For such an animated guy, Neil deGrasse Tyson wrote a pretty dry book. Except for a few semi-racy jokes, there's precious little personality on display here. And I found it irritating how often the captions of photos and the footnotes all repeated the same information as the main text. It seemed rather phoned-in.3 stars. I learned some, but it didn't move me.

Entertaining book on the object formerly known as the planet PlutoWhile I have not read anything by Mr. Tyson in the past and I had only known him by references on the Big Bang Theory TV show, I still found this book on Pluto both informative and entertaining. Informative by telling the reasoning and procedures to define Pluto as a dwarf planet and entertaining to read the reactions to it - everyone from elementary school students to respected journalists are covered. An enjoyable read.

Like all of Tyson's books, it's very well written, explaining any number of difficult subjects with clarity and ease, but unfortunately, with this subject, we devolve into a catalogue of cultural significance for the poor demoted Pluto and a very long list of rather humorous emails and letters all sent to Tyson because of his role in the decision.If that's what you're looking for, then, by all means, enjoy this book!But if you're looking for an in-depth rather than an adequate focus on Pluto rat...

I wanted to read something by Neil deGrasse Tyson for a long time. I like how he can break complex matters up and present them in a way that children and laymen can understand them (there is a famous quote saying that you yourself have only understood a matter if you're capable of explaining it in simple terms).This is probably the lightest of books by this author and people should know that going it. It's "only" about Pluto and that whole mess after it got declassified from "planet" to "dwarf p...

Here's a topic that isn't often covered: how museums design their exhibits. You know what else isn't often covered: how science happens. There are myriad books about discoverers and discoveries, and many about new fields as they develop. But this is the only time I can recall reading a book on the evolving science behind an issue like Is Pluto a planet? And although the book isn't specifically targeting a young readership, I think it could be wonderfully popular with middle school readers, becau...

deGrasse Tyson proves that while he might not be the smartest man in the United States, he is one of the best scientist at making what at first glance could be a daunting project for the uninitiated to read both understandable and enjoyable. With this the second of this Astrophysicists books and it has determined me to read anything that I can find under his pen. His delivery makes it easy to read some of the most complex subjects in a clear and easy to read manner. While this book is about the

Another guilty pleasure. Neil deGrasse Tyson always writes well. This time he is less concerned with science education than he is with describing the shared cultural mania that resulted from rebranding Pluto a plutoid. The story begins with the fallout of the exhibit he put together at the Hayden Planetarium in the new Rose Center for Earth and Space. His team presented the planets as members of families of object with similar properties rather than as orbs to be memorized. Pluto was firmly plac...

Tyson is always a favorite guest on The Daily Show and this book was discussed on his last interview with Jon Stewart. Library to the rescue!There are 9 chapters to this fairly short book, all done with wit and an obvious love of science. Tyson goes over Pluto's history, how Pluto was received in our culture, and the descent of how Pluto lost his status as our 9th planet.Apparently Americans really love Pluto, not only because of it's association with Disney's dog, but because an American discov...

I'm reminded of that quote from a child's review of a book that said: "This book told me more about penguins than I cared to know." Only substitute penguins for Pluto. I KID, I KID. No, I feel very informed about Pluto as a planetary object, and this was really a fascinating read, but I have to say, I came out of this book with Dr. Tyson's same conclusion: WHY DID THIS CAUSE SO MUCH CONTROVERSY? The book ends with a cartoon of a news bulletin proclaiming Pluto was no longer a planet, with a pict...

Audio. This book came on 4 cds, but I think it could have been 2, comfortably. There was a lot of repetition - of content that was phrased identically more than once - so much so that I kept checking that I hadn't repeated a track/disc. Perhaps that doesn't comes across as strongly in print? Anyway, it was a fun little read, very much popular science. I liked the overarching theme of the difference between science (as in scientific thought and logical rigor) and popular science (culturally-led,

I admit I did not thoroughly read this. I am not a science person at all (Yes, I realize I appear to be Asian). Most of the information went over my head. I recognize that Tyson is not only one of the foremost scientists today, but also one of the more easily understood ones. I suppose I am that dense when it comes to the hard sciences. Give me psychology, sociology, philosophy, I would stun you with my brain. Start giving me numbers and symbols, the solar system, energy, elements, gravity, I wi...

Everything that you could ever want to know about Pluto. I think it may be an effective teaching aid if teachers used excepts in their lessons.

I was going to write a real review... but nah.I like the little comics and the included letters. I liked the beginning enough, but as the book went on, it started to drag. Maybe it was because the book tried to be everything*, and it just didn't work out. In trying to be everything, the tone was really hard to follow.*funny, poignant, historical, scientific, cultural, popular, informative, defensive, autobiographical, newspaper report...

Basically, this book explores the history of humanity's relationship with Pluto. From discovery, to Disney's hopping on the new planet (at the time) bandwagon, to the AMNH's scandalous reclassification in its exhibits, and eventual demotion to dwarf planet. Offers a look into how people can get let emotion get the better of them on even such mundane matters as the scientific definition of celestial bodies.As this book was written and published several years before New Horizons' encounter with Pl...

Pluto gets around. It has been a planet, a dwarf planet, a minor planet, a planetoid, a “non-planet,” a comet, an asteroid, an ice ball, a Greek god, an underdog, a cartoon dog, and a laxative. Smaller than our moon, and six other moons in this solar system, Pluto (the celestial body, not the laxative) is a veritable David in a solar system of Goliaths.Way back in 1970, my second grade teacher, Mrs. Mordecai, introduced me to mnemonics. My favorite was always, “My very excellent mother just serv...

ugh... awfully light book on what really be a weighty tome. felt like a long article in time magazine or something, where it might scratch the surface of a subject, but you don't really get a whole understanding of the topic. filled with way too many 'extras': political cartoons, appendixes of song lyrics, full page portraits of the little girl who suggested the name, etc... i mean seriously, just get on with it. when you remove the quotes and pictures and figures, it's what, maybe like 50 pages...

deGrasse Tyson’s job is to explain things to the masses. To this extent his work is, by design, somewhat fluff and superficial. There is nothing wrong if that is you purpose. He has a fun personality that comes across in his writing.That being said:While defending the IAU’s vote, he wrote:On “the surface, this argument sounds convincing, but most pollsters would give their eyeteeth for their sample to represent 4 percent of a complete population. So the question should be, What are the chances t...

Neil deGrasse Tyson is a very entertaining science communicator and astrophysicist. This little book outlines the whole Pluto debate as it unfolded in the US (I don't think most people in other countries cared quite so much). It makes for entertaining reading, but I can't help but think 'seriously? It's science. Science changes constantly. And frankly, all the debate concerns is a linguistically constructed classification system. The universe doesn't really care.' Still, it is a fun and very acc...

Before reading this book I had no idea that the author was a major player/instigator in the whole 'Is Pluto a Planet?' situation from the first half of the 2000's. It's pretty amazing how this whole situation and debate blew up over how the Rose Center for Earth and Space decided to depict the planets in their exhibition. Rather than the traditional display of planets listed out from the sun, they categorized them by dividing the solar system up into zones of like objects. Going out from the su

Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson was voted Sexiest Astrophysicist Alive by people magazine - who would have known such a stud muffin was also an crazy intelligent, funny, and witty writer?! This book details the history of Pluto's place in both science and people's hearts from the time of it's discovery and naming as a planet all the way to its demotion to a dwarf planet within the Kuiper Belt. Plus it is full of satirical comics and extremely angry and often misspelled letters from damn near homicidal t...