For anyone interested in Galileo's story and more generally the history of science, I think that "The Great Ptolemaic Smackdown" [1] is a great read. It is a multi-part series of blogposts that covers the story leading to Galileo's conflict with the curiae and the historical context.

Also, it is written in a really easy to read and funny style. If you have the time, it's great.

1: http://tofspot.blogspot.de/2013/08/the-great-ptolemaic-smack...