A fascinating book that genuinely moved my thoughts on a topic: beforehand I would have described myself as quite bullish on space travel and settlement, but through this book’s broad exploration, I am now somewhat more cautious about the whole idea. In particular, I note with appreciation the Weinersmith’s conclusion that we oughtn’t consider space as a solution to the general socioeconomic and political instability that characterises the earth today. Rather, when (or if) we resolve this, then we should ought to pour ourselves into the stars. I did find the humour in this book a little too referential for my tastes in the way that a lot of (self professed) geeky or nerdy things are. There was probably an equal amount of eye rolls to chuckles. Still, even aside from the tone being not to my taste from time to time, I admire this book, its research and the passion that went into it.