School Library Journal Review
Gr 10 Up--As a young man, Stephen Hawking was interested in the sciences, but choosing a specialty proved difficult. He grew bored easily, so he dabbled in various areas of study before finding his calling in theoretical physics and cosmology. Hawking also learned as he came into adulthood that he had amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, a degenerative disease that would leave his mind untouched as it slowly wreaked havoc on his body. Not one to give in to obstacles, he relied on the help of his wives, students, and colleagues to persevere in his studies and make complicated scientific concepts accessible. Hawking narrates this account, covering his entire life but focusing on the 1960s through the 1980s. The conversational, generally linear narrative starts out simply enough but quickly becomes a catalogue of Hawking's many famous contemporaries and the leading theories of the day, which influenced, and were influenced by, Hawking's own work. His personal life is covered as well but is secondary to his achievements. Loose, scratchy linework and bold, high-saturation colors reflect Hawking's bold ways of thinking about the universe. An author's note indicates that though the book is nonfiction, some details were changed to improve the flow of the story. VERDICT Packed with scientific theory, this graphic biography of a scientific luminary will appeal to budding physics and cosmology enthusiasts.--Alea Perez, Elmhurst Public Library, IL
Publisher's Weekly Review
This layered graphic biography of the theoretical physicist Stephen Hawking presents a heroic yet nuanced portrait of the 20th century's second-most famous scientist, after Albert Einstein. A gawky motormouthed teen "hopeless at building things, and speaking Hawkingese," Hawking was a brilliant yet haphazard student at Oxford, with no respect for the "grey men" who spent their time studying. The physics that filled his buzzing mind are explored by Ottaviani (Feynman) as less a field of study than as Hawking's own joyful pursuit, and Myrick's dramatically angled but simplistic artwork often renders his subject with a wry grin. The motor neuron disease that eventually progressed to Hawking requiring a motorized wheelchair plays in the background while the authors unfurl complex spreads laying out how Hawking debated with his contemporaries and used his equations to explore the far corners of existence ("At this level, math is as much art as it is anything else"). Hawking's divorces and emotional distance from his family are poignantly represented, but the story remains about science, which is delivered in an accessible form yet hardly watered down. This smart and wondrously exploratory scientific biography reveals as much about black holes as the man who explored them. (July) This review has been updated for clarity. © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.