--- product_id: 3249087 title: "Galileo's Daughter: A Historical Memoir of Science, Faith, and Love" price: "VT9414" currency: VUV in_stock: true reviews_count: 8 url: https://www.desertcart.vu/products/3249087-galileos-daughter-a-historical-memoir-of-science-faith-and-love store_origin: VU region: Vanuatu --- # Galileo's Daughter: A Historical Memoir of Science, Faith, and Love **Price:** VT9414 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** Galileo's Daughter: A Historical Memoir of Science, Faith, and Love - **How much does it cost?** VT9414 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.vu](https://www.desertcart.vu/products/3249087-galileos-daughter-a-historical-memoir-of-science-faith-and-love) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description desertcart.com: Galileo's Daughter: A Historical Memoir of Science, Faith, and Love: 9780802779656: Sobel, Dava: Books Review: Entrancing & fabulous -- with a stunning ending! - * Of course I'm not going to give the ending away. * However erudite I might smugly think I am about the merits of well-written non-fiction, I was simply blown away by the emotional firepower of the conclusion of this book. * I have been to Florence many times, and have visited the Church of Santa Croce during each visit, where Galileo's tomb resides today on the same floor as the legendary Michelangelo and Machiavelli. * If I had read something like Sobel's book 10 years ago, it would have sparked a burst of emotions heretofore missing in those visits, similar to splashing a million colors onto a blank canvas, or in the case of Galileo's tomb, injecting life onto a slab of colorless marble. * The amazing beauty of this work is that it reads like a novel, or more to the point, it paints pictures reminiscent of the language of cinema. It is historical, factual and meticulous. Yet it is not TOO detailed. * Unlike typical historical treatments of people whose accomplishments are regarded so magnificent that they are automatically given an entrance ticket into the pantheon of immortality, Sobel's story of Galileo and his relationship with his daughter is engrossing, spellbinding and bereft of the technical minutiae that bogs down many works of non-fiction. * Too often, authors attempting to bring life to the thoughts and actions of great figures, go so overboard with tiny details that they undercut their own efforts. They disrupt the narrative momentum so critical to good old fashioned story-telling. There's nothing worse than to read half way down a page and then realize that you missed everything crammed so badly into two paragraphs that you're forced to read them again. * "Galileo's Daughter" is a work of non-fiction and an easy read, despite its potentially forbidding subject. While much verbiage is expended about the master's fight to prove Copernicus' theory of a sun-centered galaxy, in the face of recriminations and potential persecutions from the Catholic Church, the author's method of tackling this issue is unlike anything you will ever find in a boring textbook. The result is pure entertainment, like watching a drama about a clash of ideas and egos, the stuff movies are made of. * After a while, you are lulled into thinking that the title of Sobel's book is merely a subtext to what is really Galileo's story. His daughter's letters simply humanize the "legend" of Galileo, transforming him into a domestic, a real person, a parent with the normal concerns for his children. For all of his cranial powers, Galileo is not so self-absorbed that he abrogates his responsibilities as a father. He comes off as a concerned parent who endeavors to provide the best for his children. * But then the twist! You think you know where this story is going because after all, this is a work of non-fiction! But you're wrong! * By the end of "Galileo's Daughter," author Sobel finds an ingenious way to circle back to what is inferred by the title of his book, despite the preponderance of words expended on Galileo himself. * The result is a stunner. * If you buy this book, and I recommend you do, DON'T cheat and go to its last few pages. If you do, you'll deprive yourself of the emotional impact of a revelation that may be common knowledge to some, but in reality is obscure to the greater body of people who think they know history. * "Galileo's Daughter" is a marvelous achievement. If all non-fiction works were written this way, I'd stop going to the movies. Review: Revealing history, at global and personal levels - For us laymen - neither historians nor scientists - Dava Sobel has delivered a fascinating and readable exploration of a time in history that has had an immeasurable effect on our own, "modern" life, both at the societal and individual levels. She offers a thorough and apparently well-documented re-analysis of events that shaped the futures of the sciences and the Catholic faith. She tackles these large issues with clarity and an ability to communicate technical, or hairsplitting, concepts to the average reader. She is able to take us through the relationships, personal strengths and follies, and international events that led up to Galileo's famous trial, and does it in such a way that we are not bored in the least. At the same time, she gives a unique look at the daily lives of people who walked, talked, breathed and loved, just as we do today. Through her research and descriptions, we see that we are not so different from the people who lived so long ago - a good lesson for these very-millennial, oh-so-modern times. In fact, the joy of this book is not the discovery that Galileo had a daughter, and that they wrote letters to each other that we can peek at. The joy is in realizing that we are part of that same tapestry of life; that we are not so unique - and alone - after all. In terms of expectations for this book, other reviewers are correct: the first portion of the text barely touches upon Suor Marie Celeste at all. However, this delay works. By the time we get to her story, and the story of Galileo's trial, we have enough background information to make them meaningful, and not just a list of dates and characters. This book was well-written; the style is comfortable and the narrative flows. It's as if a favorite storyteller has moved from fact to fiction and, with no embellishment of the truth, makes the past come alive. I recommend you read this, if only to get a sense of what has made us who we are today. ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | #100,892 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #89 in Scientist Biographies #144 in Astronomy (Books) #1,025 in Women's Biographies | | Customer Reviews | 4.3 4.3 out of 5 stars (1,172) | | Dimensions | 5.55 x 1.2 x 8.2 inches | | Edition | Book Club Edition. | | ISBN-10 | 0802779654 | | ISBN-13 | 978-0802779656 | | Item Weight | 2.31 pounds | | Language | English | | Print length | 432 pages | | Publication date | September 4, 2011 | | Publisher | Bloomsbury USA | ## Images ![Galileo's Daughter: A Historical Memoir of Science, Faith, and Love - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/8122ArZmU1L.jpg) ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Entrancing & fabulous -- with a stunning ending! *by I***Y on January 11, 2001* * Of course I'm not going to give the ending away. * However erudite I might smugly think I am about the merits of well-written non-fiction, I was simply blown away by the emotional firepower of the conclusion of this book. * I have been to Florence many times, and have visited the Church of Santa Croce during each visit, where Galileo's tomb resides today on the same floor as the legendary Michelangelo and Machiavelli. * If I had read something like Sobel's book 10 years ago, it would have sparked a burst of emotions heretofore missing in those visits, similar to splashing a million colors onto a blank canvas, or in the case of Galileo's tomb, injecting life onto a slab of colorless marble. * The amazing beauty of this work is that it reads like a novel, or more to the point, it paints pictures reminiscent of the language of cinema. It is historical, factual and meticulous. Yet it is not TOO detailed. * Unlike typical historical treatments of people whose accomplishments are regarded so magnificent that they are automatically given an entrance ticket into the pantheon of immortality, Sobel's story of Galileo and his relationship with his daughter is engrossing, spellbinding and bereft of the technical minutiae that bogs down many works of non-fiction. * Too often, authors attempting to bring life to the thoughts and actions of great figures, go so overboard with tiny details that they undercut their own efforts. They disrupt the narrative momentum so critical to good old fashioned story-telling. There's nothing worse than to read half way down a page and then realize that you missed everything crammed so badly into two paragraphs that you're forced to read them again. * "Galileo's Daughter" is a work of non-fiction and an easy read, despite its potentially forbidding subject. While much verbiage is expended about the master's fight to prove Copernicus' theory of a sun-centered galaxy, in the face of recriminations and potential persecutions from the Catholic Church, the author's method of tackling this issue is unlike anything you will ever find in a boring textbook. The result is pure entertainment, like watching a drama about a clash of ideas and egos, the stuff movies are made of. * After a while, you are lulled into thinking that the title of Sobel's book is merely a subtext to what is really Galileo's story. His daughter's letters simply humanize the "legend" of Galileo, transforming him into a domestic, a real person, a parent with the normal concerns for his children. For all of his cranial powers, Galileo is not so self-absorbed that he abrogates his responsibilities as a father. He comes off as a concerned parent who endeavors to provide the best for his children. * But then the twist! You think you know where this story is going because after all, this is a work of non-fiction! But you're wrong! * By the end of "Galileo's Daughter," author Sobel finds an ingenious way to circle back to what is inferred by the title of his book, despite the preponderance of words expended on Galileo himself. * The result is a stunner. * If you buy this book, and I recommend you do, DON'T cheat and go to its last few pages. If you do, you'll deprive yourself of the emotional impact of a revelation that may be common knowledge to some, but in reality is obscure to the greater body of people who think they know history. * "Galileo's Daughter" is a marvelous achievement. If all non-fiction works were written this way, I'd stop going to the movies. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Revealing history, at global and personal levels *by D***D on January 4, 2000* For us laymen - neither historians nor scientists - Dava Sobel has delivered a fascinating and readable exploration of a time in history that has had an immeasurable effect on our own, "modern" life, both at the societal and individual levels. She offers a thorough and apparently well-documented re-analysis of events that shaped the futures of the sciences and the Catholic faith. She tackles these large issues with clarity and an ability to communicate technical, or hairsplitting, concepts to the average reader. She is able to take us through the relationships, personal strengths and follies, and international events that led up to Galileo's famous trial, and does it in such a way that we are not bored in the least. At the same time, she gives a unique look at the daily lives of people who walked, talked, breathed and loved, just as we do today. Through her research and descriptions, we see that we are not so different from the people who lived so long ago - a good lesson for these very-millennial, oh-so-modern times. In fact, the joy of this book is not the discovery that Galileo had a daughter, and that they wrote letters to each other that we can peek at. The joy is in realizing that we are part of that same tapestry of life; that we are not so unique - and alone - after all. In terms of expectations for this book, other reviewers are correct: the first portion of the text barely touches upon Suor Marie Celeste at all. However, this delay works. By the time we get to her story, and the story of Galileo's trial, we have enough background information to make them meaningful, and not just a list of dates and characters. This book was well-written; the style is comfortable and the narrative flows. It's as if a favorite storyteller has moved from fact to fiction and, with no embellishment of the truth, makes the past come alive. I recommend you read this, if only to get a sense of what has made us who we are today. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Well researched history of a genius *by R***R on August 21, 2022* Strong writing and evidence of excellent research. Well written with a strong voice. By definition, telling a story by way of ancient letters is tedious. That said, Dava Sobel keeps the flow with reportage of events and background not included in the letters to keep the reader engaged. What was especially noteworthy to me was the backstory of the letters. The life of some women in the 1600s was revealed leaving this reader wanting more detail. The submissiveness was repulsive, but the need for it, the pervasiveness of it, was shown as ordinary. I do believe a whole other book could be composed just to reveal more of what the nuns and other women had to endure. The myths about Galileo's life were corrected. --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.vu/products/3249087-galileos-daughter-a-historical-memoir-of-science-faith-and-love](https://www.desertcart.vu/products/3249087-galileos-daughter-a-historical-memoir-of-science-faith-and-love) --- *Product available on Desertcart Vanuatu* *Store origin: VU* *Last updated: 2026-05-10*