The Pluto Files: The Rise and Fall of America's Favorite Planet

Catfight in Space!

If you're afraid of a dry science-y book, put your fears aside. The Pluto Files is a glimpse behind the scenes of museums and other scientific institutions and how they deal with the public and the changing status of their chosen field. There's just enough straight science described so the reader can familiarize themselves with the topic. Nothing that can be handled by a high school student.

Dr. Tyson found himself, unintentionally, in the middle of the controversy over the continuing planethood of far away Pluto. While I think he is a bit biased about the actual popularity of tiny, icy rock, the machinations of his fellow scientists are what really make this book worth reading. "All My Children" has nothing on feuding astrophysicists!

6 out of 6 people found this review helpful.

Far Out!

What a fun light read, full of interesting facts and trivia. The subject matter is literally very "far out". Dr. Tyson seems to have his feet on the ground, perhaps surprising for an astrophysicist, in his handling of the controversy surrounding the demotion of Pluto from its status as a planet. The Pluto Files is full of great old and new illustrations. I particularly enjoyed the photos of Clyde Tombaugh (at ages 22 and 90), Pluto's discoverer, and little Venetia Burney who suggested the name Pluto. The cartoons are great. It's one of those books, that although I tried to maintain a quiet demeanor, I found myself LOL while reading it on the train.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

very disappointed

It wasn't anything new that hasn't been printed in newspapers and magazines. I was hopeing for more info , in depth on others objects in the Plutino classification. For an avid astronomy reader it was a waste of money.

2 out of 3 people found this review helpful.

Why isn't Pluto a planet anymore?

I very much enjoyed this book. It provides a history of all things Pluto and really explains the place Pluto has taken in society and amongst scholars alike. It discusses the discovery and reclassification of Pluto in an entertaining, easy-to-read fashion for people with a passing interest that doesn't undermine the education a more astronomy-minded person might have.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Another hit for Neil deGrasse Tyson

Professional, clear, and jovial. Neil deGrasse Tyson gives a full and accurate history of the life of Pluto, from its discovery, to its current status as a Dwarf Planet. Within the book's pages are samples of letters he has received from the general public, ranging a wide range of human emotions (angry, rude, matter-of-fact, logical, lamenting, practical, etc). It's a fairly quick read, backed up by numerous appendices (which take up a larger portion of the book than I at first realized). Amid all the strong emotions (one way or the other) concerning the status of Pluto (and other Kuiper belt objects, of smaller, similar, and larger sizes, as well as some larger asteroids that have now become dwarf planets by definition), Neil never fails to remain jovial in his approach...even when anger (and outright foul language) is directed towards him personally.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

A bit short but a solid overview of the Pluto Question

Neil Degrasse Tyson is an astrophysicist with the Hayden Planetarium at the American Museum of Natural History in NYC. (he serves as director). He's a columnist for Natural History magazine, and already has a book of essays, Death by Black Hole, to his credit.

To lovers of the planet Pluto, however, he is a villain.

Although it took a NY Times columnist a year to bring the change to light, the new Rose Center for Earth and Space, under Tyson, kept Pluto out of the display of the main sequence of planets, putting it with the Kuiper belt objects instead. In effect, Pluto had been "demoted".

Once that article came out, however, the howls rose, and the IAU took up the question in full...

In The Pluto Files, Tyson tells the full story of Pluto, and his part in its rise and fall.

Tyson is not a self-aggrandizer, but he does have a central role in the drama and he fully documents his part in Pluto's story in the book. Along the way, he tells the story of Pluto's discovery, its debate among the IAU, and the ultimate designation given by the IAU. Plenty of digressions tie in the field of astronomy and astronomers, popular culture (including a certain Mouse's dog) and more.

I've previously read Tyson's work in Death by Black Hole, and he keeps that easy, accessible style for his work here. He may not have the skill of the late Stephen Jay Gould or Carl Sagan just yet, but those who only have a little science education should not be intimidated or put off by the subject.

I, myself, learned a lot of what happened "behind the scenes" in the debate on Pluto, and found the book educational as well as a pleasure to read. The book is relatively short for the price, which is about the only major thing I can say against the book.

Recommended.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

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