Voyages to the Stars and Galaxies: Media Update Edition [With CDROM]

This is a good book for the amateur astronomer. The text is easy to understand and goes through the appropriate material in a logical manner without getting too bogged down in details.

"Voyages to the Stars and Galaxies" by Fraknoi, Morrison, and Wolff is one of the best introductory astronomy books I have come across. The book is marketed as a textbook for a (non-science major) college course, and as such it works great. But I also think the book would be ideal for anyone who is interested in astronomy, and wants something more substantial than what is offered in most popular astronomy books, but who also does not have the math background (or the time or inclination) for a math intensive textbook. In fact, even if you are interested in a more math intensive book, if you are new to astronomy, this might be a better starting point from which you can branch out later. The reason I say this is because the book gives such an excellent overview of astronomy, while providing very clear explanations of the underlying scientific principles. Thus you walk away from the book seeing the big picture and having a good grasp of the science behind it all. You have an excellent foundation from which to delve into more math intensive books if you so desire. For example, consider the life of a star. A popular astronomy text will generally give you a nice description of the various stages in a star's life. Interesting, but just not enough meat for some people. A university level textbook will give you all the meat you want, but it may be difficult to see the forest through the trees so to speak. Voyages, on the other hand, gives you the descriptive overview, AND explains the scientific principles behind each stage, all without losing you in lots of math. It is a good balance. Not that this book has no math in it. There is some, but it is generally minimal, or presented in side bars or additional problems that you can explore. I've read other introductory astronomy texts, and none have been as consistently clear while striking the right balance for a first year college student or interested amateur.