This novel falls into the historical fiction genre. Dava Sobel credits his work as being a 'fast-paced, beautifully crafted story'.
We all know about the important work that Johannes Kepler and Galileo Galilei carried out to enhance knowledge. Stuart Clark's book brings out the human story behind these characters, detailing their struggle with the religious and political powers of their time. It is easy to wonder how people could find it so difficult to accept the truth revealed by Kepler's calculations and Galileo's observations. No doubt future generations will think many in our time are ignorant as well.
It is clear from his acknowledgements that he has undertaken a lot of research in order to get a sense of the personalities of Kepler an Galileo.
I enjoyed this book and for those who like this style of literature it is worth reading.
http://www.stuartclark.com/cosmo-blog