BIOGRAPHY

scrupulously noted their strengths and f ailures. All would contr ibute to the grand schemes for his own Arcadias, created at Muskau and, later, at Branitz; all his observations would provide material for his celebrated tome Hints on Landscape Gardening (1834).

The real joy of this entertaining book, especially for non-gardeners, lies in its author’s skilful presentation of the pr ince’s response to the country from which he hoped to pluck a willing bride. Pückler noticed everything and left out nothing. Affectionately parodied as Count Smorltork in The Pickwick Papers, the prince gave Dickens a run for his money in his own description of a Brighton belle who delighted in throwing sweets at the startled faces of various dowagers and colonels, and of an obstreperous turbaned matron: ‘a fat lady of fifty-five … who waltzed around like a frenzied bacchante whenever she had enough room to do so’.

The eating habits of the English appalled Pückler: how, he wondered, could anybody stay cheerful on a diet of roast meat, boiled potatoes and rock-hard navy

JOHN GRIBBIN

STARS I N THEIR EYES DISCOVERERS OF THE UNIVERSE: WILLIAM

AND CAROLINE HERSCHEL

★

By Michael Hoskin (Princeton University Press 237pp £20.95)

THE BARE BONES of the story of William Herschel are well known: he was a German musician who came to England, took up astronomy, and discovered the planet Uranus. Oh yes, and he had a sister who helped him out a bit. All this is true; but, as Michael Hoskin’s delightful book makes clear, it is not the whole story.

The f ir st clue is g iven by the plural in the t i t le. Although Caroline Herschel was definitely number two in the partnership, they certainly made a team, and William could never have achieved as much as he did without her. The rest of the title hints at what lifts Hoskin’s account out of the ordinary. It might seem a bit rich to describe the team who found a planet as ‘discoverers of the universe’, but it is Hoskin’s persuasively argued contention that until Herschel came along at the end of the eighteenth century, the universe was regarded as eternal, static and unchanging. Even Isaac Newton subscr ibed, for the most par t , to this view. It was Herschel who realised that the universe is evolving – that, for example, clusters of stars change their appearance as time passes because of the way individual stars move under the influence of gravity. He wrote: ‘These clusters may be the Laboratories of the universe, if I may biscuits? Why would an Englishman only raise his glass when drinking a toast? And (most distressing of all to a gallant gentleman) why must order of precedence always place the reluctant prince next to his hostess, instead of her pretty daughter?

But – setting aside execrable food and baffling customs – Pückler adored England. Ecstatically, he wrote to Lucie about the marvellous actors, the hospitable inns, and the romantic castles. He thrilled to the charm of the Thames at night, its bridges glowing ‘like flaming garlands’ above the procession of lamp-lit boats. In fact, he declared: ‘If in my next life I cannot be an Englishman I should just as soon stay in my grave.’

Happily, England returned the compliment. Tour of a German Prince (translated, and heavily censored, in 1832 by a lady admirer) was still candid enough to cause a scandal – and to sell like hot-cakes. Peter Bowman’s intelligent and entertaining book – an absolute treat to read – merits the same pleasant fate. To order this book for £11.99, see LR bookshop on page 12

so express myself, wherein the most salutary remedies for the decay of the whole are prepared.’ It was the nature of the universe, rather than the universe itself, that Herschel discovered.

It takes a man of confidence to overturn centuries of received wisdom. Herschel had a powerful personality and

The Society of Authors

Grants for Authors The Society is offering grants to published authors who need funding to assist in the writing of their next book. Writers of fiction, non-fiction and poetry may apply.

The grants are provided by The Authors’ Foundation and the K. Blundell Trust.

Closing date 30 April 2011.

For full details write with SAE to: Awards Secretary, The Society of Authors, 84 Drayton Gardens, London SW10 9SB.

or email: info@societyofauthors.org website: www.societyofauthors.org

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LITERARY REVIEW March 2011