Kaethe

For me one of the most appealing aspects of this book is its brevity. And that is not intended as any sort of dig at Hawking. Really, I want to learn a bit about him, but I don't want the messy details of anyone else's romantic life (and they are all messy). This is a bit about his parents, his childhood, his education (college was important to him), his marriages. his kids, his career, a bit about working around his disability.  I don't feel like I know him, but I feel I've gotten a pretty good introduction.

I like his sense of humor, which is dry and understated. I like that he makes bets about cosmology with his peers, that those bets have clearly defined pay-offs, that he remembers those bets, and who won them, and that they were properly paid. I like that he says nothing but good things about his family. I like that he included family pictures of the various homes he lived in, and that meeting the Queen was a big deal, and was getting to experience gravity-free flight. I really like that he remembered that he had a eureka moment getting ready for bed. And that he pursued theoretical physics because he wasn't that good at maths and experiments were too much work.

Really, a good memoir. The perfect mix of self-deprecating and delight at how well his life turned out.

Review copy provided by publisher via NetGalley.