Cosmic Queries

Cosmic Queries expands on Neil deGrasse Tyson's StarTalk and aims to answer the big questions about the universe. Tyson has a way of making these very big and difficult concepts easy to understand, bringing the universe down to earth. Beginning from how we know what we know in space, measurements and some of the scientists who have led to these discoveries we are then led to ask questions of how the universe got to be how it is, what the universe is made out of, what life is, if we are alone, how this all began and eventually, how it will end.


Whenever I read a book about space I am always amazed about how much I do not know. I revel in being able to learn and understand more about our world and what is beyond. Cosmic Queries not only gives me a good foundation to begin to understand the questions posed in the book, but reminds me of how much we don't know about what we don't know as well as the fact that "the most interesting questions are the ones we don't yet know to ask." As I read through each chapter, the knowledge from previous chapters was slowly built upon, helping to expand my thinking and ask further questions. In addition, I learned about some of the pioneers of astronomy and the risks they took in order to get their knowledge out into the world. Overall, Cosmic Queries is an excellent read for any curious mind.


This book was received for free in return for an honest review.

Cosmic Queries by Neil deGrasse Tyson was an exquisite audiobook! It was captivating and engaging as his books always are! Highly recommended!

(Copy provided by NetGalley)

Neil DeGrasse Tyson continues to show why he is so well thought of in the popular science and astronomy world. Great overall history of the universe and where it is going, written in a very clear and easy to understand, conversational way. Highly recommended for anyone with a bit of interest in astronomy and astronomical history.

Neil deGrasse Tyson continues to write interesting books on interesting topics. This latest one has the same approachable writing style of his Actrophysics for People in a Hurry and Death by Black Hole. All this means that a reader even slightly interested in the past, present an future of our space, will enjoy this book.
In Cosmic Queries, Tyson offers his readers insight into big questions people have been asking: What is our place in the Universe? How do we know what we know? How old is the universe? How will it all end? Answers to these questions are broken up into manageable pieces and explained in a way that you don’t need a science degree to understand. Whenever some additional knowledge is necessary for the understanding of a problem, this knowledge is given ahead of time.
In addition to the pure science, each chapter has several “take a breath” moments in the form of Twitter posts. This makes it feel the book is trying to cater at the lowest denominator, but they are fun. I would have preferred them not be there, but we can’t all have it our way.
The audio book is well executed. The more “fun” elements are delivered in Tyson’s well known soft voice, while the majority of the book is read by Lauren Fortgang. Her voice is easy to follow and pleasant to listen to.
All in all a fun read and a good way to add a new scientific facts to your mental collection in a way that won’t make you sweat.

This book is a fun listen as an audiobook, but is dominated is not dominated by Tyson, which could be a relief for some, but most likely a weakness for those who choose to listen. It answers many of the most important questions about the universe with the most updated information on the topic. While not a starting place on the topic, nor an exhaustive discussion of the topic, it is worth the read for those casually interested in the cosmos.