A More Perfect Heaven: How Copernicus Revolutionized The Cosmos (2011) - Plot & Excerpts
Probably the most complete and believable account of Copernicus' approach to his science how it weaved around the arc of his life and his role as a Canon of the church. The particulars of his astronomy are well-documented in other places, and Sobel treats them here with that in mind, including sufficient depth to inform those not versed in the science enough to understand the tale.What she does that hasn't been done before is include great information about the polymath's other accomplishments; understanding his accomplishments in economics helps to appreciate what a great and novel thinker he was. The introduction to the other key characters - both epoch-shaping and nearer to Copernicus' life directly, helps the reader with some context that a study of the science alone cannot provide.Even if you're familiar with the period and the science (as any casual student of Brahe, Kepler, or Galileo will be), this book offer information that will be new to most and is essential to understanding the developments that followed. Well worth your time. Dava Sobel may never top Longitude, but that is no shame because it is a masterful book. A More Perfect Heaven is a very good book. Sobel translates both science and history for the non-scientist and non-historian as well as anyone, and does it here as well. Part of her challenge in writing about Copernicus and how the Catholic physician was convinced to publish his heretical theory that the Earth orbited the sun by a visiting Protestant named Rheticus is a lack of primary documents. She does not know, for example, exactly how that historically significant event occurred or what was said. To her credit, she experiments in the middle of this otherwise conventional biography with a three-set play showing Rheticus' persuasion of Copernicus. She tells us up front it is fictional, but it is credible, complete with dialogue lifted from their writings. I admire her strategy here, and particularly admire her letting me know that it is just that, the use of fiction to try to show us an imagined truth.
What do You think about A More Perfect Heaven: How Copernicus Revolutionized The Cosmos (2011)?
I liked her other books but found this one tedious and shallow.
—KKlaudia
An enjoyable book, from which I learned a lot.
—Devina
An interesting take on the dusty subject..
—charlenelimjy
