books in order

Carl Sagan Books In Order

Standalone Novels In Publication Order

  1. Contact (1985)

Non-Fiction Books In Publication Order

  1. Intelligent Life in the Universe (1966)
  2. Planets (1966)
  3. The Cosmic Connection (1973)
  4. Communication with Extraterrestrial Intelligence (1974)
  5. Other Worlds (1975)
  6. Dragons of Eden (1977)
  7. Broca’s Brain (1979)
  8. Cosmos (1980)
  9. Murmurs of Earth (1983)
  10. The Cold and the Dark: The World After Nuclear War (With: Paul R. Ehrlich,Donald Kennedy,Walter Orr Roberts) (1984)
  11. Comet (1985)
  12. Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors (1992)
  13. Pale Blue Dot (1994)
  14. The Demon-Haunted World (1995)
  15. Billions & Billions (1997)
  16. The Varieties of Scientific Experience (2006)

Standalone Novels Book Covers

Non-Fiction Book Covers

Carl Sagan Books Overview

Contact

At first it seemed impossible a radio signal that came not from Earth but from far beyond the nearest stars. But then the signal was translated, and what had been impossible became terrifying. For the signal contains the information to build a Machine that can travel to the stars. A Machine that can take a human to meet those that sent the message. They are eager to meet us: they have been watching and waiting for a long time. And now they will judge.

The Cosmic Connection

n 1973, Carl Sagan published The Cosmic Connection, a daring view of the universe, which rapidly became a classic work of popular science and inspired a generation of scientists and enthusiasts. This seminal work is reproduced here for a whole new generation to enjoy. In Sagan’s typically lucid, lyrical style, he discusses many topics from astrophysics and solar system science, to colonization of other worlds, terraforming and the search for extraterrestrials. in this book, he conveys his own excitement and wonder, and relates the revelations of astronomy to the most profound human problems and concerns: issues that are just as valid today as they were 30 years ag

Communication with Extraterrestrial Intelligence

The first international conference on the problem of extraterrestrial civilizations, and contact with them, was held in September 1971 in Soviet Armenia. The conference was a gathering of specialists working in a wide variety of fields astronomy, physics, radiophysics, computer science and technology, chemistry, biology, linguistics, archaeology, anthropology, sociology, and history and included many scientists whose reputations are worldwide. For example, Freeman Dyson, Philip Morrison, and Charles Townes were among the American participants; their Russian counterparts were of comparable distinction. The conference was jointly organized by the U.S. National Academy of Sciences with assistance from the U.S. National Science Foundation and the U.S.S.R. Academy of Sciences. Scientists from several other countries also participated. Many aspects of the problem of extraterrestrial civilizations were discussed in detail, and these discussions are fully presented in this book. Particular attention is devoted to the following questions: the plurality of planetary systems in the universe, the origin of life on Earth, the possibility of life arising on cosmic bodies, the origin and evolution of intelligence, the origin and development of technological civilizations, problems in searching for intelligent signals or for evidence of astroengineering activities, and the problems and possible consequences of establishing contact with extraterrestrial civilizations.

Dragons of Eden

Dr. Carl Sagan takes us on a great reading adventure, offering his vivid and startling insight into the brain of man and beast, the origin of human intelligence, the function of our most haunting legends and their amazing links to recent discoveries.’A history of the human brain from the big bang, fifteen billion years ago, to the day before yesterday…
It’s a delight.’THE NEW YORK TIMES

Broca’s Brain

Carl Sagan, writer and scientist, returns from the frontier to tell us about how the world works. In his delightfully down to earth style, he explores and explains a mind boggling future of intelligent robots, extraterrestrial life and its consquences, and other provocative, fascinating quandries of the future that we want to see today.

Cosmos

This visually stunning book with over 250 full color illustrations, many of them never before published, is based on Carl Sagan’s thirteen part television series. Told with Sagan s remarkable ability to make scientific ideas both comprehensible and exciting, Cosmos is about science in its broadest human context, how science and civilization grew up together. The book also explores spacecraft missions of discovery of the nearby planets, the research in the Library of ancient Alexandria, the human brain, Egyptian hieroglyphics, the origin of life, the death of the Sun, the evolution of galaxies and the origins of matter, suns and worlds. Sagan retraces the fifteen billion years of cos mic evolution that have transformed matter into life and consciousness, enabling the Cosmos to wonder about itself. He considers the latest findings on life elsewhere and how we might communicate with the beings of other worlds. Cosmos is the story of our long journey of discovery and the forces and individuals who helped to shape modern science, including Democritus, Hypatia, Kepler, Newton, Huy gens, Champollion, Lowell and Humason. Sagan looks at our planet from an extra terrestrial vantage point and sees a blue jewel like world, inhabited by a lifeform that is just beginning to discover its own unity and to ven ture into the vast ocean of space.

Murmurs of Earth

This book is an account of the 2977 lauching of Voyager, its contents, why it was launched, and what the record contains. Sounds of the Earth contains 118 stunning pictures and the amazing greetings from earth.

Comet

WHAT ARE THESE GRACEFUL VISITORS TO OUR SKIES? WE NOW KNOW THAT THEY BRING BOTH LIFE AND DEATH AND TEACH US ABOUT OUR ORIGINS. Comet begins with a breathtaking journey through space astride a Comet. Pulitzer Prize winning astronomer Carl Sagan, author of Cosmos and Contact, and writer Ann Druyan explore the origin, nature, and future of Comets, and the exotic myths and portents attached to them. The authors show how Comets have spurred some of the great discoveries in the history of science and raise intriguing questions about these brilliant visitors from the interstellar dark. Were the fates of the dinosaurs and the origins of humans tied to the wanderings of a Comet? Are Comets the building blocks from which worlds are formed?Lavishly illustrated with photographs and specially commissioned full color paintings, Comet is an enthralling adventure, indispensable for anyone who has ever gazed up at the heavens and wondered why.’SIMPLY THE BEST.’ The Times of London’FASCINATING, EVOCATIVE, INSPIRING.’ The Washington Post’Comet HUMANIZES SCIENCE. A BEAUTIFUL, INTERESTING BOOK.’ United Press International’MASTERFUL…
SCIENCE, POETRY, AND IMAGINATION.’ The Atlanta Journal & Constitution

Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors

‘Dazzling…
A feast. Absorbing and elegantly written, it tells of theorigins of life on earth, describes its variety and charaacter, and culminates in a discussion of human nature and teh complex traces ofhumankind’s evolutionary past…
It is an amazing story masterfully told.’FINANCIAL TIMES LONDONWorld renowned scientist Carl Sagan and acclaimed author Ann Druyan have written a ROOTS for the human species, a lucid and riveting account of how humans got to be the way we are. It shows with humor and drama that many of our key traits self awareness, technology, family ties, submission to authority, hatred for those a little different from ourselves, reason, and ethics are rooted in the deep past, and illuminated by our kinship with other animals. Astonishing in its scope, brilliant in its insights, and an absolutely compelling read, Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors is a triumph of popular science.

Pale Blue Dot

‘FASCINATING…
MEMORABLE…
REVEALING…
PERHAPS THE BEST OF CARL SAGAN’S BOOKS.’ The Washington Post Book World front page reviewIn Cosmos, the late astronomer Carl Sagan cast his gaze over the magnificent mystery of the Universe and made it accessible to millions of people around the world. Now in this stunning sequel, Carl Sagan completes his revolutionary journey through space and time. Future generations will look back on our epoch as the time when the human race finally broke into a radically new frontier space. In Pale Blue Dot Sagan traces the spellbinding history of our launch into the cosmos and as*sesses the future that looms before us as we move out into our own solar system and on to distant galaxies beyond. The exploration and eventual settlement of other worlds is neither a fantasy nor luxury, insists Sagan, but rather a necessary condition for the survival of the human race.’TAKES READERS FAR BEYOND Cosmos…
Sagan sees humanity’s future in the stars.’ Chicago TribuneFrom the Trade Paperback edition.

The Demon-Haunted World

‘A glorious book…
A spirited defense of science…
From the first page to the last, this book is a manifesto for clear thought.’ Los Angeles Times’POWERFUL…
A stirring defense of informed rationality…
Rich in surprising information and beautiful writing.’ The Washington Post Book WorldHow can we make intelligent decisions about our increasingly technology driven lives if we don’t understand the difference between the myths of pseudoscience and the testable hypotheses of science? Pulitzer Prize winning author and distinguished astronomer Carl Sagan argues that scientific thinking is critical not only to the pursuit of truth but to the very well being of our democratic institutions. Casting a wide net through history and culture, Sagan examines and authoritatively debunks such celebrated fallacies of the past as witchcraft, faith healing, demons, and UFOs. And yet, disturbingly, in today’s so called information age, pseudoscience is burgeoning with stories of alien abduction, channeling past lives, and communal hallucinations commanding growing attention and respect. As Sagan demonstrates with lucid eloquence, the siren song of unreason is not just a cultural wrong turn but a dangerous plunge into darkness that threatens our most basic freedoms.’COMPELLING.’ USA Today’A clear vision of what good science means and why it makes a difference…
. A testimonial to the power of science and a warning of the dangers of unrestrained credulity.’ The Sciences’PASSIONATE.’ San Francisco Examiner Chronicle

Billions & Billions

In the final book of his astonishing career, Carl Sagan brilliantly examines the burning questions of our lives, our world, and the universe around us. These luminous, entertaining essays travel both the vastness of the cosmos and the intimacy of the human mind, posing such fascinating questions as how did the universe originate and how will it end, and how can we meld science and compassion to meet the challenges of the coming century? Here, too, is a rare, private glimpse of Sagan’s thoughts about love, death, and God as he struggled with fatal disease. Ever forward looking and vibrant with the sparkle of his unquenchable curiosity, Billions & Billions is a testament to one of the great scientific minds of our day.

The Varieties of Scientific Experience

On the 10th anniversary of his death, brilliant astrophysisist and Pulitzer Prize winner Carl Sagan’s prescient exploration of the relationship between religion and science and his personal search for God. Carl Sagan is considered one of the greatest scientific minds of our time. His remarkable ability to explain science in terms easily understandable to the layman in bestselling books such as Cosmos, The Dragons of Eden, and The Demon Haunted World won him a Pulitzer Prize and placed him firmly next to Isaac Asimov, Stephen Jay Gould, and Oliver Sachs as one of the most important and enduring communicators of science. In December 2006 it will be the tenth anniversary of Sagan’s death, and Ann Druyan, his widow and longtime collaborator, will mark the occasion by releasing Sagan’s famous ‘Gifford Lectures in Natural Theology,’ The Varieties of Scientific Experience: A Personal View of the Search for God. The chance to give the Gifford Lectures is an honor reserved for the most distinguished scientists and philosophers of our civilization. In 1985, on the grand occasion of the centennial of the lectureship, Carl Sagan was invited to give them. He took the opportunity to set down in detail his thoughts on the relationship between religion and science as well as to describe his own personal search to understand the nature of the sacred in the vastness of the cosmos. The Varieties of Scientific Experience, edited, updated and with an introduction by Ann Druyan, is a bit like eavesdropping on a delightfully intimate conversation with the late great astronomer and astrophysicist. In his charmingly down to earth voice, Sagan easily discusses his views on topics ranging from manic depression and the possibly chemical nature of transcendance to creationism and so called intelligent design to the likelihood of intelligent life on other planets to the likelihood of nuclear annihilation of our own to a new concept of science as ‘informed worship.’ Exhibiting a breadth of intellect nothing short of astounding, he illuminates his explanations with examples from cosmology, physics, philosophy, literature, psychology, cultural anthropology, mythology, theology, and more. Sagan’s humorous, wise, and at times stunningly prophetic observations on some of the greatest mysteries of the cosmos have the invigorating effect of stimulating the intellect, exciting the imagination, and reawakening us to the grandeur of life in the cosmos.

Related Authors