Customer Reviews

Sweeper in the Sky: The Life of Maria Mitchell

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When I spotted this book recently, I was impressed that the curator of the National Air and Space Museum called it a "classic work." And I can see why. It's a well-written account of the fascinating life of a pioneer astronomer, originally published in 1949. What I like about this special commemorative edition is that the book not only has the full text of Helen Wright's classic 1949 biography, but it also has wonderful photographs of Maria Mitchell (and even a recently rediscovered glass plate image of the planet Venus done in 1882, while Maria Mitchell was at Vassar!). I agree with Professor Elmegreen's review that, "Helen Wright has captured the excitement of astronomy and passed it on to new generations of astronomy enthusiasts in her stimulating book." I'm glad the book is still available, enhanced with lots of photographs and contemporary material.

This would be an ok book if you were looking for a novel about Maria Mitchell. However, it's supposed to be a biography, and in that sense it falls short. There are too many paragraphs and pages of the author assuming what Maria Mitchell is thinking. "As she sat next to the fire, she thought of her father and how hard her life was growing up." Things of that nature. I found myself wishing for less speculation and more facts.