In Flat Earth: The History of an Infamous Idea, Christine Garwood uses ideas concerning the earth's shape from ancient times to the nineteenth century as a vehicle to explore the much larger debate between science and religion. (This book should not be confused with Thomas Friedman's book about the new global economy, The World is Flat.) Garwood does a good job of correcting a lot of bad history: the supposed conflict between Galileo and the Church; the notion that it was only with Columbus that the idea of the earth's sphericity was embraced (a maddening notion to one who taught Western Civilization for years!); and the whole science vs. religion debate in general. While I do not agree with all that Garwood has to say, overall I think she handles the material fairly and with some flair. It is a much needed book and a nice popular complement to Rodney Stark's scholarly work For the Glory of God, also highly recommended.