Jeremy R. (diewachen) reviewed on 9/14/2010 + 15 more book reviews

Travel during the Age of Exploration was a risky venture. Most sailors had the ability to figure out latitude by the day, the sun or guide stars. Longitude, however, was another story. Despite attempts by astronomers such as Galileo, Cassini, Huygens, Newton, and Halley, difficulty in finding an accurate method of determining longitude persisted for over four centuries. Longitude is the story of John Harrison, an 18th century English clockmaker who devoted his life to developing a chronometer accurate enough to be used to determine longitude at sea.

So, the story is fascinating--or it would be if the book wasn't a mess. Sobel presents Longitude as a work of historical non-fiction for a general audience, but fails to fully leave behind an academic style. Apparently she thinks writing for a general audience means avoiding discussions of science beyond the surface level, and tossing organization out the window. Yet, for some reason, she hangs on to the academic standard of presenting the entirety of her ideas right away. Which means, after reading the first chapter, later chapters feel like little more than repetition.

Honestly, I wanted to like this book. But, less than 50 pages in I was bored. I hear there's a NOVA episode and a Jeremy Irons movie--I'd recommend watching one of those over reading the book. Or, just read the first chapter.

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