Stephen Hawking

March 23, 2020
Mixing remembrance and popular science into a pleasing memoir, physicist Mlodinow (Elastic) writes about his collaboration and friendship with Stephen Hawking, beginning in 2003 and continuing until Hawking’s death in 2018, during which time they co-wrote A Briefer History of Time and The Grand Design. While relating trips to Cambridge to meet with Hawking, Mlodinow tells of Hawking’s battle with ALS and his two marriages and 40-year career, and outlines Hawking’s contributions to physics, particularly cosmology and general relativity. Candidly reflecting on Hawking’s paralysis, he muses that his collaborator’s experience with contradictions in his own life, as a man “both powerful and powerless,” fed into one of his greatest gifts as a scientist, a knack for “reconciling contradictory theories and ideas.” Mlodinow also recalls their arguments (Hawking would use the volume control on his computer voice to express his frustration) and their philosophical discussions over wine (despite Hawking being able to communicate only six words per minute with the help of a computer and a sensor in his eyeglasses to detect face muscle movements). This memorable book allows readers to see the human side of a figure who might otherwise seem intimidatingly remote.

April 1, 2020

Mlodinow (The Drunkard's Walk) provides a heartfelt view into the life of notable scientist Stephen Hawking (1942-2018). Mlodinow and Hawking coauthored a book, The Grand Design, which discussed the latest breakthroughs in physics and cosmology. From that time spent together, they became close friends, and this biography provides a unique look into Hawking's work and personal life. Mlodinow talks about the process Hawking used to compile a sentence using his text-to-speech device using only twitches of his cheek. Hawking's every move was managed by his carers (he disliked the term caretakers), and Mlodinow learned how to manipulate individual carers to gain more access to the physicist. The author candidly describes personal interactions with Hawking, including wiping sweat and drool from his face, and the depths of their friendship. Mlodinow also discusses Hawking's discoveries, failures, and theories in physics that changed the way the universe is understood. VERDICT Fans of Hawking's work, his life, and the film The Theory of Everything will enjoy a more personal look into his extraordinary life.--Jason L. Steagall, Arapahoe Libs., Centennial, CO

Copyright 2020 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 15, 2020
Our era's leading physicist receives an insightful send-off. Stephen Hawking (1942-2018) was the world's most famous scientist. Sadly, it was his paralysis, rather than his discoveries, that made him almost universally recognizable. In 2003, Hawking contacted physicist and author Mlodinow to help with his popular science writing. Here, the author recounts their friendship as well as Hawking's earlier life and makes an earnest attempt to explain his work. In 1963, beginning doctoral studies at Cambridge, Hawking developed amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a progressive nerve degeneration that leads to paralysis and death. This devastating news, writes Mlodinow, left Hawking with "the choice of wasting away in spirit as well as body or finding a world of the mind in which he could still function. Where some in his situation found God, Stephen found physics." Almost completely paralyzed by 1990, he continued work despite requiring 24-hour care. An American foundation helped at first, but it was popular writing, beginning with his 1988 bestseller, A Brief History of Time, that enabled him to bear the massive expenses associated with this care. Einstein's iconic 1905 theory of special relativity, with its revelations on time, mass-energy, and light, have revolutionized our daily lives and technology. However, Hawking concentrated on Einstein's 1915 theory of general relativity, which explains how gravity and space deviate from Newton's simpler laws only at extremes--the massive gravity of stars and black holes or cosmic distances and times. As a result, scientists largely ignored it until Hawking took an interest in the 1960s. His controversial findings on the nature of black holes galvanized fellow physicists. The Big Bang idea originated in 1927, but Hawking's calculations provided evidence that it happened. Mlodinow doesn't delve deeply enough into Hawking's unique brilliance, but he provides an illuminating portrait of perseverance and determination. A valuable account of an extraordinary man, although most readers will have to accept Hawking's genius on faith.

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May 1, 2020
In his latest, Mlodinow (Elastic, 2018) offers a heartfelt account of his friendship with theoretical astrophysicist Stephen Hawking. They met in 2003 and collaborated on two books before Hawking's death in 2018, A Briefer History of Time (2005) and The Grand Design (2010). The narrative anchor of this memoir is an account of their collaborative process of writing the latter interwoven with details about Hawking's life, how he learned to live with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, and his ground-breaking work in cosmology. Fellow physicist Mlodinow has a scientist's perspective on Hawking, eschewing often hyperbolic media accounts. He does an admirable job of explaining the cosmological concepts without overwhelming casual readers. Their working relationship quickly turned into friendship, and Mlodinow gleans many insights into the kind of man Hawking was?passionate, rebellious, funny, warm, unconventional, stubborn, sometimes peevish, often controversial, and unafraid. He was a complex person driven by a passion to understand, overcome the limitations of his disability, and make human connections. Mlodinow renders a satisfying and humane portrait.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)