The universe was created in the first Big Bang, but according to Philip Dauber and Richard Muller that alone couldn't have been sufficient to set the stage for life on Earth today. Two more big bangs were needed: one in the form of a supernova that seeded the solar system with heavy elements; the second a devastating asteroid or comet impact 65 million years ago that exterminated the dinosaurs and permitted the evolution of mammals and ultimately humans. The Three Big Bangs describes the science behind each of these events in a colorful manner. It provides an easily accessible survey of key theories in cosmology, but readers more familiar with these principles may yearn for greater detail and rigor. Still, as an overview of three classes of cosmological cataclysms and their role in shaping the world as we know it, The Three Big Bangs succeeds.