Comets: Creators and Destroyers

Comets have long dwelled in our imaginations as harbingers of fortune, good and bad, and this very human interest lies at the heart of the book. Comets, by astronomer and science writer David H. Levy (one of the discoverers of Comet Shoemaker-Levy, which battered Jupiter in 1994). He proves that you don't have to be a stargazer to succumb to the allure of the comet, inspiring the novice and satisfying the curious with up-to-date scientific fact, speculation, history, literature, and his own obvious enthusiasm for the subject. Whether exploring comets' role in seeding Earth with the building blocks of life or their link to mass extinctions, Comets consistently engages the reader with a conversational tone that provides just the right level of detail. These visitors from the fringes of our solar neighborhood are sure to rise on everyone's Top Ten Lists as the millennium approaches; this book outlines their relationship with our past and our future. --Rob Lightner