- Book
- 123 pages
- Level: all audiences — younger readers. Click here for other resources for younger readers.
This book about America’s first professional woman astronomer is written for younger readers, but readers of all ages are likely to enjoy it. Written by Beatrice Gormley and published in 1995 by Eerdmans, Soul of an Astronomer describes Mitchell’s life and scientific work, as would be expected from a biography, but it also gives much attention to her religious ideas. Mitchell was very concerned with religious matters—“Every formula which expresses a law of nature,” she once wrote, “is a hymn of praise to God”. However, she sometimes came into conflict with people over those matters, and the book covers that aspect of her life, too.
From the publisher:
In the mid-1800s, a turbulent time when women were often thought to be unworthy of higher education, Maria Mitchell rose above the prejudices of the day to become America’s first professional woman astronomer. This exciting biography tells the story of Maria Mitchell’s life, her amazing achievements, and her faith that saw God’s handiwork in the heavens.
Click here for a preview of this book, courtesy of Google Books.
