Reviews
Space Chronicles is a compilation of essays, interviews and even tweets by everyone's favorite astrophysicist, Neil deGrasse Tyson. They all discuss the history of space travel, how it came to be and what can be expected in the future. It is divided in three parts. Part one: Why It talks about why we are so fascinated with space. It discusses everything from what the requirements for life are to the probabilities of been killed by an asteroid (which, spoiler alert, is the same as dying on an airplane). Part two: How Talks about how space travel became possible. It discusses how the technology for space was invented, how flying was started and it talks about the evolution from the Space Race era and the Space Shuttle era. Part three: Why not Neil Tyson very candidly talks about the lack of progress during the past few decades, his disappointment and the reasons behind why there has been no progress. And how even other countries see space as a commercial enterprise and no longer look forward to space exploration. Neil Tyson initially wanted to name this book, Failure to Launch: The Dreams and Delusions of Space Enthusiasts, which is a way more fitting name than Space Chronicles. The purpose of this book is to educate people about space and how little progress there has been since NASA's budget nowadays doesn't allow much. It is a cry for people to remember how small we are compared to the rest of the universe and we need to do something or we will become extinguished. Space Chronicles' greatest fault is mainly that it is a bit repetitive since it is a compilation of works and they sometimes overlap. But it is very interesting and very important subject that everyone needs to be aware of. If you are a space enthusiast I would recommend you read this book because it will teach you a bit more of space. And if you're not that this is the perfect book for you to start!
