Stars: A Very Short Introduction

A light read and a very interesting one, too. I'm studying astronomy, so I read this just before an exam. It's great that it explains things in plain English, including a few things you don't typically find in textbooks, helping you piece things together so you get an understanding of the bigger picture. A wonderful book in every respect. I would recommend it to astronomy students and enthusiasts, but it's really such an easy read, with great flow and simple phrasing, that even someone with no prior interest in astronomy would understand most of it.

This book is a well written and surprisingly in-depth introduction to the subject. A word of warning - if you're looking for a really breezy, newspaper column level introduction, you may be better of looking elsewhere. This book actually discusses theories of chemistry and physics and also supplies the equations that underlie the principles that make stars work. You don't have to understand these equations - they are just there to show you how ingenious and complex astrophysics can be, but they might put off the casual reader by their very presence.

This was explained clearly and in depth and I much appreciated the level of detail - it did not patronise.

This is a great introduction to stars and astrophysics. Do yourself or someone in your life a favour - get them this book. Everyone should know where we really come from and what we are all made of - star dust! It's a much better and grander view of life than the one peddled by those funny-mentalist cretins.....

I found this book to be a fantastic introduction to the stars, and really helped me understand aspects which I had never considered before. For those who want to dip their toe into the wonders of the universe.

This is an interesting volume in the VSI series and provides an in-depth account of the life cycle of stars, but be aware that the content is in parts challenging and some knowledge of basic physics and maths is advisable; speed reading is not an option! The book describes in detail the creation of stars, how they function, evolve and their various end-of-life scenarios as white dwarfs, neutron stars or black holes. Also explained are the mathematical techniques used by astronomers for determining star characteristics such as size, distance, luminosity and so forth. The book covers a lot of ground and will certainly appeal to those considering astronomy as a serious study option. Even for the general reader with a low tolerance for equations and physical 'laws', the book should still be of interest even if it needs to be read twice to gain an understanding of the content.

Great book. Ideal for someone new to the subject, and a useful reference book for students.

Highly recommend for anyone wanting to learn about the Stars or anyone at University to pair this with your other course books.

Encantó a quien se lo regale

Excelente livro. Ótimas explicações. Apresenta uma sequência bem coerente no que diz respeito às informações.

The book is very nicely written with not much of mathematics. It gave me a clear understanding of the formation and life cycle of stars and the way they end their lives. The book also tells us about how stars are discovered and methods used to determine their mass and distance. I found the book a very good buy for the price.

Arrived quick and just in time. Was reading about astrophysics a books about Stars is not only needed but stars are more invoved than people think......they deserve at least 150 pages

I learned more in these 120 pages than in an equal number of books about stellar evolution I have read. The author does a fantastic job of explaining difficult concepts in a non- mathematical manner. Most of the math he presents is in simple relational terms, such as how different physical variables relate to each other in terms of ratio and proportionality. This is an excellent approach to explaining how stars work. As an amateur astronomer I wish the author had given examples of actual stars in the night sky. For example, there is no mention of the formation of planetary nebulae in the book and little information on the different types of variable stars. Surprisingly, this is the only book on stars I have ever read where there is no mention of stellar classification. A topic which I find quite boring. In fairness to the author, as stated, the book is a very short introduction. I purchased both the ebook and paperback for my library. If you are interested in astronomy I whole heartedly recommend this book.