The Cosmic Serpent

by Victor Clube, Bill Napier

Argues that comets occasionally strike the Earth causing climatic changes and that they have had a greater effect on human history than previously believed

299 pages, Hardcover

First published July 12, 1982

Reviews

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

What makes this book a great read is that it is an imaginative and speculative work from well-respected scientists near the top of their fields.

They make it clear, throughout the book, that what they are advocating cannot be demonstrated conclusively, but is a mere imaginative extrapolation of astronomical data.

I can see how this book would have been incredibly controversial, especially within the scientific community. However, I'd read 100 more books chronicling the daydreams of scientists before I'd ever pick up a new-age spirituality hooey-filled nonsense work of "non-fiction."

That said, this is not a page turner, and is overtly wordy. Obviously, the writers are not established authors, and as academics, have a tendency to be verbose. I felt the book could have easily been edited down to half its final length. Also, in the later chapters some of the imaginative leaps the authors take with regard to disciplines outside their area of expertise are a bit broad and difficult to believe.

It's a shame this book is out of print and expensive to obtain, but I was impressed enough with the imaginative speculation that I shelled out to buy its even harder to find sequel.

[Florian Egerer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another absolute banger of a book. Same as the other in this series: The Cosmic Winter. Just read it.

[Zdenek Sykora · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting book.