A review of Kristine Larsen's Stephen Hawking: A Biography.
The Stephen Hawking biography is slightly different than most in that this particular book has been written about the eminent physicist by another physicist. Stephen Hawking is seen as one of the greatest scientific minds of all time and he still manages to produce amazing theories despite suffering from a neuro muscular disease that has left him almost completely paralyzed. The book lets you see how he has dealt with the progression of this illness through his life.
A lot of what he has done in his work is far beyond the capabilities of most people to understand which is why it is good that they are explained in easy to follow language. It can really let you see just why he is viewed as being so important and by looking at his work and his life you can find a new appreciation for what he has managed to achieve.
It would be easy for a fellow physicist to just write a book that basically idolizes the man but this is avoided by the author. Instead it is written from a far more general point of view and it is not just a book selling him to you as one of the greatest minds in the world. The book flows quite well and covers his life without placing the importance on one area in particular. It details his personal troubles with his marriages, his problems at university before the disease started to take control of his body, and also how he deals with it on a day to day basis.
Overall the Stephen Hawking biography is very well balanced between the private and the public side of Hawking's life. It can let you see him in a different light rather than just being capable of coming up with theories that only the most intellectual amongst us shall ever be able to really understand.
It is not just a book for those interested in science in general but it is instead more for those of us interested in people in general. It is not too heavy a book and I think you will enjoy very much.