The history of the universe in 21 stars (and 3 imposters)

This book provides a key to the cosmos for the curious, the busy and the bewildered. It offers a complete introduction to the heavens through the tales of these celestial superstars and tells the intriguing, inspiring and sometimes just plain odd story of how stargazers unravelled the mysteries of the universe. 'Watch the stars, and from them learn' - advice from Albert Einstein, a chap who knew a thing or two. But where do you even start? Look up on a clear, dark evening and you'll be confronted by thousands of stars, scattered apparently at random. Okay, you can always learn the patterns of the constellations and even the names of individual stars, but what does that tell you about the Universe itself? If only there was some way of focusing on the important ones... The cosmos is a big place, with even the closest stars so far away that the idea of visiting them is a distant dream.