Longitude by Dava Sobel is a short, satisfying, and surprisingly engaging read about one of history’s most fascinating scientific challenges: how to measure longitude at sea. Sobel tells the story of the eighteenth-century clockmakers, astronomers, and explorers who tried to solve this problem — a problem that cost lives, ships, and fortunes before it was finally cracked.
At this point, I’ll read anything written by Carl Sagan. He’s an amazing storyteller with a rare gift for explaining complex ideas without ever talking down to his audience. In other words, he doesn’t make his readers feel like complete idiots. Originally published in 1995, The Demon-Haunted World may show its age in a few examples, but its message is as relevant — if not more so — today as it was nearly thirty years ago.
Dust off your VCR, grab that unmarked tape, and press Play. You’re about to get… what’s that?… The tape is extinct? How does a tape go extinct? So is it a DVD now?… No, it’s a… what?!
I’m the kind of person who is willing to read just about anything. As I continue my journey through the Alex Cross series, I’ve decided that erotic fiction is not my jam. Not that I was interested in erotic fiction in the first place. But getting slapped in the face with it in a suspense/thriller novel left me feeling a bit… uncomfortable…
