A striking text that takes us beyond our planet for a fresh perspective.
An escape from doomscrolling social media to the vantage point of the Hubble telescope, 340 miles above the Earth’s surface.
Following three books of poetry and a novel, Amsterdam-based space reporter van Heemstra invites readers to take a breath, forgo the breakneck pace and seeming futility of modern life, and take a view of our lives from the point of view of an astronaut in orbit. As the author points out, the daily inundation of emails, bills, social media, and negative news coverage has increasingly limited her view to “the chaos occurring at eye level.” She continues, “I want to shrink, zoom out, find an overview from which I can see things, myself, others, in their proper proportion.” This hyperengagement also counterintuitively hampers any attempt to make meaningful progress, and van Heemstra takes inspiration from the astronauts who, after witnessing the world as a proverbial blue marble, return to rededicate their efforts to the well-being of the planet, whether continuing their scientific studies fighting climate change or advocating for social injustice. This cognitive shift, coined by author Frank White as the “overview effect,” occurs when one is able to break away from the constant barrage of mundane life, and the resulting feeling is one of cosmological connectedness. Throughout this brief yet paradigm-shifting book, the author guides readers through poignant vignettes and interviews with leading thinkers in the science of space. In the course of her journey, she seeks to “mentally remove myself from Earth,” an exceedingly difficult task. Each investigation into the minutiae of space brings a subtle suggestion of the interconnectedness of all things, and by the conclusion, readers will start to believe it is possible to attain a whole worldview between the covers of a book.
A striking text that takes us beyond our planet for a fresh perspective.Pub Date: June 20, 2023
ISBN: 9781324035695
Page Count: 160
Publisher: Norton
Review Posted Online: March 24, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
A remarkably thorough and thoughtful case for the reconciliation between science and faith.
A duo of French mathematicians makes the scientific case for God in this nonfiction book.
Since its 2021 French-language publication in Paris, this work by Bolloré and Bonnassies has sold more than 400,000 copies. Now translated into English for the first time by West and Jones, the book offers a new introduction featuring endorsements from a range of scientists and religious leaders, including Nobel Prize-winning astronomers and Roman Catholic cardinals. This appeal to authority, both religious and scientific, distinguishes this volume from a genre of Christian apologetics that tends to reject, rather than embrace, scientific consensus. Central to the book’s argument is that contemporary scientific advancements have undone past emphases on materialist interpretations of the universe (and their parallel doubts of spirituality). According to the authors’ reasoned arguments, what now forms people’s present understanding of the universe—including quantum mechanics, relativity, and the Big Bang—puts “the question of the existence of a creator God back on the table,” given the underlying implications. Einstein’s theory of relativity, for instance, presupposes that if a cause exists behind the origin of the universe, then it must be atemporal, non-spatial, and immaterial. While the book’s contentions related to Christianity specifically, such as its belief in the “indisputable truths contained in the Bible,” may not be as convincing as its broader argument on how the idea of a creator God fits into contemporary scientific understanding, the volume nevertheless offers a refreshingly nuanced approach to the topic. From the work’s outset, the authors (academically trained in math and engineering) reject fundamentalist interpretations of creationism (such as claims that Earth is only 6,000 years old) as “fanciful beliefs” while challenging the philosophical underpinnings of a purely materialist understanding of the universe that may not fit into recent scientific paradigm shifts. Featuring over 500 pages and more than 600 research notes, this book strikes a balance between its academic foundations and an accessible writing style, complemented by dozens of photographs from various sources, diagrams, and charts.
A remarkably thorough and thoughtful case for the reconciliation between science and faith.Pub Date: Oct. 14, 2025
ISBN: 9789998782402
Page Count: 562
Publisher: N/A
Review Posted Online: Oct. 7, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
A sweet final word from an actor who leaves a legacy of compassion and kindness.
The late actor offers a gentle guide for living with more purpose, love, and joy.
Mixing poetry, prescriptive challenges, and elements of memoir, Heche (1969-2022) delivers a narrative that is more encouraging workbook than life story. The author wants to share what she has discovered over the course of a life filled with abuse, advocacy, and uncanny turning points. Her greatest discovery? Love. “Open yourself up to love and transform kindness from a feeling you extend to those around you to actions that you perform for them,” she writes. “Only by caring can we open ourselves up to the universe, and only by opening up to the universe can we fully experience all the wonders that it holds, the greatest of which is love.” Throughout the occasionally overwrought text, Heche is heavy on the concept of care. She wants us to experience joy as she does, and she provides a road map for how to get there. Instead of slinking away from Hollywood and the ridicule that she endured there, Heche found the good and hung on, with Alec Baldwin and Harrison Ford starring as particularly shining knights in her story. Some readers may dismiss this material as vapid Hollywood stuff, but Heche’s perspective is an empathetic blend of Buddhism (minimize suffering), dialectical behavioral therapy (tolerating distress), Christianity (do unto others), and pre-Socratic philosophy (sufficient reason). “You’re not out to change the whole world, but to increase the levels of love and kindness in the world, drop by drop,” she writes. “Over time, these actions wear away the coldness, hate, and indifference around us as surely as water slowly wearing away stone.” Readers grieving her loss will take solace knowing that she lived her love-filled life on her own terms. Heche’s business and podcast partner, Heather Duffy, writes the epilogue, closing the book on a life well lived.
A sweet final word from an actor who leaves a legacy of compassion and kindness.Pub Date: Jan. 24, 2023
ISBN: 9781627783316
Page Count: 176
Publisher: Viva Editions
Review Posted Online: Feb. 6, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2023
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