Merlin's Tour of the Universe: A Skywatcher's Guide to Everything from Mars and Quasars to Comets, Planets, Blue Moons, and Werewolves

This is a fun book.

Tyson tackles a huge list of fun questions, with short, often funny and pointed quip answers.

I found the book was really interesting and organized well.

A great amount of answers that give the reader wonder and awe in our universe.

I didn't fully love the Merlin-side of things, I found the whole "asking Merlin" kinda kitschy. But still fun, sure.

The closest book I can think of to this book in terms of genre would be the excellent What If?: Serious Scientific Answers to Absurd Hypothetical Questions.

Definitely check this book out if you like fun scientific trivia.

4.4/5

This was an amazing audiobook.
It is whimsical in it didactic approach and Neil deGrasse Tyson, as Merlin, is both friendly and fun.
I loved the little rymes and poems.
The information is very approachable and easily digestable as scientific information goes.
Due to it's form factor, it would make a perfect science oriented 'bathroom reader' type book, if those are still a thing ;-)

This is an incredibly fascinating science non-fiction title. Really enjoying the question and answer format as it keeps me engaged despite some of the more difficult material. A great way to learn all about our universe!

I absolutely love NDT. He has such a great way of explaining complex things. In this book he answered questions posed to “Merlin”. A fictional character for this book’s purpose. However everything was answered with facts but the Merlin character added a bit of fictional whimsy. I very much enjoyed this book!
NDT is always great for anyone trying to learn more about the cosmos.

Not so much a tour or traveler’s guide as it is a Q&A. It was originally compiled in the late 1980s of questions asked of then-student deGrasse Tyson. He decided to answer them in the invented persona of Merlin, an intergalactic sage. These Q&As were collected and published in the 1990s with illustrations by his brother. Now, some 35 years later, Tyson has gone through and updated those answers that needed updating based on our more recent knowledge of the universe.
I listened to the audiobook and in doing so, it reminded me that I had listened to the earlier audiobook many years ago. Naturally, as I’m not a scientist, I can’t recall what specifically has changed or been updated. I will take his word for it. The book is entertaining but perhaps best as something to dip in and out of. As an audiobook it was like drinking from a firehose with random science questions and explanations coming at me non-stop. For five hours.
Dr. deGrasse Tyson narrates #MerlinsTouroftheUniverseRevisedandUpdatedfortheTwentyFirstCentury (seriously, that is the recommended hashtag from the publishers!) with his usual wit and humor, so I was entertained whilst becoming smarter. Thank you, #BlackstoneAudio!
My thanks to the author, publisher, producer, and #NetGalley for access to the audiobook for review purposes. The updated book and audiobook are now available.

I'm rating this one 3.5 stars because it's good but I have issues with some details.
Merlin is a fictional character through which Tyson answers questions from people of all ages and walks of life about the universe. Questions big and small all get answers that are easy to follow if you already have a basic knowledge of the material. My problem was that some of those answers were too glib while others were too complex for a book that's supposed to be for enthusiasts as much as for those in the know. It's a tough line to balance the two and there are some questions where it's expertly done, which only makes the times when it's not even more obvious.

It's narrated by Tyson, so you know that you'll get his charm and wry wit even clearer than with the print edition. Plus, the questions are all read by different voices, which makes for a nice little detail.

Happy thanks to NetGalley and Blackstone Publishing - Audiobooks!

Oh my gosh, this book is like the ultimate cheat sheet to the universe but served up with so much charm and personality! So here’s the deal: it’s Neil deGrasse Tyson (aka Merlin!) casually answering all the wild, random questions about space and science that you’d totally ask at 2 a.m. Merlin’s this clever alien wizard who knows everything from black holes to what would happen if the Earth suddenly stopped rotating, and he explains it all with this totally epic mix of humor and smarts that keeps things fun and super clear.

The book is packed with these little jokes that keep it from ever feeling too "science lecture." And instead of just dumping facts, he throws in mini-stories, and recounting of chats with, like, Einstein or da Vinci, making it feel like a cozy hang with the greats. Every question answered makes the cosmos feel a little less overwhelming and way more fascinating.

Honestly, if you’re even a little curious about the universe—or just want to sound extra cool talking about galaxies at parties—this book’s your new BFF.

Thank you so much, NetGalley, for the ARC in exchange for my honest review! 🌠

𝑴𝒆𝒓𝒍𝒊𝒏'𝒔 𝑻𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒐𝒇 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝑼𝒏𝒊𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒔𝒆, Revised and Updated for the Twenty-First Century: A Traveler's Guide to Blue Moons and Black Holes, Mars, Stars, and Everything Far by Neil deGrasse Tyson is the furthest escape I could muster for today, thankfully provided by @blackstonepublishing via @netgalley, available now for your escape as well!

I am utterly fascinated by the universe and its infinite beauty and mystery. The tiny nuggets that those supremely smarter than I, make accessible are invaluable and only add to the immense awe I have. I also have questions, in which apparently, I am not alone. I find this comforting. I am also comforted by knowing there are so many who are studying and learning things that make my brain hurt. I am not one who doesn’t accept simply because it is beyond my education, but I do appreciate those like deGrasse Tyson who make it palatable and easy to digest.

This is a collection of questions that were first published in 1989. Wow, so much has been seen since then! This is a revised edition and included a mix of more basic questions to those that exceeded my ponderings. I appreciated the audio version of this as there was a great cast to give each question a voice. I did have to laugh at a couple of one-word answers to some of the questions! I won’t deny that some of these answers left me with more questions, but isn’t that what is wonderful about learning?!

Now if Tyson and Dr. Who could get together and really help me visualize, I will be set! (seriously)

Through the character of Merlin, Neil deGrasse Tyson answers cosmic questions from children and adults with wit and scientific accuracy. With humorous cartoons and conversations with history’s greatest minds, Merlin explores gravity, light, space, time, and the wonders of distant galaxies. This updated volume is informative and fun to read. I enjoyed the audiobook narration.

Thanks, NetGalley, for the ARC I received. This is my honest and voluntary review.

I loved the format with the different voices asking and answering questions quickly, and found this to be as entertaining as it was informative. There were so many interesting questions, some of them things I've worried about, and as weird as it is, the answers were reassuring too. I highly recommend this for curious people of any age.
Thanks to NetGalley for letting me listen to this audiobook

Trivia level snippets answering the public’s questions. Original published in the 80’s, but now updated for today! I am fascinated by the universe and beyond. This was the perfect level of understanding, along with a touch of humor to keep it from being too dry!

The audiobook read by a whole cast, including the author, was the best mental escape. Like listening to your favorite podcast!

Thank you NetGalley, Blackstone Publishing, and author Neil deGrasse Tyson for the ALC in exchange for my honest review.

Genre: science nonfiction
Narrated by: Jim Meskimen, André Santana, Bronson Pinchot, Pun Bandhu, Em Grosland, Lauren Fortgang, Luzma Ortiz, Kevin R. Free, Jaime Lincoln Smith, Neil deGrasse Tyson

First published in 1989, Neil deGrasse Tyson is back with an updated version of Merlin's Tour of the Universe, updated with new answers as astrophysics and discovery have evolved since 1989. Tyson invented a character named Merlin from a far away galaxy who ventures to earth to answer basic to complicated astrophysics questions that the everyday person may want to understand. It hearkens an era when Google wasn't around to answer questions, so to the listener in 2024 some of these feel like something you'd reach for your phone to look up today. But it demonstrates the range of curiosity with questions from people ranging from ages 5 to 90.

This works well as an audiobook, with different narrators reading the variety of questions and NDT responding to them. The tone stays light, because our narrator is meant to be extraterrestrial creature Merlin who has spent its life observing from afar. It references famous physicists, quotes philosophy, and elevates baseline knowledge of astrophysics. The updates to this new version include facts like Pluto's downgrade from planet to Kuiper Belt dwarf planet and that a probe launched in 2023 is the new fastest manmade object in the universe.

Merlin's Tour isn't an introduction to astrophysics, nor is it mean to be; it's a smattering of facts organized in an easy to digest manner. For a reader with ADHD like me, it's the sort of book I love to listen to, with bombardment of facts that I'll retain ~40% of, and then have a physical copy to refer to later when I want to know exactly how deep the craters are on the moon.

This was a fun time! I learned a lot and liked the quick question and answer format. It is a good one to listen to while in the car with my 10 year old and get her listening to some cool science info!