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I've just finished this book, I found it in our local library. I don't think I'm really qualified to give a review but here's my 2c.
I found the book quite enjoyable, having read 'Longitude' I knew that Sobel has the power to deliver a nice dramatic angle on scientific history, and she continues to do so in this book.
The book is split into 12 chapters, one for each of the planets, except for Uranus and Neptune which share a chapter, plus additional chapters for the introduction, the Sun, the Moon, Pluto and a conclusion chapter.
The contents of the book are a mixture of science, history and mythology, each chapter having a different flavour. For example, the chapter on Mars is told in the first person from the perspective of the Martian meteorite Allan Hills 84001. The chapter on Uranus and Neptune consists mostly of a fictional letter from Caroline Herschel to a fellow female comet discoverer Maria Mitchell congratulating her on her discovery.
I found the book thoroughly enjoyable, and would recommend it as an antidote to drier popular science material. I think Sobel has tried to maintain the mystique she has felt since childhood about the planets by painting them as more than balls of rock, liquid, ice and gas. She tells their stories through the changing eyes of human history, and the end result is a success.
Malc
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