Uncle Tungsten: Memories of a Chemical Boyhood

If you did not think that gallium and iridium could move you, this superb book will change your mind . ( The Times ). In Uncle Tungsten Sacks evokes, with warmth and wit, his upbringing in wartime England. He tells of the large science-steeped family who fostered his early fascination with chemistry. There follow his years at boarding school where, though unhappy, he developed the intellectual curiosity that would shape his later life. And we hear of his return to London, an emotionally bereft ten-year-old who found solace in his passion for learning. Uncle Tungsten radiates all the delight and wonder of a boy's adventures, and is an unforgettable portrait of an extraordinary young mind. This book is both a heartwarming account of a delightful, eccentric family life and an inspiring record of a remarkable intellectual odyssey . ( Mail on Sunday ). A luminous, inspiring book . ( Sunday Telegraph ).