Rating: 
Summary: Galileo, the father
Review: This book made me realize just how much we all owe to Galileo. As a mechanical engineer, it is fascinating to find that the root of all we have accomplished began with Galileo. He was the first to hold that the physical world can be described mathematically, and thus, the father of modern physics. Equally amazing is the fact that he did it without even reliable measures of time and distance, but purely with his astounding mind. I enjoyed every aspect of the book and highly recommend it to all those who continue Galileo's work to this day.
Rating: 
Summary: Misdirected Title; Standard Fare Book
Review: Most of us know the history of Galileo; the tumult surrounding his accusation of heresy when he claimed the Earth revolved around the Sun (a Copernican view). But few know about his family life. He had two illegitimate daughters, and one of them - Maria Celeste - became the apple of her father's eye. She was intelligent, well-spoken, a good God-fearing catholic. She was also a nun in a convent and it was this that drove Galileo's Daughter, the book by Dava Sobel.
Irony is at its best here. While the catholic superpower of the 17th century swings its mighty weight around, Galileo begins challenging many of the church's long-held beliefs (that the Earth is NOT the center of the universe!). Meanwhile, his daughters are ushered into God's holy order of nuns, yet support their father from behind the walls of their convent. Most outspoken among them is Maria Celeste, his eldest. She broods over her father and aids him in any way she can (including writing letters to high-power officials affiliated with Mother Church).
The most striking thing about the history surrounding Galileo, is how involved the church was in every aspect of everyone's lives. Science and religion went hand-in-hand back then; a bad idea.
Why?
Because whenever a scientific discovery was made that in any way went against religious scripture, it was immediately censured or labeled as heretical. Just ask Galileo.
The catholic church has a lot to atone for, in my humble opinion. One would think that some time shortly after Galileo's death the church would rescind its ban on his books and apologize for their error. But no. How long would it take before this happened? Let's see, Galileo died in 1642. In 1892, the university of Pisa awarded Galileo an honorary degree - 250 years after his death. Had the church forgiven him yet?
No.
In 1929, Edwin Hubble discovers that the universe is expanding. Surely the church must've acknowledged their mistake by now!
No way.
Spaceflight, microwaves, computers, and a multitude of other discoveries will take place long before the church forgives Galileo his "sins". Unbelievable.
So Galileo's Daughter was interesting from a historical perspective (thus my three star rating). But from a story perspective, it dragged and was held together only just. The letters from Maria Celeste to her father are scattered throughout the pages. And although it is interesting to hear about the spoiling of wine and the selling of produce from Galileo's land, it became rather burdensome to hear of it time and again (at least for me it became so).
I also don't think that the title of this novel (Galileo's Daughter) is appropriate. His daughter IS in there. But not enough to warrant the title. Oh sure, the ending is excellent and ties in with the title quite well, but all the previous pages held more information on Galileo himself than his daughter - there just wasn't enough historical references available regarding his daughter to make it a novel "based" on her.
Rating:
Summary: Your most affectionate daughter
Review: GALILEO'S DAUGHTER is not so much about the astronomer's daughter as it is a biography of Galileo himself told using the insight gleaned from his correspondence with his eldest daughter (a nun, Suor Maria Celeste Galilei) to complement the more traditional historical narrative. The daughter's letters to her father survived: unfortunately Galileo's letters to his daughter did not. Still one gets the impression that their relationship was warm and we catch glimpses of the human and personal side of Galileo.
As biography and as history, GALILEO'S DAUGHTER succeeds admirably. It is a very readable and engaging book and encompasses Galileo's early life up until the time of his death. In addition to its insight on the personal life of the man, the book details the scientific questions that consumed Galileo as well as the political and religious atmosphere of the time that seemed alternatively to work both for and against him. Ultimately, the pope betrays Galileo, his former friend, and the heartbreaking history of Galileo's persecution and confinement unfolds.
Throughout, Galileo's daughter shares the joy in his triumphs as well as the tragedy of his downfall, and her letters add touches of humanity to the history. I highly recommend GALILEO'S DAUGHTER as a work of history. Those expecting a novelization of the life of Galileo, however, may be disappointed.
Jeremy W. Forstadt
Rating:
Summary: Breathtaking account - historical, lyrical and insightful
Review: This is one of my top ten books. So many insights of his life, and of life in the Renaissance, are illuminated. The injustices of the inquisition are apparent as we learn how devout Galileo was, his deep sense of spirituality and connection to God, and how his desire to explore the questions of the universe were misunderstood by the church. Extremely well written, excellent translation of the original letters written by Galileo's daughter to her father, with insets of explanations and historical references to keep the reader in perspective. I highly recommend this book.
Rating: 
Summary: fascinating glimpse into personal history
Review: I can't give this excellent book a full 5 stars because the title is misleading, and there aren't enough letters in the actual book. My interest was piqued by the title, but it took a bit to get to Maria Celeste's part of the biography. Overlooking that, this is a carefully researched presentation of the great man and his humanity, as shown through his communications with his cloistered illegitimate daughter. A fascinating book, all told.
Rating:
Summary: "The father...of modern science" had a loving daughter!!
Review: +++++
This six part, 33 chapter book, by Dava Sobel, has two themes running through it:
Theme #1: Decribes thoroughly the life and times of Galileo Galilei (1564 to 1642).
Theme #2: Describes the life of Galileo's daughter (1600 to 1634) through some of the actual letters she wrote to her father.
This is first and foremost a solid, easy to read biography of Galileo. His life is traced from him first entering a monastery before deciding to lead a life of scientific inquiry and discovery. Actual letters or parts of letters (translated from the original Latin, French, or Italian by various experts) by Galileo and others are included in the main narrative. Throughout, we are told of his numerous inventions and discoveries. Perhaps the most sensational is that his telescopes allowed him to reveal a new reality in the heavens and to reinforce the Copernican argument that the Earth moves around the Sun. For this belief, he was brought before the Holy Inquisition, accused of heresy, and forced eventually to spend his last years under house arrest. All the translated papers pertaining to these inquisition days are included and make for fascinating reading.
My favorite Inquisition story is with respect to the June 1633 renunciation or "confession" document (reproduced in this book) Galileo was to speak out aloud. The main point of this document is that the Earth does not move around the Sun and that the Earth does not move at all. After reading it aloud, it is said that he muttered under his breath "Eppur si muove" (translation: "But it does move.")
One of Galileo's daughters born "Virginia" and later appropriately named "Sister Maria Celeste," had the intelligence and sensibility of her father. As indicated by her letters, her loving support, which Galileo repaid in kind, proved to be her father's greatest source of strength through his most productive but tumultuous years. Sobel herself translated these letters from the original Italian. They are expertly woven into the main narrative adding an emotional element to this biography.
This book contains almost twenty-five complete letters and numerous large and small fragments from other letters by Sister Celeste. All letters she wrote begin with a statement showing love and respect for her father. Example: "Most Illustrious Lord Father." The first complete letter is dated May 10, 1623 and the last complete letter is dated December 10, 1633. Those letters Galileo wrote to his daughter have not survived.
Almost 75 illustrations are found throughout this book. They add (besides the actual letters of Galileo's daughter) yet another dimension to the narrative. Two of my favorite pictures are entitled "Moon drawings by Galileo in 1609" and "Sunspot drawings by Galileo."
Another intriguing aspect of this book is a chronology after the main narrative ends entitled "In Galileo's Time." This is not just a timeline of important events that occurred during Galileo's life but includes all significant events (especially scientific ones) between 1543 to 1999 inclusive. For example, what happened in 1687? According to this chronology, "Newton's laws of motion and universal gravitation are published in his [book] 'Principia.'" What happened in 1989? Answer: "[NASA] launches [the] 'Galileo' spacecraft [or space probe] to study the moons of Jupiter at close range."
Where did the author obtain all the fascinating information needed to write such an intriguing book? Answer: from the over 130 references found in the bibliography.
I noticed in the book's "Appreciation" section that the author gives thanks to many people. (Dr.) Frank Drake, who helped with the celestrial mechanics found in this book, caught my eye. She co-authored with him the excellent book "Is Anyone Out There?: The Scientific Search for Extraterrestral Intelligence" (paperback, 1994).
Finally, my only minor complaint is with the book's title. As mentioned above, there are two interconnected themes running through this book. Thus, I think a more appropriate title might have been "Galileo and his Daughter."
In conclusion, this book is a thorough biography of Galileo that includes some translated letters from one of his daugters. It is truly, as the book's subtitle states, "A Historical Memoir of Science, Faith, and Love!!!"
+++++.
Rating:
Summary: A original perspective.
Review: Dava Sobel made an excellent job in this book. Family is an aspect of Galileo's life never exploded before (at least not that I know) and totally gives you a different perspective of this controversial and heavily influential individual. Galileo's life, as exposed in Sobel's book, is a very human and touching one. Seeing Galileo from the eyes of his tenderly loving bastard daughter (a nun), evokes such intense conflicting emotions as one might expect only to surge by empathy, a characteristic only obtained when the author makes you compenetrate inside the personage life. A great book, highly recommended for curious people.
Rating:
Summary: More than a Loving Daughter?s view of a Good Catholic
Review: Dava Sorbel (in case you wondered, it's s a woman) has written a thoroughly entertaining and gripping account of Galileo Galilei's life from an unusual angle. This is based on the surviving letters from his eldest child to the astronomer and scientist; from her there are 124 extant letters, but not one of his remains. (However, there are numerous of his other writings and correspondence that the author also draws upon, both directly, and indirectly). Even from the letters alone, it quickly becomes apparent that the reader needs to suspend ideas of parenthood and morality as we would know them. This is seventeenth century Italy, and completely different rules apply.Suor (or Sister) Maria Celeste took orders in the convent of St Clare at the age of 13, and the tone of her letters is of sheer reverence of her father, and there is a joy in her performing menial task for him, her brother and others in the family. The vow of poverty that Virginia (her name was changed upon entering the convent) took was real, and sometimes there is more than a hint of begging in her letters to Galileo. She also at times was given the responsibility of sending begging letters to possible patrons on behalf of the convent. Intricate details of everyday life are given throughout; the account of the plague in central Italy in 1630 is particularly good. The continual return to such matters follows the ebb and flow of the letters. Often, letters were sent with some items that had been prepared, and there are requests to send a basket back, or some similar items. Details of convent life are an important backdrop to the writings of Galileo, and Suor Maria Celeste understood both (she helped make fair copy of some of her father's writings prior to publication). Sorbel also takes a stance on the trial of Galileo in 1633, indicating that it is so unlikely as to be impossible that the man uttered "Yet it does move" or something similar at the end of his trial. The trial not only gave Galileo anguish, but also his daughter. In spite of everything, Galileo considered himself to be a good catholic. In the book that was to be placed on the banned list by the papal authorities, Galileo attempted to divert criticism by having a hypothetic dialogue between exponents of a geo-centric world order, and those of a sun-centred system. "Dialogue on the Two Chief World System: Ptolomaic and Copernican" was to remain on the Papal list of Prohibited Books until 1835! Galileo was concerned about more than just a sun-centred universe; telescopes, the moon of Jupiter, sunspots, tidal flows and the motion of pendulums are just some of the matters that he wrote about. These ideas are presented in clarity, sometimes exposing what now seems the crazy ideas of his contemporaries. (Consider that one cardinal could see the image of Jupiter's moons using a telescope, but believed that the telescope itself had introduced the image. Another theory was introduced in order to retain the Aristotelian view that everything outside the orbit of the moon in a geocentric universe is unchanging.) I hope that this well researched and historically accurate book inspires readers to explore other recent books from the History of Science. Be warned, however; not all will meet the excellent standard of this volume. It excels for the background material that has been drawn upon, and for the compelling nature of the read.
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