Book Review: The Other Einstein

Having enjoyed one audio selection by Marie Benedict, I sought another in The Other Einstein. The writing  was excellent and the storytelling superb. Yet, I struggled with conflicted emotions about the fictional tale of Einstein's first wife. I wondered whether the author worked from a pre-conceived premise that behind every great man is an outstanding, supportive (or perhaps in this case, even superior) woman. The book seemed to conclude that Einstein received false credit for work that belonged to his wife and her mathematically superior mind. The battle lines were stark. Einstein was an adulterous, adulation-stealing, self-absorbed tyrant. His wife was a saint who sacrificed her own scientific endeavors and accolades to his reputation, whose grief in the loss of her first illegitimate child led to her surmised articulation of the theory of relativity, and whose commitment to her sons led her to forsake her own sense of self until she could take it no longer. The reader comes away loathing Einstein and lauding his long-suffering wife.

Reader beware - if you do not enjoy the word "bohemian," do not pick up this book. The author uses it perhaps a hundred times. That said, I cannot fault the writing otherwise. Benedict has great skill in weaving interesting characters against the backdrop of historical settings and times. She stirs within her readers the deliberate question of "what if?" This is exactly where Carnegie's Maid took me. What if a woman was indeed the impetus for the greatness within a famous man? I'm sure,that has happened plenty of times with the women unrecognized, yet I still wondered at the fictional supposition of Einstein's monstrous character and Mileva Maric's monumental patience. It seemed like quite a bit of conjecture.

I have put my name on the hold list for another book about Einstein and am curious to see if the Einstein I encounter in that book will hold any similarities to the one presented by Marie Benedict. Still, at the end of this audio book, the author provides a clear outline of the books and resources she referred to in crafting this tale. She acknowledges it is a fictional story based on factual letters and conflicting historical debate. If only we could speak to the real Mrs. Einstein and get the story from her own lips. Oh well, enjoy it for what it is - a grand supposition of what might have led to the great discovery of the theory of relativity and Einstein's deserved or undeserved reputation.