Inspired by a long fascination with Galileo, and by the remarkable surviving letters of Galileo's daughter, a cloistered nun, Dava Sobel has writte...
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Apr 24, 2008
Brad
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What a spectacular book! My advice to you is to violently discard the grossly inferior book you are currently wasting your time with for this one instead. Toss it aside like the trash it is. This is a far better substitute. Do yourself some good instead.
The mythology of Galileo, as truly the first modern scientist, is, of course, both revered and legendary. His condemnation by the Church, his cannon-balls from Pisa Tower and his ingenious improvements on the telescope--well known st More...
The mythology of Galileo, as truly the first modern scientist, is, of course, both revered and legendary. His condemnation by the Church, his cannon-balls from Pisa Tower and his ingenious improvements on the telescope--well known st More...
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Dec 12, 2011
Black Elephants
rated it:
I don't normally read non-fiction, but for the last few months, I've found myself in a fiction funk. I can't finish any fiction. I wonder if it's because I've hit a point where all prose, themes, motifs, etc., seem the same and are, therefore, uninteresting to me. For someone who has relied exclusively upon fiction to add zest to her literary life, this turn of events is really distressing.
However, my non-fiction choice turned out to be quite fun. Galileo's Daughter by Dava Sobel was More...
However, my non-fiction choice turned out to be quite fun. Galileo's Daughter by Dava Sobel was More...
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Apr 25, 2008
Becky
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As the daughter of a physicist, I couldn't resist this book. It is a biography of both Galileo and his older daughter, who was a nun in a local monastery. Her letters to Galileo are the foundation of the book. I enjoyed reading the history of Galileo's trial for heresy and also the day-to-day events that mostly comprise his daughter's letters. A fascinating look into the life of Galileo and 17th-century Italy.
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Feb 04, 2012
Pallavi
rated it: 
"Galileo's daughter" is the biography of the great philosopher and astronomer, with some loving letters by his daughter interspersed throughout the narrative. I have been reading a lot of biographies lately (something I had sworn, I would never have an interest in), and this one is unique because it primarily focuses on the relationship between Galileo and his daughter and is essentially a biography of both of them.
Sobel presents a very vivid description of Galileo's life, his More...
Sobel presents a very vivid description of Galileo's life, his More...
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Jul 18, 2010
Silvana
rated it:
Galileo had a daughter? So what? That question may be raised, which is understandable. Besides, all famous people do procreate, right? What makes Galileo’s Daughter so significant anyway? Well, if you read this book, you surely will change your mind.
Dava Sobel again amazed me with her skill in combining history, science and human relations into one book. Not many authors could do such thing, I daresay. She successfully wove this story of a brave, intelligent, resourceful young woman, More...
Dava Sobel again amazed me with her skill in combining history, science and human relations into one book. Not many authors could do such thing, I daresay. She successfully wove this story of a brave, intelligent, resourceful young woman, More...
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Dec 20, 2008
Although I understand the need to give a lot of page-space to the life of Galileo’s daughter, whose letters contribute much of the narrative of the book, I was still a little annoyed whenever Sobel sidetracked from the more interesting Galileo story to give us more detail regarding the life of his daughter. Still a wealth of info about the man's life and times, much of it about the nature of the scientific world in the 17th century and the struggles of the papacy to reconcile scientific discove
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Jul 27, 2007
Anne
rated it: 
This is a biography of Galileo, told in part through letters written to him by his illegitimate daughter, a cloistered nun and Galileo's confidante. Over 125 letters written by her survive, though all of the letters from Galileo to his daughter have reportedly been lost or destroyed. While the familial relationship was interesting, I didn't feel as if the correspondence added much to the narrative, and it seemed as if most of the biographical information about Galileo came from other sources. As
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Mar 30, 2009
Kaara
rated it:
This book was clearly a labor of love, well researched and with sympathetic, very human depictions of Galileo, his daughter Sister Maria Celeste, and other folks. I learned a lot about Galileo's unbelievable discoveries, his equally important and forward-thinking contributions to the scientific community in terms of process and rigor, his family, and the politics, culture, and technology of the times he lived in. All very interesting. But the angle of this book, of Galileo's life being viewed th
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Jan 10, 2012
Jennifer
rated it:
Fascinating bio of the life of Galileo told, in part, through the letters of his eldest daughter. I had expected that the book would focus primarily on her, based on its title, but was pleasantly surprised at the depth with which it treated Galileo's own life as well as with the enormous amount of historical, scientific, and other contextual information provided throughout. Sobel does an excellent job of tying together the various forces (religious, scientific, political, philosophical, and othe
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Nov 30, 2011
Paul
rated it:
This is an amazing book, and just the thing to cleanse the mental palate after inflicting Nancy Kress' An Alien Light on myself. Galileo's story is really at the crux of the transition from Aristotelian physics to what we now call Newtonian or classical physics. It was Galileo and his contemporaries who finally broke the stranglehold that Aristotle had on philosophy in the West and improved on him. Today we are generally told a very few things about Galileo:
- He was essentially the More...
- He was essentially the More...
Jul 05, 2011
Perrie
rated it:
In this historical memoir by Dana Sobel, we get a glimpse of Galileo's private life. His discoveries, his friendships with princes, popes and other academics are revisited through the writings of his daughter's letters to him. Here we begin to see how Galileo's trial for heresy by the Office of the Holy Inquisition affected those close to him, including his daughter, Suor Maria Celeste, a nun that shared his great mind and passion for science. I found the exerpts from Suor Maria's letters to her
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Jul 03, 2011
Anya
rated it:
I was impressed by the author's empathy for characters that lived centuries ago. The human drama of Galileo's life and times came alive in this book: the pain of rejection and the bitterness of solitude that was foisted on Galileo even after he tried to play by the rules of his society; the physical and historical constraints on day-to-day life. Without ever saying it, the author profoundly illustrates the repressive effects of the church on the burgeoning modern minds of that time. The push/pul
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Jul 01, 2011
EmmaLee
rated it:
This is a tricky book because it is really more about Galileo and his trials with the Catholic church and his science/philosophizing about physics and astronomy than his relationship with his daughter. The fact that none of his letters to her survived make it hard to show what kind of father he was but reading this book you know that he did love and value her, possibly above any other person in his life. It was hard to let go of my cultural constructs about putting his daughters' in a convent be
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Jan 23, 2011
Alex
rated it:
The small picture of the nun on the front cover of Galileo’s Daughter may well be Suor (Sister) Maria Celeste, Galileo’s daughter, and then again it might not. This stands as a summation of what is within the pages Dava Sobel has strung together.
Suor Maria Celeste begins every single one of her letters to her father, the great scientist Galileo, with “Most Illustrious” or “Most Beloved” or “Most Illustrious and Beloved Lord-Father.” But then she is a nun. Once you get over the aston More...
Suor Maria Celeste begins every single one of her letters to her father, the great scientist Galileo, with “Most Illustrious” or “Most Beloved” or “Most Illustrious and Beloved Lord-Father.” But then she is a nun. Once you get over the aston More...
Dec 16, 2010
Blake
rated it:
It must be said from the beginning that the title of this book is at least misleading and at most a misnomer. The book isn't about the life of Galileo's daughter, Sister Maria Celeste, but is instead about Galileo himself. That isn't to say that the book has absolutely nothing to do with Celeste; in fact, there are several letters she sent to her father that Dava Sobel uses selectively throughout the text. Unfortunately, the dynamic of an exchange between father and daughter is impossible to pub
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Oct 27, 2010
Ted
rated it:
What a fine story, and what an education. When I started the book I had only the vaguest outline in my head of Galileo's life and accomplishments, the scandals with the church and his contributions to science. While the book thoroughly covers his achievements in math, physics and astronomy, it is the view of daily life that is far more fascinating, and that's where the title character of his daughter comes in, telling us about the world of the early 17th century.
This was a world wh More...
This was a world wh More...
Sep 09, 2010
Carol
rated it:
Sobel writes a wonderful memoir of the life of Galileo Galilei and his daughter, Nun Suor Maria Celeste, based on the 100+ letters that she wrote to him during her convent years. Galileo's 3 children were illegitimate (he never married); and because of this, the two daughters were not marriageable (he could buy his son a legitimate life but not the daughters). It was the custom to put daughters in a convent and his firstborn daughter was a very happy, very pious, very intelligent woman who dea
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Aug 22, 2010
Ross
rated it:
This is an interesting biography of the the great man told with the reading of the letters he received over many years from his eldest daughter. Sadly the letters he sent to her were lost. She was a nun in a convnent in Florence. Her letters are very touching and tell of life in the convent and her great love for her father, and are a testament to Galileo's love for her.
The important part of the book, however, is about Galileo himself and his discoveries and his battles with the church o More...
The important part of the book, however, is about Galileo himself and his discoveries and his battles with the church o More...
May 24, 2010
Ruth
rated it:
420 pages. Donated 2010 May.
Everyone knows that Galileo Galilei dropped cannonballs off the leaning tower of Pisa, developed the first reliable telescope, and was convicted by the Inquisition for holding a heretical belief—that the earth revolved around the sun. But did you know he had a daughter? In Galileo's Daughter, Dava Sobel (author of the bestselling Longitude) tells the story of the famous scientist and his illegitimate daughter, Sister Maria Celeste. Sobel bases her book on More...
Everyone knows that Galileo Galilei dropped cannonballs off the leaning tower of Pisa, developed the first reliable telescope, and was convicted by the Inquisition for holding a heretical belief—that the earth revolved around the sun. But did you know he had a daughter? In Galileo's Daughter, Dava Sobel (author of the bestselling Longitude) tells the story of the famous scientist and his illegitimate daughter, Sister Maria Celeste. Sobel bases her book on More...
Mar 21, 2010
Carol
rated it:
A biography of Galileo as revealed in letters from his beloved daughter, a cloistered nun. Suor Maria Celeste was highly intellegent (Galileo entrusted her to make the final copy of his manuscript), an efficient manager (she managed the affairs of her father's household from within the confines of the convent while he was being tried by the inquisition), and selfless (she was apocathary for the convent, nursing not only the other nuns but also her father and members of his household.) As well a
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Mar 14, 2010
Robert
rated it:
I found interest in Galileo when I was in 4th grade, and his story has always intrigued me. It was very interesting to read this book, which gives a history of Galileo's life in context with the events that we occurring at the time (Inquisition, plague, 30 years war). In this book, you learn why Galileo is often considered to be the "father of modern science" as stated by Einstein and other esteemed scientists.
While Galileo's daughter may have been a large part of his life, More...
While Galileo's daughter may have been a large part of his life, More...
Oct 25, 2009
Lori
rated it:
This is an outstanding novel about the legendary Galileo and his life. Not having a passion for Galileo and knowledge limited to what I had learned in high school prior to this reading, I chose this book solely on the basis of the human interest element. I had never heard that he had a daughter much less an enduring record of such a relationship.
What I found most fascinating was the brilliance of Galileo and his inventions. Although he was criticized and later penalized by the Catholic Chu More...
What I found most fascinating was the brilliance of Galileo and his inventions. Although he was criticized and later penalized by the Catholic Chu More...
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May 12, 2009
Thermalsatsuma
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Galileo was one of the foremost scientists of the Renaissance and his troubles with the authorities of the Catholic church are well known, with a grudging apology and an admission that the Earth does indeed orbit the Sun being offered only recently. It is tempting to paint his life as a simple conflict of science and religion, but in this book Dava Sobel offers a much more rounded and nuanced picture of the man. Drawing on his published works, letters, trial documents and most intriguingly a se
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Jun 08, 2011
Lee
rated it:
It is interesting to know that Galileo had a daughter that he cherished. Even though she, fittingly named Celeste, was illegitimate, they had a close relationship as evidenced by the letters in this book.
The best part of the book is its coverage of Galileo during his period of house arrest and disgrace over his theories of the heliocentric system. At that time, Galileo's daughter seems to be his greatest source of comfort and strength. Thus, Celeste's correspondences provide a window More...
The best part of the book is its coverage of Galileo during his period of house arrest and disgrace over his theories of the heliocentric system. At that time, Galileo's daughter seems to be his greatest source of comfort and strength. Thus, Celeste's correspondences provide a window More...
Nov 30, 2008
Mark
rated it:
I received this as a gift from my grandmother years ago. I never read it, but finally got around to enjoying this book in audio formatted, downloaded from my public library. I'd read Sobel's other (much shorter) book about the problem of Longitude, and I really liked the combination of history, technology, and science.
This book is more like a biography of Galileo, told through the voice of his daughter in a convent. One half of their correspondence survives, the other half--Galileo's More...
This book is more like a biography of Galileo, told through the voice of his daughter in a convent. One half of their correspondence survives, the other half--Galileo's More...
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Jan 28, 2012
Greenjasminetea
rated it:
I read this book years ago and loved it. I had picked it up because I had enjoyed Dava Sobel's "Longitude" so unexpectedly. For someone who was not science-oriented, it was an enlightening experience. As such, I picked up "Galileo's Daughter."
When I saw it in an used bookstore for $1.00, I couldn't help but pick it up to read and it was an enjoyable as the first time I read it.
Of course, the caveat for a modern woman is that Suor Marie Celeste's voice does More...
When I saw it in an used bookstore for $1.00, I couldn't help but pick it up to read and it was an enjoyable as the first time I read it.
Of course, the caveat for a modern woman is that Suor Marie Celeste's voice does More...
Mar 13, 2010
Rachel
rated it:
Sobel's biography of Galileo (and his oldest daughter) is flat. The best parts of this history are the letters of Suor Maria Celeste describing life in the convent. I wonder how familiar that lifestyle would seem to modern sisters. Suor Maria Celeste was clearly a brilliant young woman herself and became a leader in the convent through practicing medicine, writing, and strategically using her father's connections to raise money for the poor sisters. Also interesting is the portrayal of a pop
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Feb 27, 2009
Wayne
rated it:
MMmmmm...who really wants to read about Galileo's daughter???
Dava Sobel worked a Masterpiece with "Longitude".
So I trusted her to amaze me again.
She DID.
This is an engrossing, informative and moving account of life in Renaissance Italy, of the struggle to make knowledge legitimate and accessible, of the beginnings of a new type of astronomy, of a family caught up in these events. All filtered through the letters between a father who had the world at his fe More...
Dava Sobel worked a Masterpiece with "Longitude".
So I trusted her to amaze me again.
She DID.
This is an engrossing, informative and moving account of life in Renaissance Italy, of the struggle to make knowledge legitimate and accessible, of the beginnings of a new type of astronomy, of a family caught up in these events. All filtered through the letters between a father who had the world at his fe More...
Sep 13, 2011
Lindsay
rated it:
I won this in a first reads giveaway.
Let me start off by saying that Dava Sobel undoubtedly knows what she's talking about. The amount of research that must have gone into this book is astounding! I find it so incredible the way history can be sewn together from so many pieces to create such a detailed tapestry.
Throughout the book are letters written in the hand of Galileo's daughter, Suor Maria Celeste. From these letter you discern not just how devoted a daughter she was, but More...
Let me start off by saying that Dava Sobel undoubtedly knows what she's talking about. The amount of research that must have gone into this book is astounding! I find it so incredible the way history can be sewn together from so many pieces to create such a detailed tapestry.
Throughout the book are letters written in the hand of Galileo's daughter, Suor Maria Celeste. From these letter you discern not just how devoted a daughter she was, but More...
