Here's another attempt to bridge the gap between the ``two cultures'' of the humanities and the sciences, this time by a mathematician/mystery novelist. In his introductory ``Note to the Reader,'' Berlinski (Less Than Meets the Eye, 1994, etc.) emphasizes that his goal is to provide not a textbook but a ``tour,'' offering the reader the sort of ``Aha!'' insight characteristic of math. To that end, he brings his novelist's equipment to bear on the subject, with well-drawn character portraits of the men who developed calculus (Newton and Leibniz in particular) and dramatic scenes featuring the author as an instructor with a recalcitrant college math class. There are proofs (presented in appendixes to each chapter), but no problems to solve. And the focus of the text is on the meaning and application of the central concepts of the calculus, as in the use of the first derivative to determine the speed of a falling body after a given elapsed time—one of the purposes for which the technique was invented. A reader who remembers algebra can follow most of the proofs, and the history of mathematics is interestingly presented. But the book goes off track in several ways. Berlinski's portrayal of his college calculus class suggests contempt for those who ``don't get'' math; considering how many readers may picture themselves among the author's reluctant students, this is not an asset. Too many sentences force the reader to stop and puzzle out the plain sense of what the author is saying rather than the mathematical point he is trying to illustrate. Minor factual errors intrude: The author attributes Millay's line ``Euclid alone has looked on Beauty bare'' to Keats, then makes a point of Keats's ignorance of math. Finally, the labels on the diagrams often don't correspond to the text they illustrate, a source of potential confusion. A worthy attempt to bring an important scientific concept to the general reader; too bad the execution falls short of the ambition.
Pub Date: Jan. 25, 1996
ISBN: 0-679-42645-0
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Pantheon
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 1, 1995
This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)
Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996
ISBN: 0-15-100227-4
Page Count: 136
Publisher: Harcourt
Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.
Pub Date: Feb. 23, 1955
ISBN: 0670717797
Page Count: -
Publisher: Viking
Review Posted Online: Oct. 25, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 1955
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