Pillars of Creation

“[An] accessible account of how the Webb telescope has revolutionized the field of astronomy…. Panek tells the story with infectious enthusiasm… An essential read for anyone interested in the new frontiers of science, written with clarity and authority.”—Kirkus Reviews (starred review)

“In this stellar account, science writer Panek…offers a wondrous overview of Webb’s major breakthroughs… Brimming with the excitement of scientific discovery, this soars.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)

“An engaging tale of ideas clashing with reality that places the reader inside the rooms where the telescope was born… [Panek’s] journalistic training is apparent, in smooth sentences, seamless storytelling, and a knack for conveying just enough scientific detail to keep the reader educated and motivated to continue.”—Science Magazine

"Richard Panek lays out the brave new world of the just-dawned Webb era and how the instrument is already opening fresh astronomical and cosmological vistas....Panek’s style is brisk, breezy, and rather lighthearted....He uses novelistic touches to tell the story—snippets of dialogue here or a participant’s ostensible thoughts there—gleaned from his interviews with the key players, which give the book a humanistic feel instead of a dry historical stuffiness."—Undark

“Richard Panek has introduced a most complex undertaking within a most complex science and made it all so very simple…Panek seamlessly ties together the history, the people, and the technological advances to form an unforgettable telling…it’s no wonder that he has become one of the country’s best scientific communicators.”