GALILEO

In 1610 Galileo trained his telescope on the heavens and observed that the stars are not fixed, nor do they rotate around a stationary Earth. In Jeff Riggenbach’s reading, we witness the mercurial and brilliant Galileo trying to make his discoveries understandable to ecclesiastical authorities. Riggenbach conveys the drama of Galileo’s capitulation before the Inquisition--a scene of conflict between documented observation and accepted belief so vivid it could easily have taken place in today’s world instead of four centuries ago. Galileo’s was an exciting mind in an era of discovery and tumult, rendered distinctively in Riggenbach’s narration. J.H.L. ©AudioFile, Portland, Maine [Published: SEPT 96]