If the Stars Are Gods is a philosophical exploration of the concepts of life and humanity. Throughout the book, we encounter various forms of extra-terrestrial life, including Earth germs on Mars from a "contaminated" landing, stereotypical flesh-and-blood aliens on a spaceship from another star, gaseous beings in the atmosphere of Jupiter, and crystalline beings on the cold moon of Titan. The main character is a high-minded scientist who has to continually work against Earth's political machine to continue his work on extra-terrestrial life and intelligence. The political situation becomes even more charged after Earth creates and then tries to expunge a small number of genetically-enhanced humans, who seem better equipped to understand the strangeness of the forms life can take. While it's blatantly obvious that humanity, obsessed with its petty squabbles, is not ready to deal with other intelligences, it remains an open question whether a devoutly scientific man or even a genetically-enhanced person is either. The tone of the book is very reflective and encourages the reader to think upon the central theme--can the human mind comprehend the strangeness of life? ( )

isbn is right but the cover is wrong