Customer Reviews

Universe: The Definitive Visual Guide

5 star:		(75)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

DK has been putting out this sort of high end "picture book" for a number of years now, but this is the first one I've seen that really packs the information in on every page. Some of their past titles look great but turn out to be rather light and fluffy on actual information once you get past the pictures.

But this book abounds with both gorgeous images and a sufficient amount of textual information that it goes beyond anything they've done before.

Browsing through this (very large) book, I repeatedly came across pages where I said to myself "ok, I need to own this book if only for that page".

I would highly recommend this book for anyone interested in the Universe (hopefully that's everyone :-) and definitely as an educational book for kids.

Another thing that sold me is that the overall editor of the book is Sir Martin Rees, who I greatly admire as a cosmologist and humanist. All his books are worth reading as well.

So, this one gets my highest recommendation, and I think you'll really enjoy it.

G.

Years ago I used to love going to the library and thumbing through the Time-Life Science and Nature series. It has always been a disappointment that the Time-Life folks failed to provide an updated edition. But hats off and deep bows to DK publishing for this volume--the pictures alone are staggering but the quality of the writing takes the work to MUST own status. I can't help but think that if more of these had been laying around my home I may have managed to avoid the trap of law school and made something of myself.

The science is carefully explained at various levels in a graphically-dense format that allows readers of pretty much all backgrounds to find something interesting and useful. I find the volume particularly necessary here in Southern California, where many seem to possess a Ptolemaic sense that the world revolves around us. In the opening chapter there is a graphic that shows the structure of the Universe progress through orders of magnitude beginning with the solar system and ending up with a map of the universe containing great filaments consisting of superclusters of galaxies--mind blowing stuff. This book succeeds precisely because it convinces its reader to independently pursue the subject. It certainly got me out to look at the couple dozen or so stars/planets (and that Moon thing) visible from my LA-area backyard.

Buy it! This is DK at their best. I've panned a DK Atlas recently (gorgeous graphics ruined by brain-dead binding). This book revives my respect for this publisher.

The pictures are not full-page for the most part but there are many of them and all are gorgeous and all are surrounded with logically laid out explanations of the Universe from Earth out to forever.

Oddly, it seems at first, there are over 150(!) pages of constellation and sky charts at the end of the book (starting after over 300 pages have gone by). Normally such a thing would be visually uninteresting except as a practical guide to star-gazing. And compared to the preceeding 330 pages, that's true, for me anyway. But flipping throught the pages, I felt inspired to (someday) go out and buy a really good telescope and use their charts to find the features highlighted on many of the pages. It's enticing. They sometimes show you a little inset photo of some marvelous nebula or galaxy or the like and then show you where to find such.

Buy it! It's both coffee-table wonderful and highly educational. A serious but accessible work that way.

This book jumped off the shelf and into my arms, begging me to look through it. Boy, am I glad I did. Astronomy and Space is a hobby of mine, and even I was struck with awe when I began zipping through the pages.
If you want a book to tell you about almost every facet of astronomy there is, this is the book. It has enough information to explain a concept, but not too much so you get overloaded with "astronomy-ese."
It's also loaded with pictures, in typical DK fashion. And some of the pictures are awesome too, because the Hubble Space Telescope is the originator of some of the pictures and, thanks to NASA, we have Hubble as a fabulous window to our Universe.
I don't think your budding astronomer would be disappointed if you bought him/her this book for the upcoming holidays or for a birthday, etc. Or, be like me and buy one for yourself!!!

I loved this book. It is a great coffee table book that will impress anyone who is into science, and if they aren't, they might just like it because the pics. It includes lots of pictures, and diagrams, and it is layed out so perfectly that even an 8 year old could enjoy it. I love DK, and I have at least 12 books of theirs.

I have just received my copy of 'Universe, the definitive visual guide' from Amazon and I can say it is the best book I have ever owned. It is not just an Astronomy book although it covers that vast subject area like no other.

Everything we should know about our Earth, the Moon and surrounding planets, Galaxies and Nebulas to the 'edge' of the Universe are lavishly illustrated and knowledgeably explained, leaving just enough of the mysteries for us to look at and wonder.

Just open this beautiful, huge and heavy book at any page at random and you will be blown away. The quality of print, photographs, animations and artwork is unsurpassed and the research and, yes, centuries of history and knowledge that have made this book possible are all laid out. They all combine to truly make it 'the Definitive Visual Guide'. You will need no other to understand your place in the Universe.

It took some courage to undertake the production of such a magnificent volume of over 500 pages at such a give-away price and we all wish the DK company success. But there is a different and frightening kind of bravery needed to really show how insignificant and indeed random is the existance our planet Earth. You will see how we were formed, what a tiny place we occupy and finally how we will be swallowed up and snuffed out by what is now the friendly, but expanding, Sun. That is of course if the approaching Anromeda Galaxy doesn't get us first.

This is an unforgettable work of art and science into which you can dip at random anytime. It will truly change your life and the way you see things, for the better. If you only ever again buy one book, make sure it is this: 'Universe, the Definitive Visual Guide'.

As a card-carrying astrophysicist, I'm a more finicky eater than most.
Yet I'm very impressed by this book, perfect for coffee tables and serious reading alike. It combines stunning imagery with excellent informative yet accessible explanations.

Though UNIVERSE: THE DEFINITIVE VISUAL GUIDE is marked for ages 9 - 12, this is a book that appeals to everyone who is searching for more information and insight to the increasingly complex networking of space we call the Universe. The writing is straightforward and at a level at which youngsters can understand, but it is also an eloquently written and lavishly illustrated resource book for every age and every mind fascinated by the mysteries of the heavens.

Beginning with a study of the structure of the atom, the images and words spiral outwardly to discussions of the cosmology (theories of the beginning and the end of the universe), 'our' solar system, the galaxies beyond revealed in ultraviolet, optical and x-ray images, and catalogues of the heavenly bodies from known moons (Mars) to fragments or remnants of stars.

If for no other reason (and who would possibly be able to stop with this) this book offers a detailed and comprehensive atlas of the stars with a monthly night sky guide. For those whose astronomical knowledge is limited, here is a beautifully designed, comfortable volume to allow learning about the wonders of the night. UNIVERSE is definitely the most user-friendly visual guide available. Highly recommended - not only for 9 - 12 year old minds but also for children of wonder of every age! Grady Harp, November 05

I received this book for Christmas in 2005, and this book is simply astonishing in its quality and breadth of information and presentation of astronomy to the reader. I was blown away.

A scientist by trade, I know how difficult it is to make even 1 or 2 good scientific figures for a publication. And this _large_ book has brilliant scientific figures on every page conveying what are often very complex principles in a very comprehendable manner. The book is simply packed with stunning astrophotography in addition to the wonderful illustrations.

Not only it this book extremely pretty to look at, it covers a huge range of topics in astronomy and delivers real, substantive information--rather than the superficial glance "pretty" books like this usually deliver.

I have been reading and purchasing books about astronomy and cosmology since I was a teenager. Without a doubt, this completely new book is the most stunning, awesome, comprehensive and up-to-date resource I have ever seen. Perfect for the beginner and thorough enough for the expert. The visuals are first-rate. The quality of the paper and printing is impeccable. Have I used a lot of adjectives?? Yes I have because few words can describe my satisfaction with this work.
David S Padawer
Pittsburgh, PA