THE SPACE SPOTTER’S GUIDE

Who needs a spacecraft to explore the cosmos? Who needs advanced instruments? Using precise descriptions, step-by-step instructions, and beautifully crafted star maps, Isaac Asimov treats Earth-bound stargazers to a guided tour of the many constellations and other wonders of the night sky.

This entry in “Isaac Asimov’s Library of the Universe” is a major disappointment. The main goal of the book is to help children learn what they can see by stargazing—and although it has nice pictures of a lot of stuff, it has absolutely useless star charts. The text is OK, but not outstanding. This is the sort of book that Asimov was really ill-suited to write, to be truthful—he was simply not picture-oriented, and here we have a case where more than just words are needed.