Don't Know Much About the Universe: Everything You Need to Know About Outer Space but Never Learned

Don't Know Much About

by Kenneth C. Davis

Who dug those canals on Mars? What was the biblical Star of Bethlehem? Were the pyramids built by extraterrestrials?

From the ancients who charted the heavens to Star Trek, The X-Files, and Apollo 13, outer space has intrigued people through the ages. Yet most of us look up at the night sky and feel totally in the dark when it comes to the basic facts about the universe.

Kenneth C. Davis steps into that void with a lively and readable guide to the discoveries, theories, and real people who have shed light on the mysteries and wonders of the cosmos. Discover why Einstein was such a genius, the truth behind a blue moon or two, the amazing secrets of Stonehenge, and even how one great astronomer lost his nose.

With the fun question-and-answer format that has appealed to the millions of readers of his bestselling Don't Much About® series, you'll be taking off on an exciting armchair exploration of the solar system, the Milky Way, and beyond.

Genres: Science, Nonfiction, History, Reference, Astronomy, Space, Audiobook

388 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 2, 2001

About the author

Kenneth C. Davis is the New York Times bestselling author of the Don't Know Much About® series of books and audios for adults and children. Don't Know Much About® History, the first title in the series, became a New York Times bestseller in 1991 and remained on the paperback list for 35 consecutive weeks. It has since been revised several times and now has more than 1.6 million copies in print. The 30th anniversary edition of the book was published with a new preface, "From an Era of Broken Trust to an Era of Broken Democracy."

Davis is, according to Publishers Weekly, "a go-to guy for historical insight and analysis."

AMERICA'S HIDDEN HISTORY also became a New York Times bestseller. A NATION RISING also uses dramatic narratives to tell the "stories your textbooks left out." His book, THE HIDDEN HISTORY OF AMERICA AT WAR (May 5, 2015) was called "searing" analysis by Publishers Weekly.

Kenneth C. Davis’s success aptly makes the case that Americans don’t hate history, just the dull version they slept through in class. Davis’s approach is to refresh us on the subjects we should have learned in school. He does it by busting myths, setting the record straight, and always remembering that fun is not a four-word letter word.

His IN THE SHADOW OF LIBERTY: THE HIDDEN HISTORY OF SLAVERY, FOUR PRESIDENTS, AND FIVE BLACK LIVES looks at the lives of five people enslaved by four of America's most famous Presidents and the role of slavery in American history and the presidency. In May 2018, MORE DEADLY THAN WAR: The Hidden History of the Spanish Flu and the First World War was published.

STRONGMAN: The Rise of Five Dictators and the Fall of Democracy was published by Holt. It was named among the best books of 2020 by Kirkus Reviews and the Washington Post.

In November 2022 GREAT SHORT BOOKS: A Year of Reading--Briefly was published by SCribner. A compendium of 58 great short works Davis read during the pandemic lock down, it is a joyous celebration of reading.

Coming in October 2024 is THE WORLD IN BOOKS: 52 WORKS OF GREAT SHORT NONFICTION. It is an accessible and comprehensive guide to some of the most influential and important works of nonfiction, from the earliest days of writing to contemporary times. Each entry includes information about the writers behind these consequential books and the time in which they lived.

Reviews

[Terry Mcmullen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't complete, didn't like the writing style.

[David · Rating 2 out of 5]

I picked this up after reading the accessible and interesting Don't Know Much about History: Everything You Need to Know about American History But Never Learned. Davis's approach in both is light and mostly surface-level, focusing on breadth over depth. The approach still worked reasonably well for astronomy, in that there's a lot of interesting history and basic conceptual information, but the problem is that it's so much easier for astronomy to be dated.

A 15-year-old U.S. history book still has 95% of the same content that a current history book would have. But 15 years in astronomy is enough to miss most of the lifespan of the International Space Station, multiple Mars rovers, tons of interesting information about the Jovian moons, oodles of Earth-like planets around other stars, gravitational waves, and the burgeoning private space travel industry typified by Space X. Every so often, he'd remark on the exciting things happening in astronomy and space travel, which was just as true then as now. But unfortunately, a breadth-focused book tends to date much more quickly if the topic is as constantly-changing as astronomy.

Also, it's hard to take on the subject of the cosmos without conveying in some way how literally awesome and wonderful it is. And while he tries here and there, it's hard to do when he takes breaks for dated quips every few pages. It probably doesn't help that my bar as a reader was set pretty high on the awe and wonder spectrum by reading Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space as my first foray into astronomy.

With all that said, this was interesting if you'd like a quick primer on much of big picture astronomy and history of astronomical thought. But I'd probably wait for a new edition to get a good idea of the really exciting information being discovered all the time.

[SusanCope · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love the audio book. So fascinating. The thought that a scientist in the 1710 could calculate the date wjhen Haileys' coment would come around again (1758) with such accuracy just blows my mind. Also, I had forgotten that men were killed, imprisoned and tortured by the Catholic church for refuting the idea that everything revolved around the Earth.

[George · Rating 4 out of 5]

While most of us look up at the night sky and feel totally in the dark when it comes to the basic facts about the universe, Kenneth Davis provides a lively and readable guide to the discoveries, theories and people who have shed light on the mysteries and wonders of the cosmos.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

Even after reading another book about the basics of astronomy, I was surprised how much new information I learned from this book. It was written in a very interesting and often humorous way. I appreciated the Christian perspective behind the writing.

[Gary · Rating 3 out of 5]

Really just a bit of fun. It probably shows better how little we know than how much, and how speculative many of the 'facts' are.

Liked it.

[Tom Sharp · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good Overview

This book brings new insights to our understating of our solar system and beyond. Written for the lay person. Material is somewhat dated.

[Arjun]

Bookmark...
Chapter 2
What does astronomy mean and who invented it?

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

Question-and-answer style book that covers a wide variety of topics on astronomy, cosmology, and space travel. I especially the sections that went into the history and personal stories behind the scientific discoveries.

[Jenn · Rating 3 out of 5]

I felt a bit like I was back in high school listening to a lecture that would "prepare" me for a basic course on astronomy in college. It starts off with a brief introduction to the history of astronomers and their accomplishments which builds and builds until we get to present day NASA. It was interesting but not as in depth on actual facts on the universe as I would've liked. They did touch on black holes and dark matter and fractured starlight but I wanted a more in depth look at those things, not 16th century astronomers who get their noses cut off in duels. Ah well. It was basic if a little dated, (Pluto hadn't been officially stripped of its planet status yet). I never took a class on the subject in school but was exposed to it though trips to the planetarium, which I always really loved. I guess I couldn't take *every* subject in school - though I tried! I did enjoy it and if you don't know much about the Universe - it's a good one to check out.

[Kurt Marquart · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've never looked at the printed version, so I'm sure the "Voices from the Universe" sections don't seem as redundant as much as recaps that read as if I wasn't paying attention to what I just read (heard). Facts are spewed willy-nilly, and it can be a bit overwhelming listening to (or reading) the lists that go on and on—dates, names, figures—they get a little boring. A few random facts stood out to me, and I hope to retain enough before I listen again.
It's not a terrible book, but it's a little condescending in its presentation. The "questions" that are answered are pretty elementary, and a few are downright dumb. It also gets a little frustrating when Oliver Wieman (the person reading the book) is mispronouncing so much. Still, it's good for a sweeping background on some of the history of our understanding of the universe.

[Nathan · Rating 5 out of 5]

As with most of the books in Kenneth C. Davis' Don't Know Much series, Don't Know Much About the Universe lays out all the things we may not have learned in school, may have forgotten, may have changed since we were kids or just didn't make it into the curriculum. It's an excellent series, and this edition, that outlines everything from the discovery of the first planet to modern developments in quantum mechanics, lives up to the legacy of Davis' previous work. A witty, easy-to-read book that can be read cover to cover or randomly. A perfect reference guide.

NC

[Holly · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a good informative read. Lots of great info you might not have known before. The author is fairly entertaining when presenting dry info except for the history of the space race which wasn't terribly long. That was the only part I felt he could have done better with. I am looking forward to tackling another of his books soon!

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun, quick overview of the topic. He is neither as in-depth as Timothy Ferris in Coming of Age in the Milky Way and The Red Shift, nor as glib as any number of quickie guides to the history of cosmology. He is just right. And that says a lot.

[Carolyn · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series is the local equivalent of the 'Dummies' books, but I do like his style. If you must read predigested history, at least make sure it tastes good! I especially enjoyed the sections about the medieval astronomers, particularly Descartes and Tycho Brahe.

[Lara Eakins · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was a little outdated (published early 2001, I think), but other than that, not bad. I did catch some mistakes here and there, and not just of the "know we know more" variety, but not really enough for me to tell anyone not to bother.

[alisonwonderland (Alison) · Rating 3 out of 5]

you can read my thoughts here.

[Julie · Rating 1 out of 5]

a more appropriate title - "What is a universe?" Elementary read.

[Jason · Rating 3 out of 5]

eh, i liked it enough but soon tired of the format. I am very interested in this topic and took away some good stuff but overall it has not kept me coming back like Colours or Code...

[Sally · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not as helpful as I had hoped for Newton's Universe.

[Kim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting, but WAY to long in the unabridged audio version.

[Oswald · Rating 4 out of 5]

okay

[Stephen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Now I know much about the universe. And, golly, we are insignificant.

[Martha · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very good nuts-and-bolts review of knowledge about the universe to the date of publishing, put in an enjoyable narrative.

[Gina · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really accessible, amusing book for people who want to know more about the cosmos but do not have a strong backing in physics. I like Davis's simple way of treating complex subjects.

[Greg]

because it's astronomy, this book is long out of date and not info is valid...good book though

[Peter Clay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Typical Davis compilation, and he strays from the cool stuff from time to time, but there so much information in here that at least you don't feel like you're drowning in it!

[Maddy Carr]

For some reason, the question & answer format really, really didn't work for me, and I just gave up on it.

[Scott Holden · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed it, but it is already dated material. They should do an updated version like they did with DKMA history.

[George · Rating 4 out of 5]

There is a lot more to the universe than I learned in school!