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NOBEL PRIZE WOMEN IN SCIENCE

Name: NOBEL PRIZE WOMEN IN SCIENCE
Author: Sharon Bertsch McGrayne
ISBN: 1-55972-146-4

THEIR LIVES, STRUGGLES AND MOMENTOUS DISCOVERIES

by Sharon Bertsch McGrayne ‧ RELEASE DATE: Dec. 1, 1992

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Add to the genre of books on the sociology of women in science this first-rate compendium of bios of women who got the Big One— and a few who came close. Some are familiar (Marie Curie, who got it twice) and some have been covered in recent books (Rita Levi- Montalcini—In Praise of Imperfection, 1988). What's gratifying is that Bertsch (physics writer-editor for the Encyclopaedia Brittanica) neither preaches nor screeches but allows the facts- -documented in interviews with and in records of the women—to speak for themselves. The stories begin in Europe with the Curies in France and with Lise Meitner and Emmy Noether (probably the most distinguished woman mathematician in history) in Germany, the latter two suffering the double blow of being Jews as well as women. Bertsch then reviews a second generation of greats, including Gerty Cori (enzymology), Irene Curie, Maria Goeppert-Mayer (nuclear shell theory), Dorothy Hodgkin (X-ray crystallography), Chien-Shiung Wu (nuclear physics), Levi-Montalcini, and Rosalyn Yallow (inventor of the radioimmunoassay). The younger generation is represented by Jocelyn Bell (pulsars), who, in contrast to the others, changed careers. The common struggles are with male prejudice; barriers prohibiting women from attending university; prohibitions against hiring, nepotism, whatever—conditions that left many of these women spending their lives as unpaid volunteers or lowly associates. But the other commonalities are passion, energy, a conviction of intellectual strength, and sheer joy in doing science. Many of the women were strongly encouraged by their fathers or by a strong belief in learning. And no stereotypes prevail: Female genius can be accompanied by good looks, gourmet tastes, and wealth—or by a single-minded devotion to science with not a care about appearance or worldly goods, just as with men. Gratifying reading for women of all ages—and would that men would read it as well. (Twelve pages of photographs—not seen.)

Pub Date: Dec. 1, 1992

ISBN: 1-55972-146-4

Page Count: 368

Publisher: Birch Lane Press

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 15, 1992

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
A LAB OF ONE'S OWN
by Rita Colwell & Sharon Bertsch McGrayne

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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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

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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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.