Galileo: A Very Short Introduction

I recommend this book to those who are interested in further exploring the juncture of the so-called "war" between both science and religion. Drake posits that the Galileo Affair occurred largely due to an under-investigated error. This error, related to an unsigned Affidavit that was authored by the Vatican, fueled the fire for the case of an actual "war" between science and religion. What Drake uncovers, is that philosophy actually played a bigger role in the Galileo Affair than most would care to admit. The Vatican was heavily invested in the Aristotelian school of thought, relating to space and the Earth resting as the center of the Universe; that is, heliocentricity. What emerges for Drake, is a probable misunderstanding of Galileo's devotion to the philosophical wisdom and truth contained within the Universe. Drake paints a highly plausible picture that Galileo was a very devoted Catholic, who insisted upon maintaining the integrity of the Vatican.

As usual the Very Short Introduction series comes through again . Very informative in such a compact book. I really enjoy all the books I have read in this series

The experience of this Very Short Introduction is positive in meeting my want of a concise biography of an individual i find very interesting and significant in science history.There are many stories of Galileo,and this book does not give in to easy acceptance,instead explores the real events with original source material and not conjuncture.Plus,it makes the science aspects understandable,while placing his work in the historical context required.As a bonus i experienced being in 17th century Florence and Rome.

Professor Drake is a well-known specialist on Galileo scientific achievements. This little book is a nice short ntroduction to the this subject.

A great short reference to keep on my desk.

Brilliant. Very interesting.

It is not easy to write a better, very short introduction that Stillman Drake has done, here. While being absolutely packed with loads of information, Drake makes it accessible. This book will be intimidating to someone familiar with the watered-down nature of other introductions, but, having read half of Oxford's series, I think that the idea is that these books are intended to be scholarly approaches to introductions of the material. To put it simply, as an academic who is not familiar with many other disciplines, I have found Oxford's series to be quite useful. At any rate, Drake's work, presented in this book, I think, is so accessible that, even for the non-academic, a brief introduction to Galileo, such as the graphic novel variety, would suffice in one's preparation for reading this. That is to say, though a step up on difficulty, Galileo: A Very Short Introduction serves as a fantastic introduction to a subject, especially, in cases where the reader wants to know if the subject is one worth reading more into. As for me, not only will I be reading more into the subject, I have found it rather obvious that Stillman Drake is probably among the top, if not the top, scholar on Galileo. One thing definitely worth noting about this book is its interdisciplinary style. Drake does a wonderful job of conveying the science that is relevant to the history of science discussion, as it pertains to Galileo. Moreover, Drake does well to explain the importance of various philosophical aspects that impacted Galileo's science. Finally, I think the book was just well written. Drake has a definite writing style, and he has a flare, which really brings interest to his subject matter. He writes with clarity, and he writes in such a way that provokes thought. Probably, the best part of his writing is the way in which he words his thoughts, which is brilliant, in that he says so much in such a small book; not a sentence is wasted.

Small print makes it hard to read at times. Written in a manner that at times is too formal. Helpful for understanding more about the early times before Galileo.

A very human approach to the work of Galileo giving a refreshingly new image of a pious and hardworking scientist who was very keen to protect the Church from its own follies.

This is the story of the first scientist, and his struggles and successes, in overcoming obstructive hidebound philosophy. Science is ultimately a way of thinking and practicing, not 'facts' or 'inventions', and the author conveys this excellently.