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Two-Fisted Science
The Xeric Award-winning graphic novel is back in print, in a new edition! From Galileo to Isaac Newton to Richard Feynman, you'll be amazed how the personalities of the scientists who shaped our world shaped their lives and discoveries. Some are serious, some are humorous, yet each is a compelling tale of science history.
132 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1997
4 people are currently reading
211 people want to read
About the author
Jim Ottaviani
23 books295 followersI've worked at news agencies and golf courses in the Chicagoland area, nuclear reactors in the U.S. and Japan, and libraries in Michigan. When I'm not staying up late writing comics about scientists, I'm spraining my ankles and flattening my feet by running on trails. Or I'm reading. I read a lot.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
December 3, 2014
Yes indeed this is heavy on Richard Feynman; but since I personally really dig Feynman, that's not an issue. Ottaviani's book all about him has several of the Feynman scenes re-illustrated in a more cohesive way in his graphic novel... (let me just type this name one more time:) Feynman.
The comics are very short, but anyone with a basic knowledge of science history (mostly around WW II) will probably not need boatloads of extra context. I'm your standard clown and I got through it. Lots of reference books listed too! woooo
The comics are very short, but anyone with a basic knowledge of science history (mostly around WW II) will probably not need boatloads of extra context. I'm your standard clown and I got through it. Lots of reference books listed too! woooo
June 18, 2017
Two Fisted Science is listed as the work of several graphic artists and writers. The back cover would have you believe that the purpose of the book is to help readers see scientists as humans. At best this is partially achieved.
We get a more or less fictionalized retelling of Galileo's problems with the Catholic Church. This is followed by a completely fictional "bar fight "between Newton and Leibniz. Leibniz is shrugged off as a Lawyer when in fact he was a lot of things.
The several sections on Richard Feynman includes the touching story of the tender love between himself and his dying wife as well as something of his mischievous sense of humor. Likely this section comes closest to capturing the person in the lab coat. Feynman also has the largest share of this short book. Bertrand Russell get a fairly clever and effective one page. Until you read that this is a version of a story based on something else. On the good side each section ends with some quality suggestions for additional reading.
As a collection of graphic art there is something here for everyone who admires this art form but the text/story lines include too much that is vague and unenlightening and too little that is of human interest. If any scientist profiled in Two Fisted Science was unknown to you before reading the book, likely they remain unknown to you nor do you have much that tells you why a given scientist is profiled.
We get a more or less fictionalized retelling of Galileo's problems with the Catholic Church. This is followed by a completely fictional "bar fight "between Newton and Leibniz. Leibniz is shrugged off as a Lawyer when in fact he was a lot of things.
The several sections on Richard Feynman includes the touching story of the tender love between himself and his dying wife as well as something of his mischievous sense of humor. Likely this section comes closest to capturing the person in the lab coat. Feynman also has the largest share of this short book. Bertrand Russell get a fairly clever and effective one page. Until you read that this is a version of a story based on something else. On the good side each section ends with some quality suggestions for additional reading.
As a collection of graphic art there is something here for everyone who admires this art form but the text/story lines include too much that is vague and unenlightening and too little that is of human interest. If any scientist profiled in Two Fisted Science was unknown to you before reading the book, likely they remain unknown to you nor do you have much that tells you why a given scientist is profiled.
December 1, 2022
If I wasn't such an admirer of Richard Feynman, I think I would have been annoyed to no end with this graphic novel. Two-Fisted Science is a 2001 anthology series devoted to anecdotes and historical accounts of some of the world's greatest scientists. Galileo, the eternal rivals Sir Isaac Newton & Robert Hooke and Niels Bohr are featured in this collection featuring the talents of Steve Lieber (Whiteout), Jim Ottaviani (Hawking) and Colleen Doran (Amazing, Fantastic, Incredible: A Marvelous Memoir). But the big star of this book is Feynman!
Two-Fisted Science is 128 pages, plus material on both inside covers. There's an entire section that's over 50 pages long starting Feynman, plus a story that is spread out through the whole book in multiple parts. That means about 75 pages of this book is devoted to the bongo-playing, safe-cracking renegade of the Los Alamos division of the Manhattan project. Over 50% of a book about different scientists through is history is about 1 Nobel Prize winning physicists!
Again, for a fan of Feynman, I don't mind the extra attention on him. But that really throws off the pacing of this book. I think the multi-parter alone would have been just fine to keep things on track. Lots of anthologies do this in order to have a running thread that helps keep readers grounded to the central theme of the collection. Lots of anthologies will also have a single section that might be devoted to just one person or event. Either literary device is perfectly acceptable in the execution of a collected work. But not both.
Quite a bit of the Feynman material seemed familiar to me. I've read a couple of books about him as well as the Manhattan Project. I had thought maybe that would explain the deja vu. However, upon checking through the archives of this blog, I've discovered that one of the books I've read, Fallout: J. Robert Oppenheimer, Leo Szilard, and the Political Science of the Atomic Bomb, was written and illustrated by a team that featured Ottavini, Lieber and the creator of the segmented Feynman story, Bernie Mireault. I've got a feeling that some of the material of that book was used here. However, I don't own a copy of Fallout, so I am not really sure. But I really think I've read some of this material before!
A very good read. It was just unevenly edited and may have featured material previously published elsewhere. And let's be honest here- isn't that EC Comics homage cover just freaking gorgeous?
Two-Fisted Science is 128 pages, plus material on both inside covers. There's an entire section that's over 50 pages long starting Feynman, plus a story that is spread out through the whole book in multiple parts. That means about 75 pages of this book is devoted to the bongo-playing, safe-cracking renegade of the Los Alamos division of the Manhattan project. Over 50% of a book about different scientists through is history is about 1 Nobel Prize winning physicists!
Again, for a fan of Feynman, I don't mind the extra attention on him. But that really throws off the pacing of this book. I think the multi-parter alone would have been just fine to keep things on track. Lots of anthologies do this in order to have a running thread that helps keep readers grounded to the central theme of the collection. Lots of anthologies will also have a single section that might be devoted to just one person or event. Either literary device is perfectly acceptable in the execution of a collected work. But not both.
Quite a bit of the Feynman material seemed familiar to me. I've read a couple of books about him as well as the Manhattan Project. I had thought maybe that would explain the deja vu. However, upon checking through the archives of this blog, I've discovered that one of the books I've read, Fallout: J. Robert Oppenheimer, Leo Szilard, and the Political Science of the Atomic Bomb, was written and illustrated by a team that featured Ottavini, Lieber and the creator of the segmented Feynman story, Bernie Mireault. I've got a feeling that some of the material of that book was used here. However, I don't own a copy of Fallout, so I am not really sure. But I really think I've read some of this material before!
A very good read. It was just unevenly edited and may have featured material previously published elsewhere. And let's be honest here- isn't that EC Comics homage cover just freaking gorgeous?
January 15, 2022
3.5 stars. A collection of short stories about scientists focused on fun takes more than being comprehensive. Not as sophisticated as Ottaviani’s other work (even his very next book), but he already shows a great eye for pacing, humor, and distilling/presenting interesting moments. Especially with the array of art styles, there is something for everyone.
January 31, 2020
Did not finish. Science interpretation by non-scientists. Cool if it gets people interested, but not for me.
February 28, 2020
Ottaviani and company make science fun whilst explaining some of the tough stuff. Richard Feynman is such a star in the mid century firmament; and a mighty fine safe-cracker.
October 22, 2020
Confusing and all over the place.
May 5, 2020
All the stories in this collection of “graphic fiction” were written by Ottaviani, but the artwork was supplied by ten artists, including Bernie Mireault and Scott Saavedra. The stories are based on real events (reportedly real, anyway) about Einstein, Russell, Bohr, Heisenberg, and others — and especially Richard Feynman, who was not only one of 20th century physics’s major minds but an amateur locksmith, talented musician, social philosopher, and world-class storyteller as well. Some, like “turtles all the way down,” are smile-inducing classics, while others, like Heisenberg’s approach to Bohr on behalf on the German nuclear effort in World War II are somber and reflective. Feynman’s own recounting of his brief, tragic marriage during the Manhattan Project is especially affecting, and the tale of his safe-cracking activities at Los Alamos and Oak Ridge are a hoot. Oh, and you’ll even learn some physics theory along the way, or at least get a taste of how physicists view the world. I hope another volume like this is in the works.
August 17, 2014
A collection of short pieces with anecdotes about famous scientists by various artists. The format is kind of reminiscent of the Big Book series from Paradox Press that did graphic collections on topics like conspiracies and urban legends.
More than half the book is taken up by stories about physicist Richard Feynman. Feynman is certainly an interesting character, a sort of minor cult of personality has grown up about him over the years, but these stories are well known. The book could have been much improved with a broader range of subject matter.
More than half the book is taken up by stories about physicist Richard Feynman. Feynman is certainly an interesting character, a sort of minor cult of personality has grown up about him over the years, but these stories are well known. The book could have been much improved with a broader range of subject matter.
December 29, 2013
When it was good it was good, when it was bad, it was illegible.
I didn't have enough background for the pro-and epilogue to make sense.
Feynman's stories had enough detail to be both interesting and new, BUT the switching from one author to another was confusing, and some of the fonts were hard to read there also.
The safe-cracker series was the best STORY all in all (4 stars), but it had very little science, which given the title was a let-down.
I didn't have enough background for the pro-and epilogue to make sense.
Feynman's stories had enough detail to be both interesting and new, BUT the switching from one author to another was confusing, and some of the fonts were hard to read there also.
The safe-cracker series was the best STORY all in all (4 stars), but it had very little science, which given the title was a let-down.
March 31, 2012
The bits regarding Feynman, which really makes up most of the book, were great. I didn't know anything about this particular scientist until reading, and now I'm definitely intrigued. A couple of the strips were a little dumb, such as "Shoulders of Giants." And none of the rest interested me as much as the Feynman stories.
September 27, 2011
Buku ini berisi tentang cerita-cerita para ahli ahli dunia dalam menemukan teori-teori dan penemuan yang kemudian kita kenal saat ini. Perjalanan mereka dipenuhi cerita-cerita unik, konyol bahkan yang cukup menyedihkan.
October 24, 2011
Outstanding in every way. The stories are interesting and they even have a page talking about my favorite Bertrand Russell story (it's turtles all the way down). Scientists are the real rock stars, man...
July 25, 2016
Really loved to get to know the conditions and circumstances under which these great minds worked for all of us to have a future today.
Amazing collection of stories! Becoming a fan of Ottaviani.
Must read!
Amazing collection of stories! Becoming a fan of Ottaviani.
Must read!
October 14, 2014
I was really excited when I'd heard about this book, but it was really sort of a let down. Most of the stories were too short to really gain anything from, and most of the time you really couldn't even tell what was happening. It's a great idea, but it was poorly implemented.
July 26, 2019
Too much "buy-in knowledge" necessary that I didn't have and too much Feynman.
Take a genius and make him impossibly annoying and full of himself and you only get part of my dislike.
This is VERY DISJOINTED and too deep within short stories. There is humor but it falls flat within the nuance.
Take a genius and make him impossibly annoying and full of himself and you only get part of my dislike.
This is VERY DISJOINTED and too deep within short stories. There is humor but it falls flat within the nuance.
September 23, 2010
Di buku ini, cerita tentang ilmuwan fisika sableng tukang bobol brankas, Richard Feynman,-nya lumayan banyak! :)
Walau memang sebagian sumbernya udah pernah saya baca.
Walau memang sebagian sumbernya udah pernah saya baca.
November 21, 2010
Science.
Two-Fisted Science.
Need I say more?
Two-Fisted Science.
Need I say more?
July 25, 2016
Interesting idea, but poor execution. No idea what the context on any of these stories really was, or how many of these scientists contributed to our collective knowledge.
March 4, 2012
Saksikan bagaimana Richard Feyman menggunakan waktu luangnya untuk membobol brankas ;)
Read
August 23, 2009Di balik penemuan besar, sebuah kisah pergulatan para ilmuwan terkemuka. penerbit KPG
July 14, 2011
The Feynman bits were the best, although I'd already heard most of them.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews