''The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe: How to Know What's Really Real in a World Increasingly Full of Fake'' is a 2018 book meant to be an all-encompassing guide to
skeptical thinking written by
Steven Novella
Steven Paul Novella (born July 29, 1964) is an American neurology, clinical neurologist and Professors in the United States#Associate Professor, associate professor at Yale University School of Medicine. Novella is best known for his involvement ...
and co-authored by other hosts of
The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe podcast
A podcast is a Radio program, program made available in digital format for download over the Internet. Typically, a podcast is an Episode, episodic series of digital audio Computer file, files that users can download to a personal device or str ...
Bob Novella,
Cara Santa Maria
Cara Louise Santa Maria (born October 19, 1983) is an American science communicator. She hosts the podcast ''Talk Nerdy'' and co-hosts ''The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe'' podcast, and was a co-host of TechKnow on Al Jazeera America.
Santa M ...
, Jay Novella, and Evan Bernstein. It also contains material from former co-host
Perry DeAngelis.
About
In 2017,
Skeptical Inquirer
''Skeptical Inquirer'' (S.I.) is a bimonthly American general-audience magazine published by the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI) with the subtitle "The Magazine for Science and Reason". The magazine initially focused on investigating clai ...
reported that The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe was under development with an expected release in 2018. It became available for pre-order in early 2018, and was released by
Grand Central Publishing
Grand Central Publishing is a book publishing imprint of Hachette Book Group, originally established in 1970 as Warner Books when Kinney National Company acquired the New York City-based Paperback Library. When Time Warner sold their book publis ...
on October 2, 2018. The book was written by
Steven Novella
Steven Paul Novella (born July 29, 1964) is an American neurology, clinical neurologist and Professors in the United States#Associate Professor, associate professor at Yale University School of Medicine. Novella is best known for his involvement ...
and co-authored by Bob Novella,
Cara Santa Maria
Cara Louise Santa Maria (born October 19, 1983) is an American science communicator. She hosts the podcast ''Talk Nerdy'' and co-hosts ''The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe'' podcast, and was a co-host of TechKnow on Al Jazeera America.
Santa M ...
, Jay Novella,
Perry DeAngelis, and Evan Bernstein – other individuals that have served as hosts of
The Skeptics' Guide to the Universe podcast.
In an interview with
The European Skeptics Podcast, Jay Novella described their approach to writing the book from the "point of view of an alien species observing the earth from a skeptical perspective using critical thinking," reminiscent of the book's namesake
The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
''The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'' is a Science fiction comedy, comedy science fiction franchise created by Douglas Adams. Originally a The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy (radio series), radio sitcom broadcast over two series on BBC ...
by
Douglas Adams
Douglas Noel Adams (11 March 1952 – 11 May 2001) was an English author, humorist, and screenwriter, best known as the creator of ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy''. Originally a 1978 BBC radio comedy, ''The Hitchhiker's Guide to the ...
.
Reception
The book received a favorable review from
Kirkus Reviews
''Kirkus Reviews'' is an American book review magazine founded in 1933 by Virginia Kirkus. The magazine's publisher, Kirkus Media, is headquartered in New York City. ''Kirkus Reviews'' confers the annual Kirkus Prize to authors of fiction, no ...
and was a ''
USA Today
''USA Today'' (often stylized in all caps) is an American daily middle-market newspaper and news broadcasting company. Founded by Al Neuharth in 1980 and launched on September 14, 1982, the newspaper operates from Gannett's corporate headq ...
'' bestseller.
''
Publishers Weekly
''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...
'' reviewed the book, stating:
The book was also reviewed by Rob Palmer for ''
Skeptical Inquirer
''Skeptical Inquirer'' (S.I.) is a bimonthly American general-audience magazine published by the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry (CSI) with the subtitle "The Magazine for Science and Reason". The magazine initially focused on investigating clai ...
'', who wrote:
Author gallery
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Skeptics' Guide To The Universe
2018 non-fiction books
English-language non-fiction books
Science books
Scientific skepticism
Scientific skepticism mass media
Grand Central Publishing books