The Last Stargazers

This was a wonderful love letter to a precious career. As an amateur astronomer, I loved the descriptions of the crazy-large telescopes, and the evolution of how astronomers used them, and how the technology changed their relationship to the cosmos. Her final chapter which mentions that pretty much every person she interviewed pursued this career after looking through a backyard telescope invigorated me to continue to inspire young people by sharing my hobby.
Her book also has made me a more educated reader of astronomy news, now that I have a fuller understanding of the tools and the people behind them. Since reading this book, all the new discoveries about black holes and gravity waves are just that much cooler.
I hold back on a higher rating only because the writing style seemed a little bland to me, and I think if I was less personally invested in the information, I would have gotten bored of the long list of anecdotes and telescopes. When it came to the author's reflections and insights, it felt a little restrained.
In short, this book gave me exactly what I wanted... and nothing more. Maybe that makes a 3-star rating a little harsh, but like how I felt about Chris Hadfield's memoir, I think a personal perspective on an unusual career needs to be a bit more personal. I loved what I learned, but I guess I just expect to be challenged a little more when I read non-fiction.