REVIEWS
EINSTEIN
THE MAN AND HIS MIND
Even though Einstein’s fame is universal, very few truly comprehend its basis, let alone the man who was more than a brilliant physicist. The authors set out to correct this hole in the public’s understanding.
For those already acquainted with Einstein’s life in its totality, the volume is still worthwhile for the assemblage of iconic and rare photographs of the man at various stages of his life.
A captivating depiction of Einstein that’s adorned with arresting photography.
EINSTEIN: The Man and His Mind gathers photo highlights from the Berger Collection that illustrate chronologically significant moments in Einstein’s life, pairing them with Einstein quotes, signed letters, and biographical notes. The result is a synthesis of personal and professional insights that, when taken as a whole, reveal and profile Einstein’s persona and achievements in a manner that has somehow been missed by the wealth of Einstein books already on the market.
An exquisite dance connecting past history with present-day experience is crafted which continues throughout the presentation, allowing modern-day audiences to understand the ongoing relevance and importance of Einstein’s life and times by relating his processes and life to modern experiences.
It cannot be emphasized enough that any library seeking a definitive collection of Einstein information should consider the powerful, well-researched EINSTEIN: The Man and His Mind a ‘foundation pick’ to their holdings.
The photos are astonishing. I believe Dr. Gary Berger’s collection of Einstein memorabilia may be the world’s largest and I’m grateful that he has unselfishly put them into a gorgeously designed book (credit goes to Yolanda Cuomo, a collaborator of Diane Arbus) and made that book available at a very affordable price. This is not the sort of thing many collectors do. Indeed, there is a fair amount of anger in the scientific and history communities about hoarding of resources. Dr. Berger has done the opposite. He has gone to great lengths (and, I’m guessing, some personal expense) to share the wealth of product that resulted from his years of aggressive collecting.
Yes, it’s a coffee table book. But it’s not “just” one. True, like one would hope of any good coffee table book about a genius, it relies not at all on a reader’s understanding of what that genius studied. The book’s text nicely and briefly explains the key points that relate to the photos but it does not take on the burden of explaining the science. As a result, it all reads as breezily … as a coffee table book.
But, like I said, it’s not “just” one of those. Because it’s huge (10″ x 13″ and 4.4 lbs), people can’t read it on the bus and libraries can’t fit it on their lending shelves. Even so, limiting its useful life to coffee tables is a mistake. Libraries serving either scholars or the general public would benefit by buying single copies for their reference rooms. Many of these photos have been seen by very few eyes. The book is a phenomenal resource for students and historians of science.
This breathtaking book, full of Einstein’s portraits, handwritten letters, and scientific papers, is like viewing his personal scrapbook. It is a window into his life outside of how the media chose to portray him.
The authors offer clean, concise commentary that is often poetic without being syrupy. The elegant sepia tone of the photos elevates the aesthetic. The book is as visually stunning as it is intellectually stimulating.
The book is beautiful, whimsical, and thought-provoking all at once. It will delight readers with a wide range of interests, especially those who love history, art, or biographies.
This book, EINSTEIN: The Man And His Mind has heft. It’s large, heavy, and hardcore. With very thick and regal pages, this read is more than just its sheer physical weight and size. Its hardbacked covers encapsulate so much knowledge and history. As a well-known figurehead of science, this book on Einstein’s life, achievements, and work gives readers real insight and intelligence into the history and trajectory of the man.
With quotes, pictures, stories, and summaries, there is so much to enjoy about this read. Each page taught me more and more, such as what would light look like if we caught up to it? The question behind the famous equation e = mc2, a formula discovered “purely by thought” (p. 32), which just shows exactly how brilliant his mind was. Famously the one behind the discovery and creation of the atomic bomb, one of his greatest life regrets, this equation helped to understand the energy source of stars and the basis of nuclear energy power use in power and electricity.
“Einstein: The Man and His Mind” is extraordinarily engaging, thought provoking and insightful. It is certainly a book that I will go back to time and time again and, given its size and beauty, will also likely attract the attention of guests as well.
The author, Gary Berger, was familiar with Einstein from an early age but not being a scientist he, like most of us, couldn’t really make sense of black holes, bending light, quantum physics and the general theory of relativity. Berger, though, felt a connection to this great mind of the last century and started to collect photos of Einstein. These weren’t just any old photos but, rather uniquely, ones that were signed by Einstein. There are fifty-one, mostly portraits arranged historically with brief messages and signatures either written on the photo or the card they were mounted on. An additional fifty-three photos show covers of German scientific magazines with articles by Einstein and letters he wrote over his lifetime.
The book is, quite stunningly, a beautiful photo biography of Einstein, his life story and discoveries accompany the photos and other graphics. The publisher has gone the extra mile to celebrate his life. The book is large and printed on thick semi-matt paper (with a two hundred screen for the images) several pages with Einstein’s face are printed with silver ink and frequently these have large type quotes printed on tracing paper. Excellent typography throughout the pages enhance the large photos.
The words and photos about this humble, remarkable man made him come alive for me.
It’s a hefty volume of 51 portrait photographs of Einstein, many signed and dated by the man himself, entitled Einstein: The Man and His Mind, with publication timed to coincide with the centenary of Einstein’s receipt of the Nobel Prize. The book also includes images of some of the original formulas and papers that rightly led to Einstein being regarded as the best-known scientist in the world.
He often gave signed pictures of himself to friends, but Berger and DiRuggiero tell us that in return he sometimes received gifts vastly outweighing the pictures in value.
One of Berger and DiRuggiero’s favourite pictures is a 1937 portrait of Einstein, deeply suntanned and clutching his inevitable pipe, looking like a film star. It was taken by Lottie Jacobi in Huntingdon, Long Island.
An avalanche of books has been written about Albert Einstein, a household name for most of us. This book, written from the perspective of lifelong admirers who want his legacy to remain intact, invites readers to take a close look at Einstein’s equations, photos of him working, and portrayals of him as more than a scientist, but a man with deep convictions and emotions, endless curiosity and passion, and a devotion to imagination and knowledge.
It’s a weighty book, literally. Yet it is light, airy, refreshing, and deeply satisfying to touch briefly on the Einstein phenomena and to experience this incredible man’s life up close and personal.
A volume worth holding, reading, viewing, and relishing.
This is an absolutely beautiful book. It is fascinating, engaging, informative, and fun to either read or browse through. It clearly shows a great man who is very human. You almost feel that you know him and can see him growing up (it contains the first known autographed picture of him) and growing old through the many, many beautiful quality photographs, You also get a sense that YOU personally knew Albert Einstein ! That is probably partially due to the photographs being so high quality and clear. Almost as though they are your own originals.
High quality is the key word throughout the book. The images are sharp, the paper is heavy and expensive, the book is beautifully put together. The coffee table size is perfect. I can’t imagine how this book was produced and published for the price the book cost me, but I am taking advantage of that and buying several as Christmas gifts.
All in all, a magnificent book. 5 stars at least. Higher if the scale allowed it. If you were not an avid fan before reading this book, you will be afterwards!
What an exquisite book, to be enjoyed not only by those who’ve researched and studied Einstein, once designated as “The Man of the Century,” but by photographers & philosophers as well. A picture says a thousand words and the photographs of Einstein over the decades, from the age of 17 to 76 capture the essence of his genius and the warmth of his humanity. Interspersed are quotes that will give the reader insight into the mind of this humble man, “I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious.” I’ll be contemplating this and more the next time I walk the streets of Princeton that he called home for decades. Hopefully many libraries will want this book, whether for a special collection of Einstein, photography or physics or for the browsing public to read and ponder.
Other than my high school physics class(60 + years ago) , I have not exposed myself to any true scientific literature until I read the recently published book “Einstein, The Man and His Mind”. Not only is the book beautifully assembled but it provides a comprehensive insight into the complete Albert Einstein. Clearly, it depicts him as a brilliant physicist , but also as a person who is compassionate to others and holds a deep concern about world affairs. Being able to read his correspondence with other physicist in which he discusses and defends his various theories is both fascinating and educational. The book is also replete with various photos of Einstein taken during different phases of his life showing the wide range of emotion he expressed.
The book is a coffee table keeper which all can enjoy.
This book is dedicated to the memory of Albert Einstein.
All royalties will be contributed to the Albert Einstein Archives at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem.
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