Don and I had each purchased a copy in print, but hadn't had time to read them, so after listening to Galileo: a Life, we decided it might be nice to follow that up with this, while it's fresh in our minds. We were right :-) This one started out focusing on Galileo, making us wonder if the use of the daughter's existence was just a gimmick to produce another book on Galileo, but no, there's much more information here about Maria Celeste than in the first, and by virtue of that, information we'd not gotten from the previous work about Galileo. There were episodes and details in the first book that this did not include, so we felt that both were worthwhile reads/listens. ( )

Described as a "memoir" on the cover, this book is based on the letters from Galileo's oldest daughter to him. The book's narrative contextualizes the letters within events in Galileo's career and broader historical events. It really explores the relationship between the two, which was carried out not just in letters but regular visits by Galileo to his cloistered daughter. Galileo's trial and house arrest put the burden of managing his estate on his daughter, but also physically affected them both. ( )

A readable and accurate account that can draw more readers into the social history of science, such as a number of students in my own classes. ( )

loved the details of everyday life revealed in the daughter's letters ( )

This is a fabulous and engaging book about Galileo and his daughter, Suor Maria Celeste. Sobel provides a window into convent life, the power of the Catholic Church, and the emotional relationship between father and daughter. Reads like a novel, but is well-researched and beautifully executed. ( )