ISAAC NEWTON

It's hard to conceive of a time when we did not perceive the world in terms of Newton's laws. This is the picture of a much less enlightened time, when Newton himself dabbled in alchemy and magic. Gleick's fascinating biography looks at history and a man born in the year Galileo died, who did some of his most important thinking while those around him died of the Plague. Far from our iconic picture of the carefree boy under the apple tree, Newton was irascible, vindictive, and egotistical. As interesting as the picture Gleick paints is, the book is difficult for the layperson. Incomprehensible math theory is hard to grasp unless one already has grounding in the subject. Nonetheless, Allan Corduner's narration is a pleasure to listen to. One can easily imagine his deeply satisfying voice, rich with accents and tones, coming directly from the halls of academia. D.G. (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC 03/JAN 04]