This Wonderful Universe

by Agnes Giberne

A delightful introduction to the science of astronomy, starting with what can be viewed directly from our location on Earth. In due course, the reader becomes familiar with the moon, the sun, and the planets in our solar system, the meteors and comets that visit us from outer space, as well as the stars and nebulae that reside in outer space. As much as possible, the author puts the reader in the role of what can be observed and what can be deduced from the observation. She regularly relates stories of the scientists that made the first discoveries and developed theories to explain their observations. For those who hesitate to read a 100 year-old science book, consider that the author is a master of crafting explanations that engage her audience, sometimes using both illustrations and text to drive home a point. Poetry selections from modern poets and those of bygone eras are included throughout. "It is always interesting to note," says the author, "the manner in which great scientific truths are received by widely differing minds, gifted with poetic insight." A wondrous universe indeed! Furthermore, the author always allows for the possibility that new discoveries may change our thinking. That is just as true today as it was when this book was first published a century ago. Readers with a firm grasp of the historical background may well be eager to investigate on their own what new developments have come to light in the last century.

258 pages, Paperback

First published July 2, 2015

About the author

Agnes Giberne was a prolific English author who wrote fiction with moral or religious themes for children and also books on astronomy for young people.

Educated by governesses in Europe and England after her father Major Charles Giberne retired from service in India, Agnes Giberne started publishing didactic novels and short stories with improving themes under her initials A.G., some of it for the Religious Tract Society. Later she used her full name for her fiction, for her well-received works on astronomy and the natural world, and for her biography of the children's writer Charlotte Maria Tucker. Most of her writing was done before 1910.

Giberne was an amateur astronomer who worked on the committee setting up the British Astronomical Association and became a founder-member in 1890. Her popular illustrated book Sun, Moon and Stars: Astronomy for Beginners (1879), with a foreword by Oxford Professor of Astronomy, Charles Pritchard, was printed in several editions on both sides of the Atlantic, and sold 24,000 copies in its first 20 years. Later she wrote a book called "Among the Stars" which, as Giberne explains in the Introduction, is a version of "Sun, Moon and Stars" for younger children. It is about a boy called Ikon who is very interested in the stars. He meets a Professor who explains more about the stars and solar system to Ikon.