Ottaviani, Jim. Einstein. Jerel Dye, Illus. First Second, 11/2022. 304pp. Biography. GRADES 10 – Adult. HIGH ADDITIONAL. Trade $32.99. 978-1-62672-876-9.
Instantly recognizable and world famous, most of what we know about Einstein is on the level of caricature. So it is fitting that cartoons are used to flesh out the man, his place in history, and the astonishing complexity of his theories. Ottaviani has made a specialty in profiling revolutionary scientists whose controversial discoveries transformed our understanding. Using speech bubbles, asides, flashbacks, and foreshadowing, he tells the complicated history of who, how, and why. Those who know a little about Einstein will find the familiar stories fleshed out: his late acquisition of language, difficulty finding a teaching position, and the letter to President Roosevelt that launched the Manhattan Project. Here too are extensive insights into his personal relationships, family, marriages, affairs, politics, and his all-important conversations with the most important physicists, astronomers, and mathematicians of the twentieth century. Engaging cartoon-style drawings, varied panel design and size, and sophisticated colors, complement the conversational text. Those who understand the import of Einstein’s theories and thought experiments will be fascinated to see them visually represented and placed in context. Those with less of a grasp on the science are given a chance to glimpse what all the fuss is about, and to acquire a glimmer of understanding of conceptual physics. While not for the casual graphic non-fiction book reader, Einstein will be welcomed by those interested in the great man and the theory of relativity, as well as by high school physics teachers hoping to open up a world of revolutionary thought to a new generation. Review based on an ARC.
Melissa McAvoy, Retired
