Popular Science Review - Einstein: A Life in Science

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Review - Einstein: A Life in Science - Michael White & John Gribbin

Of all the scientists in history probably only Isaac Newton had more of a mythos built up around him. The public has a clear picture of Einstein - fluffy hair; archetypal forgetful scientist; genius; relativity; e=mc². To paint an effective picture of Einstein is not easy - yet this is what White and Gribbin manage.

In part it's because of the combined team of writers. It probably wasn't a very comfortable working relationship. Gribbin is the most prolific of British science writers, churning out vast quantities of books which contain plenty of good science, but don't necessarily read all that well. White is a more enigmatic figure. According to his biog he was a member of the pop group Thompson Twins, but this must have been very brief, as he isn't mentioned in any site about the group - it only comes up in White's own write-up. Whatever his background, White writes well, though isn't always the hottest on accurate detail. Between them they seem to hit on a very good compromise.

Einstein reads well, giving a good picture of his life, intertwined with an accessible explanation of his great work. A picture comes out of Einstein as a human being, which isn't a bad achievement. While there inevitably is some compromise - it's perhaps a little blander than it could have been on his life, and there are better popular science explanations of, for instance, relativity - it still works better than it has any right to.

Interestingly, the authors point out in their introduction that a number of new biographies of Einstein have tended to paint him as a villain, a womaniser with few redeeming features as a man. The picture painted by the book is a more balanced one, and very probably a fairer one too.

Also in hardback:

Reviewed by Brian Clegg

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