What readers think of The Smallest Lights in the Universe, plus links to write your own review.

OMG A memoir. Not another memoir. I wasn't crazy about the last one I read. But wait...
After discussing Elderhood by Louise Aaronson in another group, Ms. Seager's descriptions of the hospital and the doctor where Mike was treated, rang a bell. After losing family members to death recently and long ago, Ms. Seager's descriptions of sorrow and recovery hit bells that rang again but with some comfort. After a life-long love of astronomy with a zero tolerance for numbers and physics, Ms Seager's enthuisasm and plain talk about astrophysics rang clear enough that I got a copy of N. Tyson's book to finally read it with some confidence. That's a triple! When it was revealed that her home was my home, many bells rang, making me feel in-the-know about her background. Home-run! I am writing to three book groups right now, recommending her book to all of them. Her personal story reads like a novel, her insight is strengthening.

I don't normally read memoirs. I find them self-serving and often times sensationalized to sell. So I'm not sure why I selected this book to read and review. I'm so glad I did. I fell in love with Sara and her story, her heartbreak and triumphs. I knew from the beginning she's Autistic; I'm high on the spectrum myself and I sympathized with her struggles in dealing with people, her feelings of loneliness, and her confusions in understanding the whys and what's of other people. I've never lost a husband but I've lost a sister and I cried when she met the Widows because I do know how important that connection is. I was fascinated by her career and discoveries. I definitely have a renewed interest in space and the possibilities of other planets that sustain life. I plan on following her career from her on out. She's by far my new hero

This book, The Smallest Lights in the Universe, grabbed my attention from the middle of the second page. The author writes beautifully, not something I expected from an academic, but her writing holds the wonder of her first view of the stars. I enjoyed Seager's descriptions of the joys and challenges of her work and her personal life and hope she will write more non-academic work in the future.

I would whole-heartedly recommend this book to my in-person book club, but we don't read biographies or memoirs of living people, so I will recommend it to them as individuals and to everyone else in my reading universe.

I built a small telescope with my father (a NASA engineer) in 5th grade, and we endured the suburban sky together in our backyard looking at the moon and stars and took the telescope on vacations to state parks an national parks during my teenage years. I later gave it to my son.

After reading the Smallest lights in the Universe the reader is left feeling a bit haunted by the trials and tribulations of the authors life. We all have obstacles and challenges to overcome in life but when we compare our situations to the struggles of others it can really put things into perspective for us. I was moved by the way the author harnessed her personal life challenges and then turned around and became that much more motivated to achieve her career goals. Sometimes the things that challenge us the most are not the things that hold us back in life but keep us going.

Everything brave has to start somewhere…
Sara Seager

Sara Seager was a wife, a mother of two young sons, and a world-renowned astrophysicist. Suddenly, at the age of forty, she found herself a widow, a single parent and a world-renowned astrophysicist. This book is her story of that transition. She tells it thoughtfully and honestly.
Being an astrophysicist very much engaged in her search for life at the outer reaches of the universe did not necessarily qualify Sara as an expert in the day-to-day operations of life on earth. That was her husband's expertise. After his death, in the midst of her research and teaching and writing, she found herself being mom and dad to her sons—getting them up and off to school, feeding them, helping with homework—all the while doing her best to deal with the most profound grief she had ever known. And so she had to start from scratch. Her butcher taught her to cook. The guys at the hardware store taught her about tools and home repairs. A group of young women in her town, the Widows of Concord, provided her with the emotional support she so desperately needed. Sara's story is filled with triumphs and disappointments. I wanted to cheer the courage she exhibited in facing the obstacles that came her way.
Although I sometimes found myself wanting to skim over some of the scientific details, I did enjoy this book. I would recommend it to anyone who has had to deal with a major loss, especially if they are fascinated by the night sky and what might be out there.

It is usually not a good idea to start the review of one book by immediately comparing it to another. This, however, seems to be a good time. All the while I was reading The Smallest Lights in the Universe, I was thinking of Lab Girl, by Hope Jahren. Women scientists telling their stories to a wide audience! Imagine that!

In the case of Sara Seager, we have an author with an unblinkered narrative voice that takes no prisoners. When she is angry, or is scared, or is jubilant, you know it and this unfiltered journey from childhood to a second marriage and spectacular professional success is quite a ride.

Know much about astrophysicists? Not to worry. You will learn and be grateful for it. This book illuminates on many levels, voiced from the heart.

Sara Seager's memoir was a fascinating look at the parallels of her life and career. She did a really nice job of weaving the happenings of her day to day life and passionate career. Sara became interested in the stars and planets when she was 10, feeding that passion into a career as an astrophysicist and professor at MIT. Yet there were many obstacles that she overcame along the way. Such as a step father with severe mood swings, a diagnosis of autism as well as her husbands cancer and eventual death when she was just 40 with 2 young boys.

I really appreciated how she could link life and career so effortlessly. At times the book was more technical than I'd have liked, but I never felt it took away from her story.

I enjoyed this book. Her story is quite singular. How she made it to the top of her field as a scholar and women makes for a very good read. She only mentions being on the spectrum at the end. I would have liked to learn more about what that meant in her life. The only problem I had is not a complaint. The science was hard for me to follow, and a good part of the book was highly technical. The writing about the decisions she made for her sons was strong. One can't always admire academics for their writing. This is a pleasant exception.