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Neil deGrasse Tyson books: every book Neil deGrasse Tyson wrote and recommended
Across 6 podcasts. Every show Neil deGrasse Tyson appears on, in one place — not just one.
Books by Neil deGrasse Tyson
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Astrophysics for People in a Hurry
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Letters from an Astrophysicist
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Death By Black Hole
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Origins
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Starry Messenger
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The Pluto Files
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Space Chronicles
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Accessory to War
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Merlin's Tour of the Universe
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Startalk
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Cosmic Queries
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Universe Down to Earth
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The Sky Is Not The Limit
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A Brief Welcome to the Universe
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Lost in Space
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Take Me to Your Leader
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To Infinity and Beyond
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Astrophysics for Young People in a Hurry
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Welcome to the Universe
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Just Visiting This Planet
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Delusions of Space Enthusiasts
Neil deGrasse Tyson’s most recommended books
- Mr. Tompkins in Wonderland by George Gamow
- The elegant universe by Brian Greene
- Contact by Carl Sagan
- Black hole blues by Janna Levin
- The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton
- The Martian by Andy Weir
- Gravitation by Charles W. Misner
- The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells
- Time Travel in Einstein's Universe by J. Richard Gott
- Pale Blue Dot by Carl Sagan
Neil deGrasse Tyson is an American astrophysicist, author, and science communicator. He serves as the director of the Hayden Planetarium at the Rose Center for Earth and Space in New York City and founded the Department of Astrophysics at the American Museum of Natural History. On StarTalk Radio, Tyson referenced several books, including Robert Ehrlich's What If to explain the consequences of Earth losing its moon, and Negin Farsad's How to Make White People Laugh, which he praised as one of his favorites. He brought up Max Tegmark's Our Mathematical Universe to discuss the mathematical nature of reality and the simulation hypothesis, and Janna Levin's Black Hole Blues and Other Songs from Outer Space while discussing black hole experts and the information paradox. Tyson also suggested George Gamow's Mr. Tompkins in Wonderland to inspire a listener writing a science fiction story, and explicitly recommended J. Richard Gott's Time Travel in Einstein's Universe when answering a listener's question about whether time travel is theoretically possible.
Books recommended by Neil deGrasse Tyson
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Mr. Tompkins in Wonderland
Mr.
Discussed“So maybe you were familiar with George Gammo's Mr. Tommpkins and Wonderland. I don't know if you I'm a little older than you, so I don't know if this was around in your day, but George Gammo Mr. Wonderland was a place where the laws of physics were different simply by the physical constants being different.”
Where to get it
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The elegant universe
The Elegant Universe by Brian Greene is a bestselling exploration of string theory, quantum mechanics, and the quest for the ultimate physical theory of reality.
Discussed“In class the other day, I was reading The Elegant Universe. That's Brian Green, right? Brian Green. Yes. Bestselling book.”
Where to get it
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Contact
Contact by Carl Sagan is a classic science fiction novel that chronicles humanity's first detected radio signal from an extraterrestrial civilization and the subsequent efforts to build a machine to meet them.
Discussed“And now the prime number thing, Carl Sagan had prime numbers in the original contact novel. Where they were embedded in the signals.”
Where to get it
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Black hole blues
Black hole blues by Janna Levin is a compelling chronicle detailing the decades-long development of the massive scientific machines designed to detect gravitational waves.
Recommended“She's totally into this with the black hole blues. The black hole blues. She got a whole book. That's her book.”
Where to get it
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The Andromeda Strain
The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton is a sci-fi thriller about a deadly extraterrestrial microorganism brought back to Earth by a space probe and the frantic efforts of scientists to contain it.
Discussed“I read the book rare for me to read a book before I see the movie but I did that for The Andromeda Strain of Michael Crichton before he was famous with Jurassic Park and and whatever his doctor show was on TV uh The Andromeda Strain was a sample return from space”
Where to get it
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The Martian
The Martian by Andy Weir is a hard science fiction novel about an astronaut stranded alone on Mars who must use his engineering ingenuity and scientific knowledge to survive.
Discussed“From The Martian, a best-selling book. Which became a best A very popular movie. A hit. A hit movie. A hit movie. A hit movie with all kinds of marquee actors in it.”
Where to get it
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Gravitation
Gravitation by Charles W.
Discussed“but my first exposure to you was you were one of the three authors of this book called gravitation and we used to joke of course it was the only book where you learned about it just by carrying it around”
Where to get it
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The War of the Worlds
The War of the Worlds by H.
Discussed“That was a 19th century book written by the great HG. I'm not blaming you. No, no, I'm saying”
Where to get it
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Time Travel in Einstein's Universe
Time Travel in Einstein's Universe by J.
Recommended“In fact, he wrote a book, Time Travel in Einstein's Universe.”
Where to get it
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Pale Blue Dot
Pale Blue Dot: A Vision of the Human Future in Space by Carl Sagan offers a profound philosophical reflection on humanity's place in the universe, inspired by the famous photograph of Earth taken from the edge of the solar system.
Discussed“So in that vein there's a there's a paragraph I want to read from Carl Sean's Pale Blue Dot.”
Where to get it
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Biggest Ideas in the Universe
Biggest Ideas in the Universe by Sean M.
Discussed“holding a book a book that I uh you know that I um picked up off of the coffee table the biggest ideas in the universe”
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Catching stardust
Catching Stardust: Comets, Asteroids, and the Birth of the Solar System by Natalie Starkey examines the study of particles and dust brought back to Earth from space, detailing the origins and composition of the solar system.
Discussed“and uh a book a few years before that back in 2018 catching Stardust yeah comets asteroids and the births of the solar system that's why we have you on now”
Where to get it
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The fabric of the cosmos
The Fabric of the Cosmos by Brian Greene and Javier García Sanz is a popular-level exploration of space, time, and the fundamental nature of reality.
Discussed“we had my friend and colleague Brian Green theoretical physicist professor of physics and math at Columbia University author of The Very best-selling the elegant Universe followed by the fabric of the cosmos followed by the hidden reality my boys into all kinds of freaky Cosmic stuff and we got him back for more by popular demand”
Where to get it
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Singularity Is Nearer
Singularity Is Nearer by Ray Kurzweil is a forward-looking technological treatise that explores the imminent approach of the technological singularity, arguing that exponential advancements in artificial intelligence, biotechnology, and computing will radically transform human existence.
Discussed“Um what's our boy's name? Um the Nobel Prize winner. No, no, no. Ray Ray Crosswell. Yeah. Twice. Yeah, we have Ray Crosswell on here cuz he has his second book, The Singularity is Nearer.”
Where to get it
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The God Delusion
The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins is a prominent polemical work that argues against the existence of a creator deity and critiques the societal impacts of religion.
Discussed“Richard Dawkins is among them. Uh he wrote a book called The God Delusion. That's fighting words if there ever was one.”
Where to get it
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Until the End of Time
Until the End of Time by Brian Greene is a sweeping exploration of mind, matter, and humanity's search for meaning in an evolving universe through the lens of theoretical physics.
Discussed“so you're author of several books until the end of time was that your more recent one that's my most recent and that came out how long ago 20 right at the pandemic what a moment to have a book called until the end of time”
Where to get it
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Black Hole Blues and Other Songs from Outer Space
Black Hole Blues and Other Songs from Outer Space by Janna Levin is a captivating non-fiction chronicle detailing the scientific quest to detect gravitational waves and capture the elusive signals of black holes colliding in the distant universe.
Recommended“She's totally into this with the black hole blues. The black hole blues. She got a whole book. That's her book.”
Where to get it
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How to make white people laugh
How to Make White People Laugh by Negin Farsad is a comedic memoir and social critique exploring identity, cultural stereotypes, and the power of humor to bridge divides.
Recommended“And your book is still one of my favorites. It's How to Make White People Laugh. I just laughed just thinking of that title. Really good.”
Where to get it
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Mr. Tompkins in paperback
Mr.
Recommended“Now that being said, there's a book series called Mr. Tompkins in Wonderland written by a physicist, George Gamow, a mid-20th-century physicist; brilliant!”
Where to get it
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The Handy Quantum Physics Answer Book
The Handy Quantum Physics Answer Book by Charles Liu is an accessible reference guide designed to answer common questions about quantum physics and the universe.
Discussed“Let me remind People, oh my gosh, the handy quantum physics answer book. Now that's a book, not that thing you got. Oh, no. Come on. Well, my book, you're just talking smack about my little book. Yeah, yeah, yeah, that's true, okay. But Charles Liu, this is not your first rodeo with the handy answer franchise, right?”
Where to get it
- Chasing new horizons by Alan Stern
- Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep? by Philip K. Dick
- Julius Caesar by William Shakespeare
- Slaughterhouse-Five by Kurt Vonnegut
- Fire and Ice by Natalie Starkey
- Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
- The Selfish Gene by Richard Dawkins
- Black Hole Survival Guide by Janna Levin
- The large scale structure of space-time by Stephen Hawking, G. F. R. Ellis, George F. R. Ellis
- Venus revealed by David Harry Grinspoon
- Our Mathematical Universe by Max Tegmark
- The Future of Us by Irwin Redlener
- The Physics of Energy by Robert L. Jaffe, Washington Taylor
- A Brief History of Time by Stephen Hawking
- Atlas of peculiar galaxies by Halton Christian Arp
- Consciousness explained by Daniel C. Dennett
- Cosmotheoros by Christiaan Huygens
- Flatland by Edwin Abbott Abbott
- Gödel, Escher, Bach by Douglas R. Hofstadter
- Philosophiae naturalis principia mathematica by Sir Isaac Newton
- The Better Angels of Our Nature by Steven Pinker
- The Blind Watchmaker by Richard Dawkins
- The Great Gatsby by F. Scott Fitzgerald
- The Interpretation of Dreams by Sigmund Freud
- The Science of Interstellar by Kip Thorne
- The Singularity Is Near by Ray Kurzweil
- Welcome to the Universe by Neil deGrasse Tyson, Michael A. Strauss, J. Richard Gott
- American Prometheus by Kai Bird
- Bold Return to Giving a Damn by Will Harris
- Alien Worlds by David A. Aguilar
Questions about Neil deGrasse Tyson’s book recommendations
What book does Neil deGrasse Tyson recommend most?
Mr. Tompkins in Wonderland by George Gamow. Neil deGrasse Tyson recommended it in 9 episodes, with 3 explicit recommendations.
How many books has Neil deGrasse Tyson recommended on podcasts?
We have found 200 books Neil deGrasse Tyson recommended or discussed, across 187 episodes of 6 podcasts. Ad reads and passing mentions are not counted.
What books are on Neil deGrasse Tyson's reading list?
The books Neil deGrasse Tyson has recommended most on podcasts are Mr. Tompkins in Wonderland by George Gamow, The elegant universe by Brian Greene, Contact by Carl Sagan, Black hole blues by Janna Levin and The Andromeda Strain by Michael Crichton. The year-by-year lists below have all 200.
What books has Neil deGrasse Tyson written?
Merlin's Tour of the Universe (1989), Universe Down to Earth (1994), The Sky Is Not The Limit (2000), Origins (2004), Delusions of Space Enthusiasts (2006), Death By Black Hole (2007), The Pluto Files (2009), Just Visiting This Planet (2011), Space Chronicles (2012) and Startalk (2016), among 21 in all.
What did Neil deGrasse Tyson recommend on StarTalk Radio?
Mr. Tompkins in Wonderland, The elegant universe and Contact, among 192 books in all.
What is the latest book Neil deGrasse Tyson recommended?
Spook, discussed on StarTalk Radio (2026-10-23).
People who recommend the same books
Neil deGrasse Tyson’s latest episodes with books
Neil deGrasse Tyson’s book recommendations by year
All 200 books Neil deGrasse Tyson recommended or discussed across 187 episodes, filed by the year each episode came out. Each year goes episode by episode, with the minute every book came up.