Customer Reviews

Born With a Bang: The Universe Tells Our Cosmic Story (Sharing Nature With Children Book)

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Jennifer Morgan is a brilliantly eccentric writer.

I read this book with my daughters when they were in kindergarten - I helped with the big words, of course, and with some of the scientific concepts. Morgan's unusual idea of introducing cosmology to young children by treating the origin and development of the universe as an autobiographical tale, narrated in first person by the Universe herself, actually works. The brilliantly colorful illustrations are a great complement to the text, and kids (and, I suspect, most adults) can acquire some serious knowledge while enjoying themselves by going through this book.

Most importantly, the book is startlingly accurate. It is all too tempting for children's authors to cut corners and present over-simplified half-truths when trying to explain serious science to young kids. Morgan avoids that trap.

I have a Ph.D. in theoretical physics from Stanford, and I looked through the book carefully for any scientific errors.

I found none.

I do wish Morgan had discussed the "inflationary scenario," now generally favored by cosmologists, that suggests that the Big Bang was precipitated out of the frenetic expansion of a much larger super-universe. But, Morgan might reasonably object that the inflationary theory is still speculative, whereas the information she presents in this book is solidly established science.

Some parents might also object that treating the Universe as a person reeks too much of New Age nature-worship pantheism. Such a criticism would be unwarranted - Morgan, after all, knows that the Universe is not actually a human being, and even young readers should be able to see this as simply an engaging storytelling device. Any child who enjoys watching talking planes or a purple dinosaur on TV, while knowing that neither is real, can appreciate Morgan's narrative approach. This book should be of value to any family, regardless of religious or philosophical orientation, who possess a serious interest in science or nature.

The educational theorist Kieran Egan has argued that the best way to educate children is to center their education around grand stories. It is hard to imagine any story grander than the birth and development of the universe.

Our kids learn all sorts of stories in school and through popular culture. But too few of those stories serve one of the central needs of education - encouraging the student to transcend his own childish egocentrism and acquire a broader, transcendent perspective. To become an educated person, indeed to become a mature adult, requires such a perspective, but our society and our educational system too rarely nurture it, despite the fact that children are hungry for grand and exotic stories that transcend their own narrow lives.

It is all too easy to graduate even from a prestigious university in America with no comprehension of the stupendous discoveries human beings have made during the last hundred years concerning the nature of our universe.

That is horribly sad - we are depriving our children of grand and exciting truths.

Get "Born With a Bang" for your kids (or grandkids). It's a wonderful book. Jennifer Morgan did a great job.

I'll preface this by saying that i'm an experimental cosmologist (working on weak gravitational lensing to determine galaxy cluster dark matter profiles) and have also worked in high energy particle physics, so i come at this book from a particular angle of having a fairly in-depth background of the subject matter.

Having said this, i want to *strongly applaud* this book, and would like to point out that of the several reviews given above, most are quite positive, and the only two highly negative ones are simply *missing the point* of the book -- it is *not* supposed to give anyone a detailed explanation of cosmology as we understand it scientifically today. there are plenty of other books to do that. rather -- this book is supposed to try to make some sense of what our current picture is in a much more organic, humane, emotional, spiritual, and yea, *cosmic* sense than most of the popular or scientific literature of cosmology out there today does.

For those familiar with Carl Sagan's work, and particularly "Cosmos" from the 1980's -- this is very much done in that vein, and i am pretty sure Carl would have heartily approved.

As a reader might gather from my words, i do *not* fit into the classical stereotype of scientist with a mechanistic, rational, Universe-as-clockwork type view that has been the primary paradigm in science since Cartesian times, but then, neither did Carl, and neither do more and more modern scientists. and Carl's manner of conveying science resonated with the public and inspired them likely more than *any* other modern physical scientist.

Further, i have thought deeply about the human aspects of science also in my journey along the scientific path, and it's clear to me that the paradigm one uses to describe whatever our scientific picture of the Universe and how it came into being and how it evolved up until today is, at any given time in human history, is critical in how we approach not only science, but every aspect of our lives, from our interactions with Nature, to how we treat non-human animals, to our picture of and dealings with others of our own species. when it comes down to it, how we picture the non-living aspects of our Universe and its whole history, *matters*, a lot.

And i love the way that J. Morgan and D. Andersen picture it in this book (and i also hope to communicate directly with them sometime). i love how they interpret and explain their understanding of everything from the Big Bang itself, and what came "before", to the limitations in our current picture of cosmology, to the specific aspects of BBN (Big Bang Nucleosynthesis), initial star formation, galaxy evolution, and supernova processes, leading ultimately to *us*.

No, this is not going to appeal to every scientist out there, nor every person -- but i would suggest this is from not a lack in the *book*, but from some measure of the imagination needed in our species and society to evolve to a more mature species in our wondrous Universe.

Also, the glossary, more detailed cosmic timeline history, book references, and quotes from working scientists in the back are also quite appreciated and helpful to point people in good directions for more in-depth understanding and further reading.

There could be much more said about many of these topics, but let me simply close by saying that i came across this book while dropping in on a sustainability conference of a local environmental group in my area, and the title intrigued me enough to start paging through it. and even after realizing it was a children's book, the flow of the words and the wonderful evocative paintings drew me in to continue reading it. and it is a *rare* book or paper on cosmology (and believe me, i have occasion to read a good number) that brings tears to my eyes with their beauty and power to stir the soul, as certain lines in this book did.

In Adventure-
MSSG

(ps. any feedback is welcomed!)

I didn't realize what people meant by refering to this book as "New Age" - basically the "Universe" is narrating the story and "dreams" of people and trees and planets. The timeline and discription of big bang and star life cycles is great - but I am uncomfortable with the "wishes" and "dreams" and "feelings" of a universe.

I was looking for an age appropriate book to explain the formation of the universe to my 5 year old - and it has captured his imagination. As an atheist trying to build a good basis of science over superstition, I felt that the narration was over the top, when the science is way cool and didn't need the whole dream/wish/creator overtones.

It takes a great deal of skill to reduce as complex a concept as the creation of the universe to a form a five year old child can understand. My grandson was captivated and asked many questions and I learned a few things also. We promptly read the second book in the series and have ordered the third.

This is a charming and whimsical book. And the illustrations ARE amazing. However, my daughter found it confusing. It is definitely not a straightforward introduction to the Big Bang. It personifies the universe and uses a lot of metaphor. A sample: "If I had a human mother, she would have scolded me for all my clutter and confusion. And I'm not just talking about dirty socks on the cosmic floor. It was utter bedlam! When I was a fraction of a second old, I was already a mess."
This is a fun book, but not clear. My daughter was so confused she lost interest. Once she has a firmer grasp on the science, I am sure she will appreciate it.

I have raved about this book to everyone I know. Actually there are two in the series. As a parent, it feels good to give my child lessons on how we are all cosmically connected. These books are stunningly beautiful, rich with meaning, truth, science and laced with spirituality.

A wonderful, beautiful, exciting, dramatic book. The creation of the Universe (Big Bang theory) explained in a story form for children by the Universe itself. Fantastic illustrations. I bought a copy for my son's Montessori school and a copy for myself I loved it so much. Ties in quite nicely with Dr Maria Montessori's Great Stories. Probably would not suit fervent creationists.

I was entertained by this imaginative, yet scientific "telling" of many transformations that the Universe has gone through from the Big Bang up to the formation of our solar system. The book assumes consciousness precedes material manifestation. I have seen children listen wide-eyed and pleased to have this story told from the point of view of the "first person". It makes what could be dry cosmological science seem very personal. I especially appreciated the scientific markers in the back of the book which revealed a number of new conclusions that were unknown when I went to school. The illustrations are amazing and evocative.

I'm giving this book to my grandchildren although I recommend it for adults who are not familiar with the new story of the evolutionary universe. It is accessible, well-written, carefully researched and stunningly illustrated. In the spirit of Thomas Berry and Brian Swimme, the book, while faithful to science, begins to open doors to the remarkable insights offered by our new origin story.

Our family loves this series. We are not a religious family but we do find awe and wonder in the natural world. This book and its two sequels do a fantastic job of transforming complex events and advanced scientific terms into an understandable, inspiring account of evolution through the use of storytelling.

The pictures are stunningly beautiful (worth framing and displaying), but the text is what really grabbed our attention! Some reviewers have taken issues with how the narrative is written in first person, as if the universe has feelings and emotions. However, this does not distract from the factual science - in fact it brings the science to life and gives it an exciting voice.

Reading this story is much different than browsing through a dry, piece-meal science textbook -- and that's what makes this series so unique and accessible!

Metaphors are one type of storytelling used in these books. Typically metaphors are used to help people grasp complicated information by relating it to things they already understand. That is exactly how this series uses metaphors. The storytelling tools the authors have used in these books help kids (and adults) gain a deeper grasp of the sophisticated workings of our universe by explaining intricate processes in a fascinating, easy-to-understand way.

What might be treated as cold facts and mundane details in a normal book actually come alive through this type of story telling in the Born With A Bang series. It engages the reader - from young to old. Visiting friends have casually picked up these books just as something to flip through and ending up sitting down to read them cover to cover, absolutely captivated by the vivid pictures and incredible storytelling.

The first person account is a clever method that creates an interest in all the amazing cosmological, biological, and chemical events that have formed life as we know it. These same events often receive very dry treatment in other books -- as if they are distant, boring, and unrelated to our everyday lives and that has turned many people off from science. But this series does a great job at showcasing how exciting and vibrant science can be!

These books are especially great for families who find their spiritual and/or philosophical views missing in other story-like books that approach this subject with a creative twist. Too often those other books tend to be based on biblical stories or they contain creationist material that is misleading and inaccurate.

However, the Born With A Bang series is based on the current scientific understanding of the universe. Add the unique format of storytelling and these books make it possible to explore this material through a variety of perspectives, including Atheism, Humanism, and Paganism.

The content of these books show that the creation of the cosmos, the formation of earth, and the evolution of life are more than just scientifically interesting -- these things are part of an awe-inspiring account of our origins, of our life story.

As readers we are pulled into the books because they do a wonderful job of illustrating how we are truly part of all that has come before us.