts."
Physics World