Halley's Quest
by Julie Wakefield
Published by Joseph Henry Press
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Reviewed by Jeff Foster
Having just returned from my journey into the Enlightenment Period of late 17th and early 18th Century England, much more has to be done in
our history classes to ensure that students are aware of the contributions the "natural philosophers" of this period made to today's world.
Halley's Quest is a intricately researched and expertly written account of a man many of us associate only with the Comet that returns to earth every seventy-six years or so. Edmund Halley was much more than that.
Author Julie Wakefield does an excellent job of laying out his wide variety of achievements. A biography of sorts, any reader will find it to be much more.
Edmund Halley, a contemporary of Sir Isaac Newton, was more than the Comet man. (I borrow those words from Wakefield's Legacy chapter.) He was one of the most prolific thinkers of the time.
Wakefield describes him as a generalist, but he was also a premier navigator, scientist, astronomer, and natural philosopher (these men were not called scientists until much later). He was held in the highest regard by the Royal Society and the Monarchy of England. He was the second appointed Royal Astronomer at Greenwich and is still held in the highest esteem by scientists the world over.
It is the lives of people like Edmund Halley's that we should be made aware of and should all venture to emulate. The book also includes reproductions of period paintings and extensive appendixes that are extremely useful in getting a feel for the events of the period.
Armchair Interviews says: We highly recommend Halley's Quest for those that want to fill in the blanks left in any public education.