Books with author John Reader

From the author of the bestselling book 50 Things to See with a Small Telescope, this colorful edition explores the constellations with young readers, guiding them to dozens of galaxies, nebulae, and star clusters. Every page features a helpful “telescope view”, showing exactly how objects appear through a small telescope or binoculars.While a member of the Mount Diablo Astronomical Society in California, John Read taught thousands of students how to use telescopes and explore the night sky. Now, he’s sharing this knowledge with you! Even without a telescope, this introduction to the night sky is essential for every child’s collection.A new version of this book called "50 Things to See with a Telescope - A Young Stargazers Guide" will also be available September, 2018.

50 Things to See with a Small Telescope explores the planets, stars, galaxies and nebulae visible from your own backyard! The book includes easy to follow star maps and eclipse charts updated through the year 2030. With the "Telescope View" feature, you will see how objects appear when viewed through a small telescope. This book will help you: - Choose the telescope that's right for your budget - Identify prominent stars and major constellations - See bright nebulae and globular clusters - Explore the Moon and planets - View comets and asteroids - Track the Space Station and spot satellite flairs - So much more!

50 Things to See with a Small Telescope explores the planets, stars, galaxies and nebulae visible right from your backyard! The book includes easy to follow star maps and eclipse charts updated through the year 2030. With the "Telescope View" feature, you will see how objects appear when viewed through a small telescope.This book will help you:Choose the telescope that's right for your budgetIdentify prominent stars and major constellationsSee bright nebulae and globular clustersExplore the Moon and planetsView comets and asteroidsTrack the Space Station and spot satellite flairsSo much more!

The potato—humble, lumpy, bland, familiar—is a decidedly unglamorous staple of the dinner table. Or is it? John Reader’s narrative on the role of the potato in world history suggests we may be underestimating this remarkable tuber. From domestication in Peru 8,000 years ago to its status today as the world’s fourth largest food crop, the potato has played a starring—or at least supporting—role in many chapters of human history. In this witty and engaging book, Reader opens our eyes to the power of the potato.Whether embraced as the solution to hunger or wielded as a weapon of exploitation, blamed for famine and death or recognized for spurring progress, the potato has often changed the course of human events. Reader focuses on sixteenth-century South America, where the indigenous potato enabled Spanish conquerors to feed thousands of conscripted native people; eighteenth-century Europe, where the nutrition-packed potato brought about a population explosion; and today’s global world, where the potato is an essential food source but also the world’s most chemically-dependent crop. Where potatoes have been adopted as a staple food, social change has always followed. It may be “just” a humble vegetable, John Reader shows, yet the history of the potato has been anything but dull.

50 Things to See with a Small Telescope explores the planets, stars, galaxies and nebulae visible right from your backyard! The book includes easy to follow star maps and eclipse charts updated through the year 2030. With the "Telescope View" feature, you will see how objects appear when viewed through a small telescope. This book will help you:Choose the telescope that's right for your budgetIdentify prominent stars and major constellationsSee bright nebulae and globular clustersExplore the Moon and planetsView comets and asteroidsTrack the Space Station and spot satellite flairsSo much more!

The long journey of the potato, from Incan gardens in the Andes thousands of years ago to a NASA manned rocket destined for Mars in the twenty-first century The potato—humble, lumpy, bland, familiar—is a decidedly unglamorous staple of the dinner table. Or is it? John Reader’s narrative on the role of the potato in world history suggests we may be underestimating this remarkable tuber. From domestication in Peru 8,000 years ago to its status today as the world’s fourth largest food crop, the potato has played a starring—or at least supporting—role in many chapters of human history. In this witty and engaging book, Reader opens our eyes to the power of the potato.Whether embraced as the solution to hunger or wielded as a weapon of exploitation, blamed for famine and death or recognized for spurring progress, the potato has often changed the course of human events. Reader focuses on sixteenth-century South America, where the indigenous potato enabled Spanish conquerors to feed thousands of conscripted native people; eighteenth-century Europe, where the nutrition-packed potato brought about a population explosion; and today’s global world, where the potato is an essential food source but also the world’s most chemically-dependent crop. Where potatoes have been adopted as a staple food, social change has always followed. It may be “just” a humble vegetable, John Reader shows, yet the history of the potato has been anything but dull.

John A. Read covers everything needed to identify constellations, planets, stars, galaxies, nebulae and more. Inquisitive stargazers will find planet hunting and star hopping easy with clearly plotted routes and images of the sky both as seen by the naked eye and detailed views from a telescope.Many fascinating cosmic objects can be easily spotted with the help of this book including beautiful Cassiopeia, regal Leo, the plentiful Kemble's Cascade, the explosive Crab Nebula, the rings of Saturn — even the moon!This easy to read, fully illustrated reference book will enrich every young person's experience of the skies above.

From the author of the bestselling book 50 Things to See with a Small Telescope, this colorful edition explores the constellations with young readers, guiding them to dozens of galaxies, nebulae, and star clusters. Every page features a helpful "telescope view", showing exactly how objects appear through a small telescope or binoculars.While a member of the Mount Diablo Astronomical Society in California, John Read taught thousands of students how to use telescopes and explore the night sky. Now, he's sharing this knowledge with you! Even without a telescope, this introduction to the night sky is essential for every child's collection. A new version of this book called "50 Things to See with a Telescope - A Young Stargazers Guide" will also be available September, 2018.

The moon is our nearest neighbor in space, it's easy to find, it's bright, and you don't have to go anywhere special to view it. Astronomer John A. Read has selected fifty of the best things to see — organized by the phases of the Moon. As each day passes, an additional slice of the Moon becomes visible. With each slice comes new craters, lunar seas, and jagged mountain ranges. This is the perfect book for a first-time stargazer who is curious about what is up there.

50 Things to See on the Moon is the latest addition to the extremely popular 50 Things to See with a Telescope series. Like the other books in the series, this edition features "telescope view" which shows exactly what you can expect to see through your telescope or binoculars. Why observe the Moon at all? The Moon is our nearest neighbor in space, it's easy to find, it's bright, and you don't have to go anywhere special to view it. Astronomer John A. Read has selected fifty of the best things to see -- organized by the phases of the Moon. As each day passes, an additional slice of the Moon becomes visible. With each slice comes new craters, lunar seas, and jagged mountains. This book is perfect for the first-time stargazer who is curious about what is up there.

The potato—humble, lumpy, bland, familiar—is a decidedly unglamorous staple of the dinner table. Or is it? John Reader’s narrative on the role of the potato in world history suggests we may be underestimating this remarkable tuber. From domestication in Peru 8,000 years ago to its status today as the world’s fourth largest food crop, the potato has played a starring—or at least supporting—role in many chapters of human history. In this witty and engaging book, Reader opens our eyes to the power of the potato.Whether embraced as the solution to hunger or wielded as a weapon of exploitation, blamed for famine and death or recognized for spurring progress, the potato has often changed the course of human events. Reader focuses on sixteenth-century South America, where the indigenous potato enabled Spanish conquerors to feed thousands of conscripted native people; eighteenth-century Europe, where the nutrition-packed potato brought about a population explosion; and today’s global world, where the potato is an essential food source but also the world’s most chemically-dependent crop. Where potatoes have been adopted as a staple food, social change has always followed. It may be “just” a humble vegetable, John Reader shows, yet the history of the potato has been anything but dull.

Written as a follow up to 50 Things to See with a Small Telescope, containing virtually no overlap in content, 50 Targets for the Mid-Sized Telescope introduces the beginner stargazer to a new assortment of astronomical wonders. With easy to follow star maps, unique for each target, the budding astronomer will explore the universe like never before.Each target has been carefully chosen to be observable in telescopes with apertures between four and eight inches. Most objects can be viewed from the suburbs in mildly light polluted conditions, with only a few noted exceptions requiring darker skies. On dark, moonless nights, most targets will be visible in small telescopes and binoculars too.