Genius

The Life and Science of Richard Feynman

By: James Gleick

Narrated by: Dick Estell

Length: 20 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's summary

From the author of the national best seller Chaos comes an outstanding biography of one of the most dazzling and flamboyant scientists of the 20th century that "not only paints a highly attractive portrait of Feynman but also . . . makes for a stimulating adventure in the annals of science." (The New York Times).

©1993 James Gleick (P)2011 Random House

Brilliant man, good biography

Feynman was brilliant, troubled, interesting, and human. This biography captures his essence but lacks a cohesive feel —while the overall story is good, there are many places where it feels like loosely stitched together vignettes.

One theme throughout is Feynman’s success despite a lack of publishing or reading the papers written in his field. The understanding is he so impressed everyone that he transcended the necessity to publish or chase grant money. I felt this aspect of his life could have been explored more.

It definitely makes me always to listen to more biographies about him!

Excellent book, mediocre narration

A fascinating story eloquently an vividly recounted by Gleick. The narrator is pleasant enough to listen to, but often mispronounces words.

Very detailed and informative

Lots of detail, was a bit too much at times, but mostly appreciative. A very compelling narrative.

thoroughly detailed, vivid image of a great man

James Gleick did fantastically, with great, accessible language describing the most abstract pieces of theoretical science, he created a touchingly vivid and inspiring portrait of Feynman. thank you

How do you get a job narrating a story

When you mispronounce karaoke?

Feynman is amazing though. What a personality, and what a brilliant story.

Fascinating but mispronunciation an issue

Feynman was a fascinating person. Never fitting a stereotype. The text is good but not remarkable. The presentation was diminished by frequent mispronunciation.

Great book, narration could be a lot better

This is the definitive biography of America's greatest scientist, and essential for anyone looking to understand the massive advances in physics that occurred in the decades after WWII. However, the narrator seemed ill-prepared for the subject matter, and this audiobook is plagued by mispronunciations. There is even a paragraph in which the author goes out of his way to clarify the correct pronunciation of Murray Gell-Mann's name, and the narrator actually reads this section correctly and then goes on to repeatedly butcher Gell-Mann's name later in the same chapter.

Great Book, Bad Performance and Editing

Would you consider the audio edition of Genius to be better than the print version?

No

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Dick Estell?

I was embarrassed for Dick Estell and any Editors attached to this recording. Do some research; Show some respect both to the author and those great minds represented in this book.

Any additional comments?

I hope in the future Audible will re-record this Audiobook.

So glad to have this in audio...

I've adored this book since it was first published. I am so happy to have it on audio now. The narration is pretty flat, and I'm not entirely sure about some of the pronunciations (Pretty sure I.I. Rabi is "Rah-bee" not "Rab-eye") but glad to have it nonetheless. Eagerly awaiting Gleick's newest!

My Hero!

I am grateful that James did this, for I learned many new things. I have read many other books about Feynman, and have had that 'I'll eat it cause it's on the plate' feeling about the last few. I feel that way about this too, cause of all the revisited material, but Gleick fills in so many gaps that it is still very refreshing. Mind you all: If you are new to Feynman, this would be one of the most comprehensive books ever written on him! It covers all the old and much new material. This is for everyone!