5 comments about The Best of James Herriot: : Favorite Memories of a Country Vet.

1. Even though the book was used, it was in excellent condition. The pictures throughout help to make this book a very good purchase for the money. James Herriot is a wonderful storyteller and the reader finds himself/herself able to have the experience of almost being there in person.



2. What can one add to the already vivid detail of the life of Alfred Wight? Fortunately nothing except the illustrations for those of us with little perception of what the farming community and the towns around Yorkshire were like in the 30's and 40's. The fact too, that it's in hardcover will ensure it's permanent place on your bookshelf of treasured writings.



3. If you love animals and you haven't read James Herriot then you simply must! These stories are so full of humour, sadness, joy and lots of plain common sense and wisdom that you will love every minute of reading them. It is amazing to read that the author had such a long struggle to have his work published that he almost gave up. What a loss to the world that would have been! The story of his life is told by his son in the book "The Real James Herriot" - make sure you read that one also!



4. A very bright and beautiful book, with nice pictures and side articles, which help you know more about animals described in the book. All stories are easy to read and full of sparkly humor and affection to animals and nature. Reading it you may easily find yourself laughing over things at one page, and crying at the next one. This book is equally great for both children and adults.



5. If you like James Herriot's Stories, this is a great compilation. It arrived quickly and in perfect condition.
   
   thank you!

No comments about Cooling the South: The Block Ice Era, 1875-1975.

5 comments about Making Time: Lillian Moller Gilbreth -- A Life Beyond "Cheaper by the Dozen".

1. Lillian Moller Gilbreth is well remembered today as the patient mother of "Cheaper by the Dozen". This book makes it clear that this was the least of her attributes.

   Dr. Gilbreth spent over a half century as one of America's leading engineers. First colloborating with her husband, Frank Gilbreth, she spent the first forty years of her widowhood on an intense schedule of conferences, consulting, and teaching, finally retiring near her ninetieth birthday.

   While the primary focus of this book is on Dr. Gilbreth and her engineering career, and the conculsion makes clear author Jane Lancaster's bitterness that Dr. Gilbreth is best remembered for the fictionalized mother of "Cheaper by the Dozen", fans of the book will find material to satisfy them. Several chapters deal with the family's life. Few of the many footnotes are simply to "Cheaper" or its sequel, "Belles on their Toes"--appropriate, as a later chapter deals with how "Cheaper" came to be, and that it was written not as non-fiction, but rather as things should have been. For example, the episode in "Cheaper" where Dr. Gilbreth spent a day in bed, and the children were convinced that a new baby was due, having associated Mother's brief bedstays with childbirth, was based on Dr. Gilbreth giving birth to a stillborn, thirteenth child.

   Jane Lancaster gives life to this pioneering woman engineer, unfortunately typecast by her children's books. Highly recommended.




2. I just finished the book. Lillian led an exhausting life of lecturing, travel and endless writing. As the mother of 13 children, she puts us all to shame (with many fewer children)because of her unbelievable work schedule. This book does a great job of paying tribute to her life's work which is clearly well-documented.
   Although she did not promote herself as an activist for Women's Rights, Lillian Gilbreth took giant steps for all women because of her dedication to her family, husband, and her monumental career.
   Jane Lancaster has a beautiful command of the English language. This book is well-written without being intimidating. I would definitely recommend to anyone interested in juggling family and/or career.



3. The work of the Gilbreth couple has been influencing the way people work both in industry and at home since the beginning of the last century; and this influence has been quite underestimated, mainly because of the lasting succes of the books "Cheaper By the Dozen" and "Belles on Their Toes". The time has come to write a both thorough and neutral review on this work and to show the driving forces behind it. I am very pleased to say that Jane Lancaster with her book "Making Time" wrote this perfect review, which is carefully researched from the scientific point of view and very well written for the reader's pleasure.
   
   Ms Lancaster delivers several things: (1) A precise and complete description of the life of both Gilbreths (which of course is mostly the life of Lillian M. Gilbreth, because she survived her husband by almost 50 years). (2) A neutral evaluation of this work, where she points out that most of Gilbreth's work was outlined and carried out by Lillian M. Gilbreth, although Ms Gilbreth kept herself in the background during the life of her husband. (3) The creation of a well-deserved attention for the work of Ms Gilbreth beyond her (not neglectable at all!) role of a mother of 13.
   
   Having dealt with the work of the Gilbreth couple for more than 20 years, I highly recommend Jane Lancaster's book both for reading pleasure and for scientific work. "Making Time", in my opinion, sets the standards for the research on the work of the Gilbreth.



4. When you think of Lillian (Cheaper by the Dozen) Gilbreth you can help but think of her more as a mother than anything else. The movie presented a story of a wonderful mother, but none the less, just a mother. As is often the case reading the book gives one a much better, much more complete story of her life.
   
   You don't think of a female engineer from her time. Engineering was something that a man did. Yet she was an engineer of some reknown. And being left after her husband's death with eleven children under nineteen she had to face many of the same problems that women have to face today.
   
   To see how she faced them so many years ago is enlightning. Just to see that all of that many children graduated from college is rather amazing even in our world.



5. "This is funny, you might like it."
   
   That suggestion from a long-ago English teacher introduced me to a book called "Cheaper By The Dozen," which in turn kicked off a lengthy fascination with the Gilbreth family and their other books. Along the way, I got a taste of the fact that Lillian Moller Gilbreth was among the more important women of her generation, up there with Marie Curie and Eleanor Roosevelt. But, as other Gilbreth-philes surely know, her children's writings only hinted at that importance, concentrating instead on her role as the family matriarch. This, the first full-length biography not written by a family member, is therefore a welcome addition to the already sizeable collection of books about the Gilbreths.
   
   Jane Lancaster's research is very impressive, as is her ability to overcome the surviving Gilbreth children's noted concern for their privacy. Through over a century's worth of private letters and papers, she provides a surprisingly vivid look at the family you thought you knew as a kid. More importantly, she provides a well-rounded look at Lillian Gilbreth, who even in early life was not nearly the demure introvert so often portrayed elsewhere.
   
   Though very much a product of her 19th century upper crust California childhood, she was quite independent minded from the beginning, as reflected in her decision to go to college, get married and move East while most of her siblings never left home. A lifelong Republican and a close friend of Herbert Hoover, she was nonetheless an early and effective advocate of workplace safety regulations, paid breaks, eight-hour workdays and, of course, women's right to work outside the home. (Oddly, Lancaster makes no mention of Gilbreth's views on women's suffrage, by far the most prominent feminist issue of the era.) In earning a PhD, she overcame not only sexism and the responsibilities of a large family, but a "lost" dissertation as well.
   
   There are also more stories of the children, although few of them are as lighthearted as the ones you already know. Chances are you'd already figured out that "Cheaper By The Dozen" and "Belles On Their Toes" were a couple of idealized memoirs, but if not, prepare to have your bubble burst! Lillian's long absences from home after Frank's death were quite hard on some of the younger children, and Lancaster suggests (without going into much detail) that many of their childhood memories were not all that rosy. Still, Lillian's heroic role in keeping the large family together through hard times comes through everywhere.
   
   I do find Lancaster's thesis - that Mrs. Gilbreth's reputation was shortchanged through her simplistic portrayal in "Cheaper" - slightly unfair. As at least four generations of middle-schoolers know, that book ends with Mother choosing to soldier on with Dad's business after his death and to continue raising all her children on her own. That was no small undertaking for a woman in 1924 or for a single parent of eleven children in any era. (If anything, it gives her slightly more credit than is due: Lancaster reveals here that she briefly sent one daughter to live with her grandmother in California.) The admittedly less-remembered "Belles On Their Toes" and "Time Out For Happiness" are both loaded down with accolades for her achievements both at home and professionally. Also, engineering is not like music, sports, art, or literature - the geniuses of the field, male or female, are generally remembered only by people who practice it. Still, Lancaster does have a point that this pioneering giant of her profession is too often remembered only as a doting mother. And she's done a great job of helping to change that.

5 comments about The Northern Lights.

1. This book documents the life story of Kristian Birkeland, a Norwegian genius scientist at a time when Norwegian scientists were rarely taken seriously. Birkeland spared no cost and no risk to explore and document the phenomena known as Aurora or Nothern Lights. He was the first person to really understand and explain auroras. His theories of space which developed from studying auroras have been proven true long after his deathýhe was well ahead of his time.
   Birkeland was an inventor, often distracted from what he loved best to work on projects that might help him to fund his expensive study of space and northern lights, as well as zodiacal lights near the equator. He pursued his varied projects with such single-mindedness that all else in his life went on the chopping block, including ultimately, his life itself.
   The book is well-written and as readable as a scientific novel. Lucy Jago has previously worked on documentaries, and her research sometimes verges on the overly-detailed. Her hard work is obvious. The story in itself is a fascinating history of scientific study and the many obstacles that present along the way.



2. I didn't hold out hope for this one - surprise! It was a fascinating blend of biography and the historical events involved in explaining the Northern Lights. Yet more amazing were some of the historical elements that gave background. Jago does a nice job on magnetism as well as on reflecting back on Birkeland's forsightedness in terms of modern physics. This man is truly an unsung hero of physics.

   If you teach science you will find many exerpts to share with your classes...especially about weather instruments and magnets. As a biography of a scientist/explorer it is equally rich for pulling out portions to share with classes.




3. This novel describes the man who unraveled mysteries of the brilliant Aurora Borealis and his challenging journeys against both society, and forces of nature. This Norwegian scientist by the name of Kristian Birkeland traveled through the harsh winter weathers of the mountains in Norway, to discover the secrets within the Northern Lights.
   Inspired by the beautiful moving curtains in the sky, Birkeland became set on researching the Lights, whether it meant risking his own life or even leaving his peaceful love life for work. Unfortunately, his devotion to the Research became his first priority, instead of his own health.
   Throughout the novel, Birkeland is chased by the large amount of funding that he needs, in order to set up his laboratory and his equipment for his Northern Lights Project. The government of Norway is constantly having tensions with its neighbor: Sweden, always with the apprehension of war. Therefore, the government is never willing to give enough funding to support the scientist's project.
   Lucy Jago takes us through Birkeland's adventures as if we were there with him through the harsh blizzards and storms. Jago paints the story with real events that happened during Birkeland's unfortunate, yet successful, life time.
   Through reading this novel, I was truly inspired and was impressed by his work ethics. I realized that he put lots of effort into his career, and contributed so much to our scientific knowledge of our world. After reading this, I felt like a larger person at heart, because I was able to become aquainted with someone so skilled and intelligent.



4. The book describes of the life of a quite remarkable Norwegian scientist who discovered the cause of the Aurora Borealis, invented the electro-magnetic canon, and created the process for synthesizing fertilizer.
   
   The book is an entertaining account, that falls short in its discussion of his science. As a personal account, his scientific journeys to Finmark in the heart of winter are an incredible demonstration of dedication to science.



5. Science is oftentimes taught today as if it has been a linear process, and students are rarely asked to consider putting themselves into the shoes of a particular time period or to think about the theories and experiments that actually did not go so well. The end result is that few science students understand the simple process of science, and increasingly believe that mainstream science is always correct. They fail to realize that it is a fact that certain fringe scientific concepts today will end up mainstream within a few decades. Kristian Birkeland was in fact one of the scientific heretics of his day (from the perspective of the British at least), and much of what he said in his time has turned out to be true. People studying the history or philosophy of science, electromagnetism or space plasmas will appreciate the background that this material provides.
   
   I've been told by an advocate of mainstream astrophysics that the book gets some details "wrong". I can only imagine now that they were referring to the epilogue, and specifically the disparaging statements regarding Sydney Chapman and Birkeland's treatment by establishment science. If I am right in this regard, I would have to take Lucy Jago's side on the debate. I would like to mention that Chapman had an opportunity to observe Kristian Birkeland's terrella experiment as recreated by Hannes Alfven. From what I understand, from other sources, Sydney Chapman refused to observe the terrella in operation when he was given the chance. This is a very important detail that I hope she decides to include in any future revisions as it perfectly replicates the way in which modern mainstream astrophysicists treat theories which they do not like. Rather than disproving them, they will refuse to read about them.
   
   I found no serious faults with the book other than that though. The book would especially make a great read for an aspiring electrical engineer.

5 comments about Woman in the Mists.

1. This Book contains the interisting life of Dian Fossey from her bith to her dearh



2. Read this book, and you will feel like you know the real Dian Fossey. Personal letters, journal entries all give insight to her life as a living, breathing human being who had many friends (human and non-human). Her passion for life is inspirational! This is a must read, and also an excellent book to read for school projects!



3. Farley Mowat performed an excellent service when he wrote this book. Dian Fossey was a woman of great character, confidence, courage, determination, and conviction. Her life was lived for what she found to be a greater cause and the world is that much worse off without her. This book did an excellent job of showing the reader who Dian Fossey really was and what she really went through. I recommend it to anyone. It is well worth reading.



4. Another engrossing and fascinating Mowat title, another Mowat "must read", "Woman in the Mists" is the sympathetic biography of a woman whose work gave us a window into the world of the mountain gorilla, a species to whose protection and conservation she was devoted. By alternating excerpts from her diary entries and personal letters with his own descriptive text, Mowat brings Dian Fossey, a powerfully willed and often abrasive woman, to life. Her youthful years, young adulthood, her fateful meeting with Louis Leakey, her romantic involvements and disappointments, her first contacts with the gorillas and the years of her work and struggle are portrayed with humanity and affection. The tale is enormously enriched by her own words. She struggled indomitably against self-serving African bureaucrats, indigenous herdsmen and hunter-gatherers, antagonistic forces that gained strength against her in the fields of primatology and philanthropy, and her own gradually deteriorating health largely the result of a powerful smoking addiction.

   But her work and her happiness were plagued by male academics and agents of philanthropic organizations who got caught up in a web of calumny and distrust motivated by primatologists who were seriously bent out of shape by her abrasiveness and who felt they could avenge themselves by vilifying her, possibly abetted by society's undercurrent of misogyny. Had there been no vilification, she may never have been killed, as her fatal enemy, probably an African, no doubt took strength from knowing how much she was hated by, for example, the American and European agents of the Mountain Gorilla Project. Mowat provides the reader a chilling view of Fossey's victimization, but never identifies the sexist element which seems apparent to this male reviewer.

   Fossey survived all the victimization because of her extraordinary strength and a powerfully motivating love for the gorillas and the entire eden-like natural world in which she lived. She had serious blind spots: her obliviousness to her abrasiveness, her hatred for the National Park's Tutsi herders and pygmy hunter-gatherers, even before the latter began killing her beloved gorillas (whole gorilla family groups, in order to capture a single infant for the zoo trade and skulls for the tourist souvenir trade), and her (and Mowat's) use of the racist epithet "wog" with impunity toward Africans who she hated, though she shared genuine bonds of love with the Africans who worked with her as trackers and poaching patrollers, and evidenced no other racist feeling. Mowat's record of Fossey's life is a powerful, shocking, revealing and loving account.




5. When it came to dealing with people, Dian Fossey was sometimes her own worst enemy, but her dedication to saving the African mountain gorilla and its habitat in Rwanda is indisputable. Describing himself as an "editorial collaborator," rather than as a biographer, Farley Mowat assembles Fossey's story from her never-before-printed journals and private papers, inserting them directly into the book in boldface so she can tell her own story. From her founding of the Karisoke Research Center in Rwanda in 1967, until her murder there in December, 1985, Fossey battled to save "those she loved" from poaching, abduction, and dismemberment.
   
   Throughout her eighteen years at Karisoke, Fossey studied organized groups of gorillas to whom she became so familiar that they would even touch her. As fierce and protective of her own "turf" as a silverback, however, she refused to bend to the exigencies of the political climate and funding requirements and made innumerable enemies. When local herdsmen exerted their age-old rights to graze cattle on "her" mountain, Fossey shot the cattle. When poachers hurt her gorillas, she pursued them, even kidnapping the four-year-old son of one of them to force his surrender. When students at her own Center disagreed with her, she could be brutal.
   
   Fossey also fought local officials, park guards, and conservators who took bribes and staged events in order to protect their payoffs. She battled conservation organizations which wanted to get her funds, rival researchers who wanted to take over her project, and governmental officials who saw tourism in the park as a source of wealth and graft. Always fighting with ferocity, she made no effort to see another point of view or compromise. Her unsolved murder in 1985, by someone who knew the layout of her cabin, could have been by someone from any of these alienated groups.
   
   Mowat presents Fossey as a lonely warrior who never found personal peace, a woman who was instrumental in drawing pubic attention to the plight of the mountain gorilla but who was less sucessful than she had hoped. As he points out in his Epilogue, her cause has been continued by some of the researchers who studied with her. Two of those, Amy Vedder and Bill Weber, continue the story of the gorillas from the death of Fossey through 1993's disastrous Rwandan Civil War. Their book, In the Kingdom of Gorillas: Fragile Species in a Dangerous Land, reflects a more conciliatory viewpoint than that of Fossey. Mary Whipple

3 comments about James Van Allen: The First Eight Billion Miles.

1. Ask young people today who James A. Van Allen was, and they probably don't even know that he was a discoverer of the Van Allen Radiation Belts surrounding our earth, and was the guiding force behind the rocket and saellite instrument packages that have explored Earth's near environment and later, our solar system and beyond. But his story far is more than that. From his humble beginnings in a small town in Iowa to international acclaim his story is that of a scientist whose motto was "It's a good day when you learn somemthing new." I was one of his physics advisees during the 1950s at the University of Iowa, and one of his teaching and research assistants. I remember him to be as good a role model as any physics student could want. He had not a trace of ego, was always supportive of students and diplomatinc in negotiating the minefields of his dealings with government agencies, as required for sustaining his research goals. Under the pressure of cold war politics and launch deadlines, he seemed to be an island of calm. His office door was always open, where he'd be found smoking his tradmark pipe (burning walnut-scented tobacco). Perhaps that pipe was a calming influence. When reminded of health effects of smoking, he replied that he had never heard of a pipe smoker who was convicted of murder.
   
   This excelent, thorough, biography draws together a wealth of detail from Van Allen's notebooks, interviews with his associates, and media accounts to tell his story in an engaging manner, yet, I can attest, one that is true to the facts and details. We learn of his early work in developing proximity fuses during the WWII, which greatly increased the effectiveness of naval guns, his early "shoestring budget" high altitude studies of cosmic rays and the aurorae using military surplus rockets and instrumentation built by students at the University of Iowa. Throughought his research he emphasized getting the job done in the most direct and cost effective way. It will probably surprise most readers to learn that the payloads of Explorer I, IV and subsequent satellites and space probes were designed, built and tested by students working at minimum wage in the sub basement of the physics building, with no security. And all the data from them was analyzed by a small army of students (grateful for employment and experience) using mechanical calculators, graph paper, and slide rules. Many of these students went on to research jobs in the space program. He was an outspoken champion of robotic-instrumented space missions, considering manned spaceflight a collosal waste of money with little return on the investment. The results of the past 50 years, in my opinion, justify that position, when we compare the wealth of information instrumented space probes have yielded about the earth, solar system and (thanks to the Hubble Space Telescope) the rest of the universe. While the maned space programs have yielded--hardly anything of scientific value.
   
   The author of this book, Abigail Foerstner, has managed the tricky task of telling a personal story and at the same time explaining the science clearly enough to give the reader an understanding and sense of its significance. This book is far more engrossing than one might expect from a scientific biography, and I suspect that it will appeal even to those who previously knew nothing about space science.



2. It was good timing for this book to be published near the 50th anniversary of the launching of Sputnik. It was Sputnik and the resulting American inferiority complex that made James Van Allen an instant, Time-cover celebrity. Van Allen was the physicist behind Explorer 1, America's first spacecraft, which discovered the Van Allen radiation belts. Of course it may be a measure of how distorted our perceptions were that even a radiation belt could become a symbol of national pride. To this day the only image that the public has of James Van Allen may be one photo of him and Wernher von Braun triumphantly holding up a model of Explorer 1 as if it was a football.
   
   This book offers a wider historical perspective on James Van Allen and his scientific accomplishments. It shows him to be a quintessential Iowan, a friendly and modest man. It shows his Explorer 1 fame to be one chapter of a long and productive career as a pioneering astrophysicist, in the first generation of scientists to have use of the tools of the space age. Van Allen spent decades building satellites and instruments for spacecraft, most notably the Pioneers that were the first spacecraft to visit Jupiter and Saturn.
   
   The greatest value of this book is that it adds to a seriously underpopulated shelf of books about 20th-century astronomers. It's almost a scandal how many important 20th-century astronomers have never had biographies written about them. Many of the biographies that do exist were written by fellow scientists who had little sense of storytelling or interpreting science. While there are plenty of biographies of space pioneers, most of them are astronauts and rocket builders. The scientists behind the space missions are much less visible. Fortunately the University of Iowa has respect for both physics and storytelling.



3. I had Van Allen as a professor for General Astronomy in 70s. He was soft-spoken. He always had a friendly smile. He wore a lab coat so that he wouldn't get chalk dust on his suit. His freshman class was one of the best attended classes on campus. I didn't realize how good the class was at the time. He was not a dynamic speaker, but he was interesting. The exercises and experiments were great. He made science fun and interesting. He was voted by People's magazine that year to be one of the best professors in the United States.
   
   What the book does is brings out what a very decent, very nice, very intelligent, very shrewd, extremely diligent and persistent guy can do in science. It wasn't by luck that one of Van Allen's experiments was on the first satellite put up by the US. There were basically two factions in the United States who were building rockets at that time. Van Allen made sure his experiment would fit either rocket. Van Allen was persistent. Once he earned his rep, he wielded his niceness and reputation like a tool to get his agenda done. He needed to do that because Apollo was taking over the space program and unmanned projects were falling by the wayside. Without Van Allen our knowledge of the planets and the solarsphere would be much poorer. Van Allen is the quintessential Iowan: nice and hard working.
   
   The book writing style was okay. Some sections were dry. The section on the politics of getting the first satellite launched went on for pages. Another problem is a slight lack of drama. Van Allen was so successful at what he did because he planned so well. There was no failure from which to recover. Another problem was chronology. Sometimes the author followed the track of experiment through a decade and then jumped back. It was hard to keep with the flow some times. She used month and day for the date reference. With these experiments that went on for years, adding the year sometimes would have helped. In the later years, I wished she spent more time on his abilities as a teacher, mentor and administrator. I know it was difficult to keep notched physicists in Iowa. She does a good job of adding humorous little stories along the way.
   
   Overall, the book is fascinating. The story of the his time in the navy, the rockoons and the experiments were stories I heard alluded too, but never in such good detail. The man is fascinating. Good guys sometimes do finish first. Anyone who is interested in the space program, the history of planetary physics, or even the state of Iowa, should read this book.

5 comments about Starlight Nights: The Adventures of a Star-Gazer.

1. Remember those movies where an old man tells his story in the form of a flashback? The kind that makes you wish you could go back in time to hang out with them, experience their life? Starlight Nights is one of those stories.
   Leslie Peltier's book is full of warmth and humor. He takes us back to a 1905 farm and describes what it was like to grow up without electricity, television. The beginning of his story predates the spread of the automobile. We watch as he buys a small telescope, and without the benefit of a college education, becomes the friend and colleague of the eminent astronomers of his day. We experience the thrill of finding comets and novae, and at the same time, the quiet joy of country life a century ago.
   The book is wonderfully illustrated by Mr. Peltier himself, and the introduction includes family photographs.
   Absolutely recommended for everyone, not just stargazers.



2. This is a jem. The author would likely fail to recognize the world of 2002, and would certainly be horrified to awake in it.
   He lived, really lived, in an earlier era when discovery of a new comet by an amateur simply looking through a telescope, without the CCDs and other fancy technology, was celebrated, and civilization grew at a pleasant pace in the midwest where he lived, away from the hustle, rush hours, and UN crisis. His humility in accepting the gifts of slowly increasing aperture telescopes and the way in which alone, he found good ways to use them to their best are balm to the soul.
   Get a copy of this little book, turn off the TV and computer and regress to Peltier's world of worthwhile ways of spending your time while seeing the universe. Fortunately, you don't really have to wait weeks to get a copy if you'll dial up Sky and Telescope.



3. Starlight Nights: The Adventures of a Stargazer by Leslie Peltier is a wonderful book, which embodies the heart and soul of stargazing. It was out of print for many years, but has been republished by Sky Publishing, and is available through Amazon and through the Sky & Telescope Store online. I obtained a copy last year and read it. Once started, I couldn't put it down.
   
   Peltier begins when, as a child of five, he first saw the Pleiades. As a young teenager he saved up his money and bought his first scope, made his own observing pier in the pasture, and hung out every night learning the night sky. The book covers about 60 years in Peltier's life, including his stargazing honeymoon out west. He observed every night he could, undeterred by cows in the field or snow on the ground.
   
   He became an avid variable-star observer and a comet hunter. He tells the story of bicycling into town on a dark November night in 1925 to telegraph his first comet discovery to Harvard College Observatory. One of his early telescopes, a six-inch refractor, had a wooden (mahogany) tube. When he found each comet he neatly carved the date in the tube of the telescope.
   
   Over the years he built his own observatories, and obtained castoff FAMOUS telescopes (a twelve-inch refractor made by Alvan Clark), when Miami University of Ohio, 125 miles from his home, wanted to upgrade theirs. He became famous among astronomers, but always lived a simple life, shunning publicity, and not straying far from the family homestead in Delphos, Ohio. Leslie Peltier was a gentle soul, self-effacing and honest, and "real". He writes as if he were talking to a friend, telling a favorite story.
   
   This book captures the romance of amateur astronomy. Peltier embodied the "heart and soul" of a stargazer. As David Levy says in his foreword, this book explains the "why" of astronomy, and not just the "how".
   
   It's a book every stargazer should read.



4. This is a really neat book! I love the way that Leslie Peltier wrote - such an honest, everyman's perspective. It draws the reader in and fascinates anyone; whether interested in astronomy as a passion or just in passing. A great, quick read. Wonderful rainy day (or cloudy night!) book and a nice one to take to the beach this summer, too.
   
   The foreward by Eugene Shoemaker is great. It is only in the newly printed version, of course - not in the original. :-)
   
   As an amateur astronomer - a lunar observer in particular - I can heartily suggest this as not only a fun and interesting book to read but one where you learn of life in the past in the United States - a slower time but a time of great discovery and accomplishments, too.



5. This book is a straightforward telling of Leslie Peltier life as an amateur astronomer. Although it is a simple story without much drama it draws you into his world and never gets boring.
   
   The dark night sky is a free resource we need to preserve. Our ancestors gazed up on the same stars we see today. When you go out at night you can be the latest in a long line of humans who have looked up to the heavens and wondered about their place in the universe.
   
   If this book doesn't inspire you get out and observe, nothing will.

No comments about Pierre-Simon Laplace, 1749-1827.

2 comments about The Lost World of James Smithson: Science, Revolution, and the Birth of the Smithsonian.

1. Excellent biography, piecing together what is known about the guy who provided a huge gift to found the Smithsonian, without ever having set foot in the USA. The Smithsonian had originally collected all of Smithson's papers, but they were destroyed in a fire before any serious scholarship. The author traveled through Europe collecting what could be found in original sources elsewhere, and paints a compelling portrait of an eccentric with a love of science and some unusual ideas. If you like 17th century types and the whole revolutionary milieu, this is a good read.



2. Due to the loss of most of James Smithson's papers in a fire in 1865, the man who gave his name (and fortune) to The Smithsonian Institution has long been shrouded in myth as an eccentric dilettante who inexplicably left all his money to a place he'd never even visited. Heather P. Ewing's scholarly gamble was that, by recreating the society, intellectual milieu, people and places that defined Smithson, the man at the center would emerge from the shadows. It was a gamble that paid off brilliantly. Not only does the author successfully redefine Smithson as an important scientific figure in a crucial time in the history of science, but as a tormented and fascinating character, driven by ambition to gain acknowledgement from his aristocratic, quasi-secret, father. Smithson's pathologically litigious and improvident mother is an especially colorful character, who would seem right at home in a novel by Fielding or an engraving by Hogarth. In the quest for Smithson as an individual, Ewing creates a remarkably accessible "inside" account of the Scientific Revolution, its characters, controversies and practices, as Smithson crosses paths with a Who's Who of historical characters ranging from scientists Humphrey Davy and Lavoisier to the notorious Emma Hamilton, Dr. William Thornton (future architect of the U.S. capitol) and Napoleon. In this remarkable achievement of scholarship and engaging literary style, Ewing's book offers the reader a glimpse of a flawed and complicated individual at the center of the Scientific Revolution and, in so doing, vividly depicts the opportune historical moment that made possible (after nearly a decade of Congressional debate) the creation of world's largest museum and most sophisticated research complex in the still-rustic capital of the United States.

5 comments about Two Sides of the Moon: Our Story of the Cold War Space Race.

1. I bought this book just a month ago while in a business trip and I must admit that my first impression was that the book was a sort of commercial best-seller, rather hollywood-like. So I was not expecting serious really serious content. But the more I read, the more I came to the conclussion it was a really good book.
   
   I had not the kind of tech-focused expectations of Thomas Moody (see useful review above), but I think it is serious enough for the non-tech or specialized public, whithout been arcane. It's rigorous and at the same time, very readable. A real page-turner.
   
   I think that the book is worth the money. Provides a smart picture not only of space race but also of cold war in a wider sense, from a special and interesting point of view.
   
   Overall, the point with the book is that it is based on two different careers and lives, wich brings a richer depiction of the evolution, both professional and personal of this two outstanding men, astronaut and cosmonaut, at the same time that their respective space programs in Soviet Union and USA.
   
   My congratulations to the authors, the journalist, editors and all people involved in the project. A very well balanced approach on how to present the story and how to narrate it. They've got a great result.
   
   I really enjoyed this book.



2. From all reports, the Cold War was competition between America and Russia to see who could get to the moon and win the "Space Race." Actually, it was who could design and manufacture nuclear arms to blast the other country off into space. So, this book has an odd coupling: an old Soviet astronaut, the first man to "walk in space," and a younger NASA Apollo commander who piloted Gemini 8. I watched all of those missions faithfully until the fatal explosion; after that, it was too traumatic to hear those words, "Go with throttle up."
   
   Alexei Leonov starts with "Temperatures drop to below -50 deg. C in the small village of Listvyanka, Central Sibreia, USSR, where I was born on 30 May 1934." When he was four years old, his father was declared a subversive during the Stalin purge, so they lost everything and had to live in one room with eleven occupants.
   
   David Scott came from a military family, born at Randolph Air Force Base in Texas, USA. Before his father became a "fighter pilot," he had an administrative job in a Hollywood film studio in California. David followed in the footsteps of his dad, acted as a technical advisre on the film, 'Apollo 13.'
   
   These two military "commanders" from warring countries have nothing in common, except the moondance in space, as it is more an illusion. Their experiences were not even close. Granted, Leonov was the first man to "walk in space," securing a place in history. Neil Armstrong was the first man to walk on the moon in actuality; he was the commander of Apollo 11. After spending three days on the moon, David Scott became the seventh to hop around up there collecting souvenirs.
   
   The photo sections speak a lot louder than the words. I'm not sure the average American citizen is ready to be reminded of all the personal terror and pain we endured for so long by their bullying and threats. The title should be called 'Opposite Sides on Earth," opponents to the end. You would think that, by now, USA would realize that trusting one's former enemy can backfire even in defeat.



3. "Two Sides of the Moon" is a fascinating addition to the library of any space historian, whether casual or professional. The book, written by American Astronaut Dave Scott and Soviet Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov, focuses on personal and professional struggles set within the political framework of the 1960s (and early 1970s) cold war.
   
   Although I would have preferred more technical detail in the book, I still enjoyed it very much though more from the human interest angle. I liked the technique of alternating narratives from the American and Soviet points of view: the book was skillfully written to reveal the emotions and perceptions of both sides of the space race during key points in the race to the moon (Sputnik, the Apollo 1 fire, Apollo 11, etc.) I found both authors to be likable and appreciated their willingness to share credit with people unknown to the general public, from important organizational keys like Bill Tindall's famous (within NASA, anyway) Data Priority Meetings (and their resultant "Tindallgrams," page 194,) to the awe with which Leonov held Sergei Korolev, the Soviet Chief Designer, whose death all but dashed Soviet attempts to land on the moon prior to the Americans.
   
   The book has an upbeat and optimistic tone, and is good-natured throughout. I enjoyed the behind the scenes trivia the pair provided. Did you know that the first animals to achieve circumlunar flight were a pair of Steppe Tortoises on the Soviet Zond-5 mission? The were recovered safe (but probably confused) in the Indian Ocean on September 17, 1968. Little known facts like this made this book a treasure for readers who traditionally focus on the more technical aspects of the missions.
   
   The book boasts an excellent Foreword by Neil Armstrong, Scott's commander from Gemini 8. Scott gives Armstrong ceaseless praise for his judgment during the emergency they shared, and it seems clear that Armstrong holds Scott in equally high esteem.
   
   The book is a great telling of a compelling tale. I particularly found the travails of Leonov's youth to be astounding, and admire him more after reading this book for overcoming them to become one of the great names in spaceflight. Likewise, Scott is a high achiever and role model for generations of spacefarers for generations to come. I recommend this book highly.



4. "Two Sides of the Moon" is a fascinating addition to the library of any space historian, whether casual or professional. The book, written by American Astronaut Dave Scott and Soviet Cosmonaut Alexei Leonov, focuses on personal and professional struggles set within the political framework of the 1960s (and early 1970s) cold war.
   
   Although I would have preferred more technical detail in the book, I still enjoyed it very much though more from the human interest angle. I liked the technique of alternating narratives from the American and Soviet points of view: the book was skillfully written to reveal the emotions and perceptions of both sides of the space race during key points in the race to the moon (Sputnik, the Apollo 1 fire, Apollo 11, etc.) I found both authors to be likable and appreciated their willingness to share credit with people unknown to the general public, from important organizational keys like Bill Tindall's famous (within NASA, anyway) Data Priority Meetings (and their resultant "Tindallgrams,") to the awe with which Leonov held Sergei Korolev, the Soviet Chief Designer, whose death all but dashed Soviet attempts to land on the moon prior to the Americans.
   
   The book has an upbeat and optimistic tone, and is good-natured throughout. I enjoyed the behind the scenes trivia the pair provided. Did you know that the first animals to achieve circumlunar flight were a pair of Steppe Tortoises on the Soviet Zond-5 mission? The were recovered safe (but probably confused) in the Indian Ocean on September 17, 1968. Little known facts like this made this book a treasure for readers who traditionally focus on the more technical aspects of the missions.
   
   The book boasts an excellent Foreword by Neil Armstrong, Scott's commander from Gemini 8. Scott gives Armstrong ceaseless praise for his judgment during the emergency they shared, and it seems clear that Armstrong holds Scott in equally high esteem.
   
   The book is a great telling of a compelling tale. I particularly found the travails of Leonov's youth to be astounding, and admire him more after reading this book for overcoming them to become one of the great names in spaceflight. Likewise, Scott is a high achiever and role model for generations of spacefarers for generations to come. I recommend this book highly.



5. Very interesting concept of getting both perspectives on the space race but there are some errors in this book. One is so great I am amazed that no one else has mentioned it. On page 39, Leonov states that he met Ernest Hemingway in Cuba... in 1965... Hemingway died in 1961. Is this a simple typo? Or imperfect memory? In either case, there is only a very small window of opportunity for the two of them to meet as described in the book. Hemingway left Cuba in 1960, shortly after the revolution. Presumably, a Soviet cosmonaut would not be visiting Cuba before the revolution. If the meeting took place it could have only been sometime in 1960. This should have been caught in the editing stage.