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Rating: 
Summary: Writing well is obviously not a science
Review: Abraham is lucky to have subject material (or at least a subject) that is inherently interesting. Perhaps she should stick to articles in the newspaper because her prose, while attempting for poetic, seems forced and awkward at times. She makes the scientific approaches towards Einstein's brain's study easily accessible to virtually any reader, although for those with any background in neurology/psychology, much of the book may feel watered down. While the writing is none too impressive, the material is engaging and interesting. However, Abraham perhaps summarises the book best in the epilogue with the word, "anticlimactic". Quite honestly, the man himself is likely more interesting than his brain. In short: a biography might be more fulfilling.
Rating: 
Summary: Fascinating
Review: I can't add much to what other reviewers have said. I picked up this book to learn what had been discovered scientifically by studying Einstein's brain, and ended up learning about much, much more. Interesting subplots include Einstein as a person (husband, father, man) and other trends in brain research.
Rating:
Summary: Fascinating
Review: I can't add much to what other reviewers have said. I picked up this book to learn what had been discovered scientifically by studying Einstein's brain, and ended up learning about much, much more. Interesting subplots include Einstein as a person (husband, father, man) and other trends in brain research.
Rating:
Summary: Impressive!
Review: I had recently read "Driving Mr Albert: A Trip Across America With Einstein's Brain" by Michael Paterniti. I stumbled across this book at my local library, and thought, keeping with the trend of Einstein, it would be a nice addition to my mental collection of books. I was blown away by Carolyn Abraham's writing. I am 14 years old, and obviously not in any way a medical or college student. However, Abraham's writing was clear and concise. The author used understandable language along with scientific terms in a way that I was able to learn and comprehend new ideas and terms. In short, Abraham knew what she was talking about. Her transitions were interesting, but never confusing. The ability to describe--in considerable detail--the journey of about 50+ years of a mild-mannered pathologist and his amazing secret that was Einstein's brain is the mark of a superb writer, and I commend Carolyn Abraham for it.
Rating:
Summary: Impressive!
Review: I had recently read "Driving Mr Albert: A Trip Across America With Einstein's Brain" by Michael Paterniti. I stumbled across this book at my local library, and thought, keeping with the trend of Einstein, it would be a nice addition to my mental collection of books. I was blown away by Carolyn Abraham's writing. I am 14 years old, and obviously not in any way a medical or college student. However, Abraham's writing was clear and concise. The author used understandable language along with scientific terms in a way that I was able to learn and comprehend new ideas and terms. In short, Abraham knew what she was talking about. Her transitions were interesting, but never confusing. The ability to describe--in considerable detail--the journey of about 50+ years of a mild-mannered pathologist and his amazing secret that was Einstein's brain is the mark of a superb writer, and I commend Carolyn Abraham for it.
Rating: 
Summary: A Long Strange Trip
Review: Like many people, I'd seen the factoid that Einstein's brain was kept in a box in Kansas, and always wondered about the full story. Running across this book I was very happy to finally get that story, told in a way that was engaging and fairly honest about everyone's role in the story (to the extent that's possible).The only reason I'm giving the book four stars instead of five is that I found that my interest waned significantly over the last 50 to 75 pages. I think it had to do with the shift towards more science and less biography, though I'm not sure there was a way to write this book without the shift (it isn't huge, but it is noticable). I would recommend this book to anyone with an interest in Einstein, but perhaps even more to anyone who likes quirky history or biography.
Rating:
Summary: A Long Strange Trip
Review: Like many people, I'd seen the factoid that Einstein's brain was kept in a box in Kansas, and always wondered about the full story. Running across this book I was very happy to finally get that story, told in a way that was engaging and fairly honest about everyone's role in the story (to the extent that's possible). The only reason I'm giving the book four stars instead of five is that I found that my interest waned significantly over the last 50 to 75 pages. I think it had to do with the shift towards more science and less biography, though I'm not sure there was a way to write this book without the shift (it isn't huge, but it is noticable). I would recommend this book to anyone with an interest in Einstein, but perhaps even more to anyone who likes quirky history or biography.
Rating:
Summary: Good story well told
Review: This is a book with much to recommend it. Kudos to Carolyn Abraham for finding mind-blowing story and for doing such an effective job in teasing our a logical narrative structure. Two small complaints: 1) Abraham has a tendency to try to dramatize events, where it would be much more effective just to give the facts and let the reader draw his/her own conclusion; 2) Abraham seems determined to deify the protagonist, Thomas Hardy, in the eyes of her reader when the facts of his life so obviously undermine this effort. Otherwise, this book is a must read.
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