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Average Customer Review
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50 of 50 people found the following review helpful:
Good diagrams and easy format for the beginner/intermediate, July 2, 1998
Dinah's book is a great workbook to use in conjunction with learning astronomy from a larger, more complete text. I have often left a larger text to pull out Dinah's as she gets to the point quicker and helps the reader stay focused. Although she walks you through concepts more clearly and concisely than many larger texts, you often find that you want to know *why* or just more about a particular topic, and in this regard, combining this book with Zeilik's or Arny's works very well.
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36 of 36 people found the following review helpful:
An armchair guide to the cosmos, January 22, 2001
I'm an armchair astronomer. While I save up to buy that telescope, I read books like this, attend star parties (dark sky gatherings where amateur astronomers let wannabes like me peek through their scopes) and daydream about the day when my future telescope sees first light.
This is a great book for people like me. It's the equivalent of a very thorough undergraduate "Introduction to Astronomy" class. The author makes good use of illustrations throughout the book to explain difficult concepts like stellar spectra, distances to astronomical objects, and how astronomers determine the temperature, mass, and composition of stars.
New discoveries are being made every day in astronomy,and of course it's impossible for a book to be as current as today's newspaper. Readers of this book will want to update themselves on certain topics, such as extrasolar planets, human spaceflight, SETI, the explosion of CCD photography in amateur astronomy, among others. A list of resources to do just that is provided in the back of the book. I highly recommend this book for anyone who wants to be entertained and enlightened at the same time. If you're like me, preparing to morph from armchair to amateur status, this book provides an excellent foundation.
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18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
a nice little book for intro to astronomy, December 17, 2001
By A Customer
Obviously there are no people who are completely clueless about astronomy since we all were taught as children (at least I was) about the planets in our solar system and about other galaxies. Beyond that most people would not know much about astronomy; which is where this nice little book comes in handy. It has enough information on astronomy subjects without mathematics and without being textbook-like. I think the value of this book is the combination of illustrations and text that stimulate an interest to explore the topics (in another, more extensive book) if this is so desired. And if not, then it is still a good overview of astronomy. Good book for the price!
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13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
A terrific introduction to Astronomy, July 12, 2000
By A Customer
I have just completed an introductory course in Astronomy and I was surprised to find out how much is covered in Dinah Moche's book. She is able to cut through to the important ideas and topics without a lot of minute details. If you want to start learning about astronomy, get this book. It is as good an intro you will get, including college.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
Name 3 Stars of the Orion Belt......., February 10, 2009
My son is a selftaught Astronomy enthusiast, and was eager to learn the hard facts about the heavens,but was not able to assist to a course or class due to lack of free time,so he bought this book and found what he was looking for: a organized,step by step,interesting and enjoyable way of understanding our universe.
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
Good value for money!, September 4, 2008
This book provides a stimulating introduction to astronomy for beginners. The sixth edition is updated with latest research into black holes, active galaxies and quasars, searches for life in space, origin and structure of our universe. I particularly like the many photos and diagrams included in the book for illustration and that each chapter is organized into small sections for easy learning.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
Astronomy Self-Teaching Book, September 21, 2008
This book is nicely laid-out. When you're finished with it, you will know your astronomy. It reads smoothly and is easy to carry around -- being a paperback. I recommend it.
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2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
Astronomy: A self teaching guide, June 14, 2007
I have always been fascinated with astronomy but the language/references have been a bit over my head sometimes. I am looking forward to becoming a more savvy "star gazer". The book seems to be what I have been looking for.
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Excellent update to a classic book., October 12, 2009
I am a college professor and have used earlier editions of this book as a required text and also as a recommended text for an introductory astronomy course. I like this book because it has the information that is needed and is not overloaded with extraneous information or pictures. It gets to the point. Many other popular textbooks have way too much information to be covered in a semester course, and it costs the students well over a hundred dollars to get the book. These texts have fancy color pages that aren't really all that necessary, in my opinion, and long explanations that are too much for an introductory course for non-science majors. Moche's book is different. It has what you need but doesn't go overboard. But does it have enough? Colleagues of mine have tried to point out topics that are missing from the book. I look them up, and sure enough, those topics are there! The book treats a large number of topics in a concise way. As a result, the information is accessible, and the book is quite affordable for the student. If a student or a professor wishes to go more in depth on a particular topic, that's what class time is for, or sources such as current articles from astronomy magazines.
While I have mostly used this book in an academic setting, I would also recommend this book to someone wanting to learn astronomy on his or her own. The format is helpful for self-learning.
This latest edition will not disappoint you. There are many updates, such as the numbers of moons of the planets. Plus, there is a color insert, which adds some color without adding to the book's price.
What a great way to celebrate the International Year of Astronomy 2009!
Clear skies....
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Excellent introduction to astronomy!, September 1, 2009
This book provides an excellent introduction to astronomy. It is up to date with excellent photographs and clear explanations. I would highly recommend this book to students in astronomy classes as well as people who wish to learn about astronomy as a hobby.
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