Many of us know that the Moon pulls on our oceans, driving the tides, but did you know that it smells like gunpowder? Or that it was essential to the development of science and religion? Acclaimed journalist, Rebecca Boyle takes us on a dazzling cultural and scientific tour to reveal the intimate role our 4.34-billion-year-old companion has played in our biological and cultural evolution.

Our Moon’s gravity stabilized the Earth’s orbit—and our climate; pulled nutrients to the surface of the primordial ocean where they fostered the evolution of complex life; and continue to influence animal migrations and reproduction, plants’ movements, and, possibly, the very blood in our veins.

While the Sun helped hunters and gatherers mark daily time, they used the phases of the Moon to count months and years, allowing them to plan far ahead. Mesopotamian priests recorded the Moon’s position to make predictions, and, in the process created the earliest known empirical, scientific observation. Boyle introduces us to ancient astronomers and major figures of the scientific revolution, including Johannes Kepler, and his influential, but forgotten, lunar science fiction.

Our relationship to our Moon changed when Apollo astronauts landed on it in 1969, and it’s about to change again. As governments and billionaires aim to turn a profit from its resources, Rebecca Boyle shows us that the Moon belongs to everybody and nobody at all.