Books on Astronomy
Seen through the eyes of an astronomer or astrophysicist, the Universe is a fantastic and mystical world – and a good books on astronomy can give you a glimpse of that place without requiring years of study. Here we are going to review some books on astronomy and astrophysics that will thrill, puzzle, intrigue and blow your mind. The first 10 astronomy books are our personal choice – books we have read and love, followed by the TOP 10 Bestsellers at Amazon. At the end of this article we will publish all of the suggestion we have received, so please, tell us about your favorite books on astronomy!
So let’s start!
1: “Earth in Human Hands” by David Grinspoon
2: NightWatch: A Practical Guide to Viewing the Universe by Terence Dickinson
The first three editions of NightWatch sold more than 600,000 copies, making it the top-selling stargazing guide in the world for the last 20 years. The key feature of this classic title is the section of star charts that are cherished by backyard astronomers everywhere. Each new edition has outsold the previous one because of thorough revisions and additional new material.NightWatch has been acclaimed as the best general interest introduction to astronomy. The fourth edition has improvements over the 3rd edition in every chapter, including:The famous charts, ideal for stargazers using a small telescope or binocularsA complete update of the equipment section, including computerized telescopesAn enlarged photography section, including how-to instructions for using the new generation of digital cameras for astronomical photography, both with and without a telescopeThe tables of future solar and lunar eclipses, planetary conjunctions and planet locations, updated through 2025.This edition includes star charts for use in the southern hemisphere. There are also dozens of new photographs throughout the book that show the latest thrilling discoveries made by current space observatories and probes.
3. Cosmos by Carl Sagan
Cosmos is one of the bestselling books on astronomy of all time. In clear-eyed prose, Sagan reveals a jewel-like blue world inhabited by a life form that is just beginning to discover its own identity and to venture into the vast ocean of space. Featuring a new Introduction by Sagan’s collaborator, Ann Druyan, full color illustrations, and a new Foreword by astrophysicist Neil deGrasse Tyson, Cosmos retraces the fourteen billion years of cosmic evolution that have transformed matter into consciousness, exploring such topics as the origin of life, the human brain, Egyptian hieroglyphics, spacecraft missions, the death of the Sun, the evolution of galaxies, and the forces and individuals who helped to shape modern science.
4. The Holographic Universe by Michael Talbot
This book will change your life. Without wanting to spoil the read, or without the urge to get to in-depth about the subject matter in a simple review, I can sum the book up as an alternate view on both quantum physics and neuro-science, and the postulations that the book makes throughout its course are simply marvelous to read about.
5. Human Universe by professor Brian Cox
Top ten Sunday Times Bestseller
‘Engaging, ambitious and creative” The Guardian
Where are we? Are we alone? Who are we? Why are we here? What is our future?
Human Universe tackles some of the greatest questions that humans have asked to try and understand the very nature of ourselves and the Universe in which we live.Through the endless leaps of human minds, it explores the extraordinary depth of our knowledge today and where our curiosity may lead us in the future. With groundbreaking insight it reveals how time, physics and chemistry came together to create a creature that can wonder at its own existence, blessed with an unquenchable thirst to discover not just where it came from, but how it can think, where it is going and if it is alone.Personally, I adore the Professor. Not once he has inspired me, making me to look at the night sky with love and gratitude for all that it is. I think this is one of the best book on astronomy! Here you can check his video series which I did review.
6. 
Brief Answers to the Big Questions by Stephen Hawking
“How did it all begin? Is there other intelligent life in the Universe? Is time travel possible?” These are just a few of the big questions that Stephen Hawking discusses in his final book. Hawking does not simply give us one-word answers, but walks us through his own thinking and divergences on each subject. The language is easy to follow and each chapter’s length keeps you engaged. In places the book touches on some complicated physics, but you will never feel lost. There are many inspiring parts that will stay with you and shape the way you think about these big questions in the future.
7. Ultimate Guide to Viewing the Cosmos by David Dickinson & Frazer Cain
Authors Dickinson and Cain are here to ease you into astronomy, providing a complex but highly readable guide for amateurs (or even veterans who need a refresher), introducing the night sky and the tools needed to observe it. They introduce us to stargazing, discuss software and equipment to aid our understanding, braving the minefield of choosing the right telescope, the right aperture, the right mount and the right eyepiece. They show us how to build a basic Newtonian refracting ‘scope for under $50. This is a companion for any astronomer at any level, but its main message is that we should not forget to simply revel in astronomy for the awe-inspiring experience that it is.
8. The Secret Lives of Planets by Paul Murdin
Paul Murdin manages to compress billions of years of Solar System history into fewer than 300 pages, as well as providing a timeline and glossary of both our nearest and furthest neighbours. The details of each object’s classification, rotation, diameter and surface temperatures are given in helpful boxouts so the reader doesn’t get lost in all the information. The Secret Lives of Planets aims to be “a user’s guide to the Solar System”, but it also turns out to be an inspiration to look at the Solar System as a long cosmic journey, and find our place in it.
9. Space: 10 Things You Should Know by Dr Becky Smethurst
Dr Becky Smethurst has a wonderful gift for communicating some extremely exciting but also tough astrophysics in 10 bite-sized essays. If you’d like to know about supermassive black holes, the hunt for exoplanets and the expanding Universe (plus a lot more), then this book is a nice starting point. I really enjoyed the conversational writing style and the divergences that come with this. It made me feel as though Dr Becky was sat next to me. My favourite chapter is the last, which touches on the importance of searching for the unknown knowns. There’s something wonderfully inspiring communicated through the pages, and I closed the book feeling a bit more excited about my own research.
10. The End of Everything by Katie Mack
The End of Everything explores five possible scenarios for the Universe’s ultimate demise: the ‘big crunch’, ‘heat death’, the ‘big rip’, ‘vacuum decay’ and the ‘ekpyrotic scenario’. Mack seamlessly weaves her way through the essential physics you’ll need to understand each Universe-ending possibility. Don’t worry if you haven’t heard of, say, the ekpyrotic scenario because the author gives us a readily graspable explanation of this and many other concepts.
I loved the slight tangents the author makes as though she is speaking out loud; these touches make the book feel very personable. My favourite might be how she explains a topological defect in the same way as deciding which bread plate is yours at a fancy dinner. The epilogue is another highlight, where various cosmologists contemplate the end of the Universe. It’s intriguing to read that while this subject is ‘sad’, it really is all about the journey.
I can’t remember coming across another book that solely focuses on the eventual destruction of all of reality. Mack is a great science communicator and I suspected I was going to like this book as soon as I saw her name; I am pleased to say it does not disappoint.
Here Are THE TOP 10 Books on Astronomy Selling in Amazon
- Fazekas, Andrew (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 288 Pages - 03/19/2019 (Publication Date) - National Geographic (Publisher)
- Hardcover Book
- National Geographic (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 432 Pages - 10/25/2022 (Publication Date) - National Geographic (Publisher)
- DK (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 352 Pages - 02/02/2021 (Publication Date) - DK (Publisher)
- Hardcover Book
- DK (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 528 Pages - 09/08/2020 (Publication Date) - DK (Publisher)
- NORTON, Easy To Read
- Ideal for a bookworm
- Compact for travelling
- Hardcover Book
- deGrasse Tyson, Neil (Author)
- Moché, Dinah L. (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 388 Pages - 07/22/2014 (Publication Date) - Trade Paper Press (Publisher)
- Ridpath, Ian (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 400 Pages - 10/03/2017 (Publication Date) - Princeton University Press (Publisher)
- Book - space atlas, second edition: mapping the universe and beyond
- Language: english
- Binding: hardcover
- Hardcover Book
- Trefil, James (Author)
- Hardcover Book
- Dickinson, Terence (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 332 Pages - 09/19/2017 (Publication Date) - Firefly Books (Publisher)
- Dickinson, Terence (Author)
- English (Publication Language)
- 208 Pages - 09/07/2023 (Publication Date) - Firefly Books (Publisher)
Hello here. Your book list impressive and tempting to read for everybody who wants expand their minds. As Earl Nightingale told that streched mind never goes to the previous state.
I have Carl Sagan’s Cosmos in my iPad as PDF. I hope that I will find time to read it.
Overall I miss these times when I visited places where city lights do not cover stars. I felt connection and safety from the view of countless constelations and planets.
These mentioned books will prompt reader to think deeper because we are part of bigger structure.
All the best, Nemira.
Hi Nemira, and thank you for the comment.
Last year and a half I lived in London and as a person who loves Astronomy this is more than a night mare. I was able to see just a few from all that the night sky can provide. Now days I’m back at my home house at village and just can’t stop staring the sky. You are right – the feel much more connected to all!
Hope you will find time soon to have Carl Sagan’s book read. It’s one of my favorite!
I think the subject of astronomy should be available to kids at school and college. The fact we know less about our planets, galaxy and universe than we do our earth is quite strange to me.
I have got two of these books, Nightwatch and Carl Sagan’s Cosmos. They are both excellent books and two of my favourite astronomy publications that I treasure.
My husband is a fan of Brian Cox and I’m thinking of getting this book as a present for an anniversary. As for the 4th book, it looks really intriguing and I will probably go for that one too. Thanks for the review, Ches
Hello,
I’m totally agree with you Ches. Astronomy should go at school and college.
The holographic universe is one of my favorite book. We all have heard about that everything is just an illusion but in this book you going to believe it because Michael Talbot is proving everything he says.
And about Brian Cox: I just I love this guy!!!
Thanks for the comment. All best for you!
Hi Ignat!
“Cosmos”, amazing Carl Sagan! And you out that together with a foreword of the awesome Neil deGrasse Tyson and you got a masterpiece about the secrets of the universe.
We have yet so much to learn about the Universe… It’s good to have people sharing their thoughts about that. We sometimes feel like we’re so important, when we’re actually a little tinny dot out there.
Thanks for sharing! Very interesting books!
Hi Israel!
The Universe is keeping so much secrets and probably just because of that, the most people don’t want to step on this road – it’s so complicated. But once you try to reveal some of the universe secrets you’ll see that it’s all connected and you are part of the Universe. So revealing its secrets, you are revealing your own secrets.
And yes, we have yet so much to learn, but we have to start from somewhere and these books are a very good start.
Thanks for comment!
That Nightwatch book looks amazing! My family had a telescope growing up that we would use occasionally to look at the stars, but I most relied on my dad’s knowledge and didn’t bother to learn much about astronomy myself. Now that I’m starting my own family, I would love to pick up a telescope and learn more about astronomy so I can give the same experiences to my own children. Cosmos by Carl Sagan sounds like a very interesting read too!
Hi Kiersten,
I believe Astronomy is one of the most amazing things that can fascinate your conscious. And when we speak about children- couldn’t be better. No way to get wrong with love to the Universe! All books here are very good, very different and very powerful. You can check and some videos as well. Also when you are going to get a Telescope, don’t forget to read everything you have to know about it. Here I have written very nice article about how to get Telescope.
Thank you for your time!
This would be an interesting list of science books.
I really love science and want to learn more things about our universe. There are so many things out there that I want to understand.
“Where are we? Are we alone? Who are we? Why are we here? What is our future?” in the book of Professor Brian Cox and Andrew Cohen are deep questions that intelligent beings are searching to find the answer. I am glad to find this book.
Hope to visit again your site in the future.
Thanks.
Hi delroaustria,
We are often forget that from the top it’s much easier to see in details the hole picture. What I’m saying is that with understanding the word we are living in, solving the little problems in life it becomes just a game. Just a few books from the list here, can actually change the way you see the hole World.
Thank you for the comment!
Wow – this is so cool! I had a basic childhood astronomy book that introduced the planets, but hadn’t pursued this any further into adulthood. Do you think any of these books is a good middleground for someone who isn’t really “In the know” about astrophysics etc, but is looking to learn more?
Yup, definitely “The Human Universe” of professor Brian Cox. Very understandable language, lots of mind blowing information and answers you always want to hear.
Enjoy reading Kegan and thanks for the comment!
I remember when I read Cosmos by Carl Sagan how it had ignited my interest in Astronomy. I actually forgot how much I loved that book.
Although I haven’t read The Holographic Universe yet, I did read another book by Michael Talbot, Beyond The Quantum. I found that book to be a superb book for anyone who has sensed that there is more than meets the eye in this world. I just ordered The Holographic Universe, I will let you know what I think.
Hi James,
The Holographic Universe is the first book I have read of the collection here. Definitely not the easy one, but for sure the one who most changed my perspective of the world! Will be happy to have a discussion with you about the reading.
Thanks!
This is a great selection of books and believe it or not I have Night Watch. You just reminded my that I have it.
I need to get it out and look at the idea of a telescope to use with the book and my kids learning about our solar system.
Thanks for this
Well, you have one of the best astronomy book then! Good idea to combine it with a telescope and have some amazing time with the kids under the stars!
Thanks Stew!