Eating the Sun
Small Musings on a Vast Universe
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4.0 • 5 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
Winner of the 2019 Whirling Prize
“Strong on science but just this side of poetry.” —Nature
A beautifully illustrated exploration of the principles, laws, and wonders that rule our universe, our world, and our daily lives, from the New York Times bestselling creator of Lost in Translation
Have you ever found yourself wondering what we might have in common with stars, or why the Moon never leaves us? Thinking about the precise dancing of planets, the passing of time, or the nature of natural things?
Our world is full of unshakable mystery, and although we live in a civilization more complicated than ever, there is simplicity and reassurance to be found in knowing how and why.
From the New York Times bestselling creator of Lost in Translation, Eating the Sun is a delicately existential, beautifully illustrated, and welcoming exploration of the universe—one that examines and marvels at the astonishing principles, laws, and phenomena that we exist alongside, that we sit within.
“[A] lyrical and luminous celebration of science and our consanguinity with the universe. . . . Playful and poignant.” —Brain Pickings
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this small volume, Sanders (Lost in Translation) beautifully personifies the universe with lyrical prose and whimsical color illustrations. Brief chapters discuss numerous natural phenomena or theoretical concepts in poetic yet scientifically illuminating ways, ranging from the life cycles of suns through Darwinian evolution to geosmin, the smell of damp earth, which "leaves a person feeling as clean as if they had been dragged backwards through a cloud." Readers learn how blue skies exist because "blue has shorter, smaller wavelengths, and is therefore scattered more"; how the modern understanding of time "is built on Einstein's general theory of relativity, in which time is just a coordinate"; and a little about various other science concepts too numerous to list. Sanders further outlines why scientific language is so often foreign and frustrating to nonscientists: "it takes familiar words and puts them in entirely different contexts" while also introducing "a whole other vocabulary that a person would never normally have reason to encounter." But in her fluidly conversational style, Sanders renders that language both accessible and appealing to her audience. Even more importantly, she consistently captures a sense of awe and wonder at the universe, and ignites (or reignites) that same sense in the reader.)
