Customer Reviews

The Double Planet.

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This book is one of the cutest reads a science buff will ever come across. It predates mankind's landing on the Moon (as represented by Armstrong and Aldrin) by only one year, so one can get a rare snapshot of the state of knowledge and sentiment that immediately predated this world-changing event.

Generally the book is typical of Asimov's historically comprehensive, clear, lucid and conversational explanations of science. He covers the history of our knowledge of the Earth-Moon system, from the first ideas that the world was not flat, predating the ancient Greeks, and continues in small steps right up until the US and Soviet unmanned endeavours to map the far side of the Moon. Asimov leaves nothing out, and does not skimp on explanatory material - every fact presented is explained in terms a child could understand.

Further to this, it does seem as if the book was written for younger readers. He seems to take extra pains than usual to explain in detail even the more simple concepts in simple language. While this does not really affect the books readability or a reader's enjoyment, it does mean that one might occasionally find oneself skipping a little ahead.

All in all, a great find for those interested in the history of spaceflight or science or astronomy, or those who are Asimov fans (generally one and the same, in my experience).