Customer Reviews

Starry Messenger: Galileo Galilei

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

While, as an artist, I appreciate artfully illustrated children's books (and this is one), I find myself swimming against the tide in evaluating Starry Messenger by Peter Sis. It doesn't really illuminate Galileo's life as much as use him as the launching point for an incredible artistic riff. While the illustrations are exquisite, they render the text (written on a very simple second grade level) almost superfluous. Indeed, half the text is in an almost unreadable "Handwriting" typeface, very small, sometimes twisted around. I kept wondering what second grader could even read the thing.

The content of the readable text is, from my perspective anyway, very simplistic, something you would read aloud to a preschooler. And it doesn't tell much about Galileo.

If you're looking for a good juvenile biography of Galileo, and not a coffee table book for children (or the Caldecott people!),I'd recommend Leonard Everett Fisher's much better written book on the same subject. Galileo deserves better than this.

Although the illustrations are delightful and fun to explore I was disappointed with the book. I bought it to give to my 7 year old grand daughter and I have not givent it to her yet. I feel this is a book written for someone who already knows a lot about Gallileo. Those who already know a lot will enjoy the illustrations, those who need to learn will miss the message.

This is my favorite picture book! It truly is perfect in every way! Reads aloud well and is great to read over and over again! I attached a magnifying glass with a ribbon to some copies in my class, so kids can study the intricate details in the magnificent illustrations and the (extra) tiny writing along the pages! PERFECT!

I've reviewed a fair amount of Peter Sis books in my day on Amazon.com, but this is the first book by Sis that I've come across that has so many negative/tepid reviews. Now, before I review a book I give its Amazon.com page a once-over to get a feel for what the public at large thinks about the story. Peter Sis is one of those authors who can write extraordinarily simple books for little children (like "Komodo", "Madlenka", or "Fire Truck") then turn around and do mind-bendingly complex picture books in the same breath (like, "Tibet: Through the Red Box", and "Tree of Life"). "Starry Messenger" was one of Sis' first forays into this combination of complex and simplistic together. As you can see, it wasn't wholly successful. Though still a visually eye-popping wonder and a tale that makes equal concessions to both young and old readers, the story sacrifices fact for simplification in ways that not everyone will enjoy. I believe that while this book is a necessary addition to any Galileo collection, it should certainly not be the ONLY book on that starry-eyed scientist available to your children.

Right from the get-go we are told that the whole notion of the earth moving around the sun is a bit new. People (and here we are shown a lovely Ptolemaic System of the universe) thought the planets, the moon, and the sun moved around the earth. There's a sudden and brief glimpse on the next page of The Copernican System, but the text tells us that Copernicus never published this idea and that, "it would take someone else to do that...". Enter, someone else. Someone else by the name of Galileo Galilei. Born on February 15, 1564 when Italy was just a quilt of city-states, little Galileo grew up with a healthy scientific curiosity. He invented things, became a young professor, and heard about a remarkable new instrument that would allow the viewer to see far away things near. Being a bright young man, he made his own instrument and pointed it upwards. He sketched the moon, made maps of the heavens, and was the toast of the town. Then The Church took note of his ideas, disliked them heartily, convicted him of heresy, and kept him under house arrest for the rest of his life. Three hundred years later the Church pardoned him. Happy ending for all. The end.

Now, you cannot say that this is one of Sis' more straightforward books, because it isn't. Though certainly his later works contain just as much sheer factual knowledge, "Starry Messenger" doesn't organize its information particularly well. In an attempt to bring the older information together with the younger, Sis will put info for little children at the bottom of a page in large letters and leave the older info at top or mid-page in a kind of squiggly cursive writing. The illustrations, for their part, sometimes apply to both the older and the younger text, and then sometimes have absolutely nothing to do with what has already been written. For example, on the pages that describe Galileo's desire for a newfangled telescope, the older text includes a translation of Galileo's words, the younger text speaks of how the man made his own, and the pictures are an odd hodgepodge of maps, the travels of telescopes, some odd visions of Flanders, and a kind of historical amalgamation of faces, figures, and historical references. It's beautiful to look at. It's hell to understand.

The main objection to "Starry Messenger", as I see it, comes from the book's shaky discussion of why exactly The Church was so upset with the man's ideas. The book says, "he has gone against the Bible", which isn't really true. That was just an interpretation. Still, it leaves the reader a bit confused over whether or not Galileo's conviction was justified or not. Also, factual references, bibliographies, and timelines are non-existent here. Kids doing reports would have to shift through a myriad of oddly hidden dates tucked away on every other page to get the info they need. The book also never makes it clear when it was that Galileo decided to publish the idea that the earth moves around the sun. Suddenly he's been dragged in front of the Pope, and we have no idea why (though the text offers clues). Tis odd.

There is much to like here, of course. The art is just gorgeous. When Galileo stands before the Pope's court, a sea of astrological figures (Pisces, Taurus, Capricorn, etc.) swim about him, like a whirlpool threatening to suck him down. Most people will not notice this, but one of the nicest elements of the hardback version of this book are the endpapers. The first two endpapers show a city that we may take to be 17th century Italy with a tiny Galileo staring through his telescope at the stars. Along the edges of the paper are small scenes in which countless civilizations (from Eskimos to Easter Island) stare up at the flickering sky. The back endpapers initially look the same as the front, but closer inspection reveals that we are suddenly looking at a modern city. Another little figure stares up at the night sky, but this time from a high-rise. Along the edges of the paper are far more contemporary scenes of submarines, airplanes, and high-speed trains. The implication seems to state that any child today can be a modern-day Galileo if they so choose. The choice is theirs.

So this isn't the best Galileo book out there, no. But is it without merit? Not at all! Different books have different functions. If you want a story to read to your child that gives them some basic info on Galileo (and you're willing to fill in the missing pieces yourself) then by all means hand them "Starry Messenger". If, on the other hand, your fourth-grader has just announced that they have a ten-page paper on Galileo due tomorrow and they needs some information immediately.... this book is not for you. It's flawed, sure, but also a visual stunner. A lovely work that shows the scope of Peter Sis if not his storytelling at its best.

This children's book is a brief biography of Galileo Galilei (1564-1642), which also uses some of Galileo's own words. It is appealing to both children and adults. The text is a celebration of a life devoted to science and of courage in the face of adversity. There are few books of biographies of scientists written for children and this book helps fill that gap. The book was a 1997 Caldecott Honor book (i.e., a runner-up to the Medal winner) for best illustrations in a book for children.

Czecholsovakian author Peter Sis tells the story of Astronomer Galileo Galilei through a picture book filled with beautiful illustrations and celestial metaphor.

The story moves quickly from the theories of Ptolemy and Copernicus to the birth of "a little boy . . . with stars in his eyes." The story goes on with traditional style text at the bottom of each page, and with additional quotes from Galileo's own notebook. The added bonus of strategically placed timelines showing other events of significance raises the story to a new level.

The illustrations, in and of themselves, offer more than the eye can absorb in one sitting, and the fact that the author is also the illustrator is evident in the strength of the pictures tying perfectly to the text.

At the story's end, readers are presented with one last timeline which gives four last dates of significance in Galileo's life: 1633-Galileo is sentenced for heresy; 1642-Galileo dies; 1989-the Galileo spacecraft is launched; 1992-Galileo is pardoned by the leaders of the Catholic Church, who admit that his theories of the earth rotating around the sun, instead of the other way around, is "probably" right.

I used this book in my 7th grade world history class at the end of our unit on the Renaissance. It provided a reality for the students that sometimes is missed in history books, allowing the students to see what the Renaissance, Inquisition, and patronage was like for a real man; my 7 and 10 year old daughters enjoyed reading it too.

I highly recommend this book to parents, teachers and students of all ages!

In this amusing and insightful book, Peter Sis has attracted more then one audience. Starry Messenger (a Caldecott Honor book) tells the story of Galileo Galilei and some of his accomplishments. The actual story is interesting, but the illustrations are amazing! His pictures are detailed and
intricate, including every possible detail the mind can imagine. On the page introducing Galileo, perhaps fifty babies wrapped in blankets are pictured. On each blanket is their future occupation. You see a baker, a priest, a farmer, a knight, and a barrelmaker among many others. But Galileo is one that stands out. His blanket is dark blue and covered with
white stars, foreshadowing his remarkable life.

The Starry Messenger is a picture book, but don't let that label fool you. Most adults will find the facts about Galileo written in the margins interesting, and as I have, the pictures astounding. Words cannot do this book justice, its marvelous work of art!

Far from being a boring summary of the life of the astronomer, Galileo, Starry Messenger is an enlightening look at a man persecuted in his time. This book with its brilliant illustrations, draws you into the world of this great man. With its story book appeal, children, who will like its illustrations, will enjoy the book as will adults who will appreciate Gallileo's recreated notes. Starry Messenger is a good book with a large appeal and a good story to boot!

The wonderful thing about this book is that the reader can get more and more out of this book both with subsequent readings and with age. There is plain text to read and beautiful pictures to pore over. There is beautiful text to absorb a more advanced reader or an older child. Plus, the science, this history, and the politics are true.

I agree with the other medium-star reviewers who said this book is more about the illustrations than the text. It is a FABULOUS book to look at. The pictures are almost full page, glossy, and very beautiful, much like Demi or Brian Wildsmith. It is worth buying just for that.

However, the text/story is lacking. I actually did not have a problem with the small amount of text as some commented on. In contrast to Diane Stanley and others in this same genre, my children found this book more pleasurable to read because it was shorter and easier. There is some cursive script which only my fourth grader could decipher, but it is part of the illustrations, not part of the text itself.

The problem I had was with the history itself. With respect to the author, I am disappointed that he chose to repeat the established mythology that Galileo was persecuted for teaching against the Bible. Nowhere does the Bible say that the solar system is geocentric or imply the earth is the center of the universe. Also, any conservative reader who has read Rodney Stark or Dinesh D'Souza will be sensitive to the fact that the Pope vs. Galileo showdown was more personal than religious; Galileo was a committed Catholic. Not that there wasn't a feud! But the traditional telling of the story comes across as a Science Is Against Religion icon rather than a Scientist Questions the Authority of the Pope tipping point. I think it is important for children being raised in a Christian home that this story be told accurately, especially since the book comes up often in homeschooling curricula.

Still, the book does not come across in an anti-Church or anti-Catholic way exactly. That clearly was not the agenda of the author. I think the overall point that Galileo inspires us to explore the stars comes across pretty well. And I think that's the point my kids got.