Once we recognise our limits, we can leap beyond them.
This is the third in Stuart Clark's trilogy, including
The Sky'sDark Labyrinth, and
The Sensorium of God.
Each takes a pivotal moment in the evolution of science and
dramatises it in fiction.
From The Back Cover
Berlin, 1914. Europe is marching blindly into war and the city
is a storm of nationalist fervour and army recruitment.
Albert Einstein anticipates the carnage to come when his
university colleagues begin to work on poison gas to 'shorten the
war'.
Increasingly isolated, he finds that few people entertain his
outlandish new way of understanding the universe, and he can't quite
pull the mathematics together.
He needs hard evidence to prove his vision, but the man he was
relying on to help him is caught by the outbreak of hostilities and
is now facing execution.
Meanwhile, in the mud-soaked trenches of the Western Front,
unbeknownst to Einstein, a devoutly religious Belgian called Georges
Lemaître has the
mathematical ability to help bring his new theory to a triumphant
conclusion. But as the German war machine advances, Lemaître's
survival looks increasingly unlikely…
The Day Without Yesterday by Stuart Clark
This is an excellent book, and a fitting conclusion to the Sky's
Dark Labyrinth trilogy.
With this book, Dr. Stuart Clark has taken on a huge challenge. We
all know something of Albert Einstein, and while many readers may not
know much about his personal life, we all have a pretty good idea
that he was one of, if not the, most influential scientist in modern
times. The advances he brought about in science have made him universally admired and respected. But what was he like as a person?
What sort of a life did he lead?
These are the questions Dr. Clark sets about answering in this
book. The Day Without Yesterday is the story of Einstein's life
around the time of the First World War, and tells of his family life,
his relationship with other members of the scientific community, and
the impact on himself and others of his ground-breaking theories.
The Day Without Yesterday is clearly well researched, and
sensitively written by an author who is himself a scientist. He
brings Einstein and those around him to life, and furnishes us with a
taste of Einstein, both at his best and at his worst.
So, going back to my questions: What was he like as a person? What
sort of a life did he lead? If you read this immensely enjoyable
book, you'll find out.
About Dr. Stuart Clark, from his website:
Stuart Clark is a widely read
astronomy journalist. His career is devoted to presenting the complex
world of astronomy to the general public. Stuart holds a first class
honours degree and a PhD in astrophysics. He is a Fellow of the Royal
Astronomical Society and a former Vice Chair of the Association of
British Science Writers. On 9 August 2000, UK daily newspaper The
Independent placed him alongside Stephen Hawking and the Astronomer
Royal, Professor Sir Martin Rees, as one of the ‘stars’ of
British astrophysics teaching.
Currently he divides his time between
writing books and, in his capacity of cosmology consultant, writing
articles for New Scientist. He is a consultant and writes for the
European Space Agency where he was Senior Editor for Space Science
for some time. Over the years Stuart has written for amongst others:
BBC Sky at Night, BBC Focus, The Times, The Guardian, The Economist,
The Times Higher Education Supplement, Daily Express, Astronomy Now,
Sky and Telescope and Astronomy. He has written text for an issue of
stamps for the Royal Mail. He writes an online blog for the Guardian
called Across the Universe, read all around the world.
*
Stuart Clark's website is
www.stuartclark.com, where
you will find more information about his writing, fiction and
non-fiction, his journalism and much more.
