Albert Einstein: The Human Side

by Helen Dukas (Editor), Banesh Hoffmann (Editor)

Modesty, humor, compassion, and wisdom are the traits most evident in these personal papers, most of them never before published, from the Einstein archives. The illustrious physicist wrote as thoughtfully to an Ohio fifth-grader, distressed by her discovery that scientists classify humans as animals, as to a Colorado banker, who asked whether he believed in a personal God. Witty rhymes, and exchange about fine music with Queen Elizabeth of Belgium, and expressions of his devotion to Zionism are but some of the highlights found in this rare, warm enriching book.

167 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1982

Reviews

[Don Harton · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting book. We gave this volume to my dad the year we were married - ‘on Father’s Day 1980, because a child’s first Einstein is his favorite’.

I was careless in opening the book after my dad died. He had left several markers in the book which may have been at specific passages. It would have been fun to see which passages he had marked.

When I finally got round to reading the book myself, I found it a little jumbled. The format is vaguely thematic so it bounces around back and forth thru Einstein’s life. There are no huge revelations now. Einstein has been very humanized by our movies. I wonder if the feeling of great sadness is from the book or from watching Oppenheimer a few weeks earlier?

In any case, we see a very gentle man who was willing to interact with strangers.