About This Book

In every age there are courageous people who break with tradition to explore new ideas and challenge accepted truths. Galileo Galilei was just such a man — a genius, and the first to turn the telescope to the skies to map the heavens. In doing so, he offered objective evidence that the earth was not the fixed center of the universe but that it and all the other planets revolved around the sun.

Galileo kept careful notes and made beautiful drawings of all that he observed. Through his telescope he brought the stars down to earth for everyone to see. By changing the way people saw the galaxy, Galileo was also changing the way they saw themselves and their place in the universe. This was very exciting, but to some it was deeply disturbing. Galileo had upset the harmonious view of heaven and earth that had been accepted since ancient times.

In his new book, Peter Sis employs the artist's lens to give us an extraordinary view of the life of Galileo Galilei. Sis tells his story in language as simple as a fairy tale, in pictures as rich and tightly woven as a tapestry, and in Galileo's own words, written more than 350 years ago and still resonant with truth.

About the Authors or Illustrators

Peter Sis

Peter Sis is an internationally acclaimed illustrator, author, and filmmaker with more than twenty books to his credit. His picture book THE WALL: GROWING UP BEHIND THE IRON CURTAIN was a 2007 Caldecott Honor Book, and STARRY MESSENGER: GALILEO GALILEI and TIBET THROUGH THE RED BOX were 1996 and 1997 Caldecott Honor Books, respectively. Peter Sis lives in the New York City area with his family.

Read more >