The Whole Shebang: A State-of-the-Universe(s) Report
by Timothy Ferris
Simon and Schuster, 1997
hardcover, 394pp., illus.
ISBN 0-684-81020-4
US$25

Towards the Edge of the Universe: A Review of Modern Cosmology
by Stuart Clark
Wiley-Praxis, 1997
softcover, 210pp., illus.
ISBN 0-471-96249-X
US$39.95

Unsolved Problems in Astrophysics
by John N. Bacall and Jeremiah P. Ostriker (eds.)
Princeton University Press, 1997
softcover, 382pp., illus.
ISBN 0-691-01606-2
US$24.95

Hunting Down the Universe
by Michael Hawkins
Addison-Wesley, 1997
hardcover, 240pp.
ISBN 0-201-15698-9
US$24

One of the most intriguing fields of astronomy is cosmology. In part this may be because the field seeks to answer some of the most basic questions about the universe: how was it created, and when, and what will be its eventual fate. It may also be interesting because it challenges our common-sense notions about the universe: what could possibly exist before the Big Bang? What is the universe expanding into? The field has attracted a number of writers who seek to try and understand the current state of knowledge of the field and communicate this to their readers. The recent efforts of several such writers are reviewed below.
     At the lowest level, in terms of background knowledge of the field required, is Timothy Ferris's The Whole Shebang. This author, who has peered into the cosmos before with such well-received books as The Red Limit and Coming of Age in the Milky Way come back to take on dark matter, inflation theories, and the large-scale structure of the universe. Ferris combines the sometimes esoteric world of modern cosmology with everything from classical literature to history to better describe the subject. The book provides a good introduction or update on the field to someone who may not have much background in the subject, or for someone who has heard about these topics in the past but never really understood what was going on.
     Stuart Clark's Towards the Edge of the Universe provides a review of cosmology at a somewhat higher level of sophistication. While on one hand it provides a more general review of cosmological topics, eschewing extended discussions of dark matter for reviews of active galaxies and Olbers' Paradox, it goes into greater mathematical detail in the subjects it covers. A large number of images, including a number of color pictures, help explain the topics. This book is better oriented towards those who have some background in math or physics, and would certainly be useful in an undergraduate or graduate level course on cosmology.
     Unsolved Problems in Astrophysics is a collection of papers by leading cosmologists, including the editors as well as Martin Rees, Roger Blandford, and others, each discussion specific areas of astrophysics, with an emphasis on cosmology. The book has a very specific audience in mind: the editors put the book together with an eye towards graduate students seeking thesis topics and wanting to find the key problems in astrophysics. To the layman, the book will be of little use, but to the student, professor, or other people with a strong background in the topic, the book provides a summary of what we do know, and what is still unknown.
     Of the four books, Michael Hawkins's Hunting Down the Universe stands off to the side. While billed as the story of the author's search for dark matter in the form of tiny black holes, it is as much a philosophical criticism of the current state of science, and astrophysics in particular, as anything. He takes aim at some widely-held tenets of the establishment, and in many cases appears to be spot-on, such as his criticism of how the Space Telescope Science institute hypes up its "discoveries", which have often been made elsewhere in the past using traditional ground-based telescopes. The reader, though, will have to wade through some deep philosophical prose, such as "Perhaps because quantum mechanics tries to reconcile empirically derived indeterminism with the realist determinism of classical physics that is often seems irrational and contradictory." Not impossible to read, but certainly at a different level than Ferris.
     Each of the four books would be a good resource on out current understanding of astrophysics, and cosmology in particular, depending on one's background. Ferris's The Whole Shebang will have the widest appeal, with his ability to bring even difficult topics into proper perspective. Clark's Towards the Edge of the Universe and Bahcall and Ostriker's Unsolved Problems in Astrophysics will appeal largely to students and teachers of the field, as well as highly motivated laypersons. Hawkins's Hunting Down the Universe can't seem to decide whether is a book about cosmology or the philosophy of science and cosmology, but will be appreciated by those looking for a new, and often critical, perspective on the field.

Outlook on Space Law over the Next 30 Years
by Gabriel Lafferranderie
Kluwer Law International, 1997
hardcover, 472pp.
ISBN 90-411-0402-X

In 1967 the Outer Space Treaty, the first international accord to address the issues raised by sending spacecraft and people into space, was signed. In the 30 years since the treaty was signed, events in the space arena have changed dramatically, in ways not all anticipated by the treaty writers. Today we see a burgeoning commercial space market, as government space programs remain steady or are in decline, and are in any case nowhere near as dominant as they once were. With this trend, and others, expected to continue into the next century, a group of leading space lawyers looks at space law in this book.
     The book is a collection of essays by a group of largely European space law experts, who look at a wide range of topics within space law. Liability, remote sensing, commercial activities, people in space, settlement of disputes and international cooperation are some of the topics discussed in the book. The authors take a close eye to how upcoming trends, like the increasing commercialization of space, play a role in a space law framework formulated when nations were the sole players in space activities.
     Outlook on Space Law over the Next 30 Years is not designed for a general audience but for the legal community, and for law students. It would be a good companion to Outer Space: Problems of Law and Policy by Reynolds and Merges, reviewed in the September issue of SpaceViews. Both of these books, though, show the need for a separate book on the topic oriented towards a more general audience, so that people can better appreciate the subject.

Planet Dora: A Memoir of the Holocaust and the Birth of the Space Age
by Yves Beon
Westview Press, 1997
hardcover, 250pp., illus.
ISBN 0-8133-3272-9
US$30/C$42.50

The copy on the dust jacket of Planet Dora advises the reader, "you will never watch the launching of the space shuttle the same way again." Despite this warning, and despite the title, this book has little to do with the Space Age, the space shuttle, or anything related. Beon tells the story of working at the Dora concentration camp, in a special factory dubbed the "Mittelwerk" where he and thousands of others build the V-1 and V-2 rockets for Germany late in the Second World War. Beon, a survivor of Dora, tells a chilling tale of the inhumane working conditions and inhuman guards who made their lives as close to a living hell on Earth as possible.
     Yet, Beon makes virtually no effort in the book to shame the figurative descendants of the German rocket effort, the development of military and civilian rockets in America and Russia after the war. Wernher von Braun is rarely mentioned in the text, and an introduction by historian Michael Neufeld makes it clear the developers of the V-2 has little, if any, role or responsibility for the plight of the prisoners working and dying at Dora. What Planet Dora is a moving tale of the horrors of life in a Nazi camp in the war. What it is not is a diatribe against any aspect of the Space Age. Few readers will view a space shuttle launch any differently after reading this book than they have before.