Carl Sagan: In Contact with the Cosmos (Great Scientists) [Library Binding]

Jeremy Byman (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 15, 2000 | Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up | Series: Great Scientists

Carl Sagan was a gifted astronomer with a talent for communicating complex ideas to the average person. Through his popular PBS series Cosmos, the novel and movie Contact, and his numerous works of nonfiction, Sagan became the world's best known scientist before his death in 1994.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 5-7-Byman presents Sagan as a brilliant thinker with a vast range of interests, who became a controversial figure not so much for his science (though that was criticized, too) as for his grandstanding. Entering the University of Chicago at 16, he studied with an array of renowned scientists, was hired as a consultant by NASA, helped to organize the Planetary Society and the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI), and enjoyed spectacular success as a writer and lecturer. Meanwhile, he went through two divorces, was denied tenure at Harvard, and was refused admission to the National Academy of Sciences. Byman seldom quotes his subject directly, but presents a clear summary of his ideas and opinions, with an occasional side-glance into his private life. The occasional full-page photos are mostly portraits. Supported by a time line and a list of secondary sources heavy on magazine articles (but lacking Web sites), this makes a serviceable update to Daniel Cohen's Carl Sagan (Dodd, Mead, 1987; o.p.), or a brief account of one of science's great popularizers for readers unwilling to tackle one of the several new adult biographies.
John Peters, New York Public Library
Copyright 2000 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist

Gr. 5-8. Written for the publisher's Great Scientists series, this appears to be the first young people's biography of Carl Sagan since 1987. Sagan, who died in 1996, was best known for popularizing astronomy through his 13-part television series Cosmos, and for encouraging the search for extraterrestrial life through the SETI project. Byman's biography gives a balanced picture of Sagan's sometimes controversial life and ideas, including his childhood in New York City, his education at the University of Chicago, his years on the faculty at Harvard and Cornell, his three marriages, and his achievements in the fields of science and entertainment. Readers may be surprised to learn that Sagan wrote the book on which the movie Contact was based, and that he suggested and helped design the famous message-bearing plaques that Pioneer 10 and 11 carried into space. A readable and informative introduction. Carolyn Phelan
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Library Binding: 112 pages
• Publisher: Morgan Reynolds Publishing (September 15, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1883846552
• ISBN-13: 978-1883846558
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,054,788 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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