5 comments about The Volterra Chronicles: The Life and Times of an Extraordinary Mathematician 1860-1940 (History of Mathematics).

1. I have just reluctantly completed my second reading of "The Volterra Chronicles". The first time I was pleased to follow the scientific information and see the historical framework revealed. This second time, I read purely for enjoyment and the amazing feeling of being in that time/place while still observing it through a present day lens. Judith R. Goodstein has accomplished an awesome feat of authorship. The sensibilities of today, and her focusing of our hindsight, inform our view of the personal and professional choices of Volterra. At the same time the reader is made aware of his, and his accomplished countrymen, interaction with the real constraints of their society. The strength of his intellect and, most vividly, his character emerge indelibly. Truly - Volterra lives.



2. Vito Volterra, one of the finest scientists and mathematicians Italy ever produced, is best known for his theory of functionals, which led to his later contributions in integral and integro-differential equations; for his interest in solid state physics, astronomy and mathematical biology, whose importance he was among the first to stress. In Goodstein's words "Volterra's life exemplifies the post-unification rise of Italian mathematics, its prominence in the first quarter of the twentieth century, and its precipitous decline under Mussolini... The meteoric rise and tragic fall of Volterra and his circle thus constitutes a lens through which we may examine in intimate detail the fortunes of Italian science in an epic scientific age".
   Born in Ancona, into a rather poor Jewish family in the year of the liberation of Italy's Jewish ghettos, Volterra showed very early promise in mathematics. He attended the University of Pisa, where he graduated in physics and where he became professor of rational mechanics in 1883. Ten years later he moved to Turin and in 1900 to Rome, where he taught mathematical physics at the University "La Sapienza". Volterra, an enthusiastic patriot, in 1905 was elected a senator of the Kingdom of Italy on grounds of high scientific standing. In his 1907 talk for the inauguration of the first congress of the Italian Society for the Progress of the Sciences, Volterra proudly drew a comparison between his era and the Renaissance: "In that time of the wonderful restoration of intellectual life, Italy became the very center of universal scientific thought. Today, I venture to wish that the destiny reserved for us not be a lesser one, as the pure and authentic Italian soul rises and takes shape, reviving our thought and restoring to us our ancient country". During World War I, already well into his 50s, he joined the Italian Army and worked on the development of airships. His hopes for Italian science were soon to be betrayed. When Benito Mussolini took power, Volterra joined the opposition to Fascism, and in 1931 he was one of the twelve university professors (over more than a thousand) who refused to take a mandatory oath of loyalty. He was compelled to resign his university post and membership of scientific academies in Italy (he belonged to quite a number of them all over the world), and, during the following years, he lived largely abroad.
   This very elegant book, based in part on unpublished private letters and documents, interviews, and personal contacts of the author with members of the scientist's family during her frequent stays in Italy, tells the quite unique life of an extraordinary person in a country and in an age characterized by dramatic events. Judith Goodstein traces a full-size portrait of the man, both in his private and public life. All around him, she draws a vivid picture of the very strong and somewhat suffocating ties within the Volterra family; of the very high quality of the gifted group of mathematicians who interacted with Volterra; of the intriguing happenings in the Italian academic community; of the dramatic conditions of intellectuals in a country that was gradually sinking from a freshly built democracy into a coarse Fascist regime. There are also flavorful glimpses on the scientific communities abroad, in Europe as well as and in North and South America. When in the USA, Volterra lectured in French, though admitting "that at the present time the most indispensable language seems to be English".
   It would be hard to provide highlights of the story, so many are the facts, the ideas, the emotions, the surprises the reader will meet along this beautifully depicted historical journey. The book will be of interest not only to scientists, but also to historians and to other learned people: it can be read like a novel, where attention paid to meaningful details and little known episodes conveys a realistic picture of the life of Italians in those years - and of the Jewish community in particular - better than many academic historical essays would.
   Bravo Goodstein: elegance, style, thorough insight... the reader will feel that she herself was a witness on the scene.
   
   Andrea Frova
   (Professor of Physics, Università "La Sapienza", Roma)
   and Mariapiera Marenzana
   (Professor of History and Italian Literature)



3. A must-read for your special reading list this summer is The Volterra Chronicles by Judith Goodstein. This book gives a very well-written and detailed account of a renowned Jewish Italian mathematician, Vito Volterra, and his rise to fame during a very turbulent period in Italian history (1860-1940). For those not familiar with Vito Volterra and his scientific and mathematical work, Dr. Goodstein offers both an exciting and captivating biography of a great and noble mathematician.



4. This book was very enjoyable to read. I recommend it to anyone who would like to learn more about the academic life in Italy during these very interesting times. The portrait of the customs of an Italian Jewish family, to which Volterra belonged, is particularly well drawn.



5. The Volterra Chronicles: The Life and Times of an Extraordinary Mathematician 1860-1940
   
   Vito Volterra, one of the great Italian scientists and mathematicians, lived during tumultuous times spanning the years of the Italian unification to the outbreak of the Second World War. He was born into a middle class Jewish family His early years were spent in the Jewish ghetto of Ancona under the eyes of his protective mother who tried to discourage him from a career in mathematics. At twenty-three he became a tenured professor at Pisa and by 1900 he was appointed professor at the University of Rome.
   
   Goodstein has constructed a detailed record of Volterra's personal life by gaining access to the Volterra family's letters and photographs. She provides rich insights into the Italian scientific and mathematical achievements and vividly records the Italian academic world and the response to the national political scene.
   
   This biography is a powerful tribute to a man who dominated the field of mathematics. He developed the areas of integral and differential equations, worked in the field of elastic media and then branched into the area of theoretical ecology and began to apply his mathematical expertise to biological systems.
   
   The ascendancy of Fascism brought the golden age of science and mathematics in Italy to an end. It is interesting that there was a disproportionately large number of Jews within Italian science and mathematics. Mussolini's regime was actively anti-Semitic and barred Jewish scientists and mathematicians from holding university posts and membership in scientific organizations.
   
   In 1931 Vito Volterra was one of only twelve Italian university professors who refused to sign the oath of allegiance to the Fascist government required by all members of the faculty, which resulted in his expulsion from the scientific community. Volterra's life parallels the rise and decline of Italian mathematics and science and provides us with a lens to examine the fortunes of Italian science during this time period.

No comments about Golden Opportunities: A Biographical History of Montana's Jewish Communities.

5 comments about Anne Frank's Tales from the Secret Annex.

1. This wonderful little book is a collection of Anne Frank's lesser known writings , found in a seperate volume.
   It shows what a phenomenal young writer she was , and hints what a great author she may have been had she been allowed to live.
   
   The book consists of fables and short stories as well as personal reminiscenses and essays.
   
   They range from 'Kitty' - Anne's reflections on the blonde little girl next door , to beautiful fairy tales (which remind me a bit of Oscar Wilde's fairy tales) like 'The Wise Old Dwarf' and 'The Fairy'-all have a wonderful lesson enclosed within.
   
   'Paula's Plane Trip' and 'Cady's Life' focus on the adventures of young girls during wartime , the latter touching on the holocaust which later swallowed up Anne's young life.
   
   A constant theme in the book is Anne's conviction that relaxing and connecting with nature , can ease one's mind from any difficulties.
   
   In 'Personal Remininscinces and Essays' Anne Frank lets us know a little bit more about life in the little house where she and other Jews hid for some years from Nazi terror.
   In a particularly poignant passage , she remarks that after the war , she would get together photos of the people in the house, which is why she spent so little time on physical description of the house's inhabitants. Anne was confident she would survive the war , and recontinue her life.
   
   A remarkable testament to the wonderful life of a child whose life was cut so short.



2. I truly enjoyed Anne Frank's Diary, now I have had the privilege to read her tales. A talent in it's purest form. I believe it was Anne Frank who said she wanted to be famous and/or to live on after her death, and of course she has in so many ways. Her diary has sold millions upon millions of copies around the world, her story told in a broadway play, countless films and documentary's.To me it looks like Anne has gotten her wish, she has lived on, more than she'll ever know. I like so many other's have wondered what kind of person Anne Frank would have been if she had survived, of course we will never know, but her diary and her story's were left behind to be discovered and to be told to everyone around the world, what a good person we could have a had on this planet, a great and talented young girl who was taken away but not forgotten.



3. Ok, so Anne's diary will almost always out shadow other stories shes written, and with good reason, but the stories here are rather well written. The 1st half of the book contains actuall stories she was writting, some short, some long, and part of an unfinished novel. The 2nd half of the story is memories of events that happend to her in her life that she wrote down.
   Anyone who likes her diary should really give her stories a read.



4. In her now famous Diary, Anne Frank said "I want to go on living even after my death". As of 1998, The Diary of Anne Frank had reached sales of 25 million copies and been translated into more than 50 languages. (source: TIME, October 5, 1998). It has been required classroom reading for half a century now! In a way, her wish has come to pass.
   This subsequent publication "Tales From The Secret Annex" combines short stories, reminiscences/vignettes, and even an unfinished novel to show us yet another dimension to this remarkable person. Reading these stories and little essays confirmed my personal opinion that Anne Frank was a childhood genius with unlimited potential to achieve anything she would have set her mind to. It's hard to imagine this thirteen year old girl writing with such depth and perception, while living in seclusion, terror and fear for her life. She was writing from her heart, not with an expectation of being published. And yet these stories shine with a polished brilliance, and a certain unforgettable quality. I read this book for the first time 8 years ago, and have returned to it now, remembering the stories as though I had read them just last week. My favorite is entitled "Kathy". In three short pages, Anne captures every emotion experienced by a kid who is misunderstood by her mother, assaulted by schoolyard bullies who mock and rob her and cause her to lose the gift she was bringing home to her mother.

   Here is how she ends her essay entitled "Give":
   "If only our country and then Europe and finally the whole world would realize that people were really kindly disposed toward one another, that they are all equal and everything else is transitory!
   Open your eyes... give of yourself, give as much as you can! And you can always, always give something, even if it is only kindness! No one has ever become poor from giving! If you do this, then in a few generations no one will need to pity the beggar children anymore, because they will not exist!
   There is plenty of room for everyone in the world, enough money, riches, and beauty for all to share! God has made enough for everyone. Let us all begin by sharing it fairly." (written March 26, 1944).

   Anne was sent to Bergen-Belsen, where some time during March 1945, she, her sister Margot and hundreds of other prisoners were stricken with typhus. Their captors, preoccupied with the advancing Allies, left them to die.
   World... read her book!




5. Also published under the title "Tales from the House Behind," this is a collection of juvenile/young adult stories that Anne Frank worked on during her years in hiding in the annex with her family and fellow fugitives. It proves that this young girl had an incredible gift for writing, and that had she lived she probably would have been received the Noble Prize for Literature. Her stories were often candid indictments of her own family life, such as Kitty, which tells the story of a young girl who day-dreams and a mother who wants her child to listen and obey rather than dream. Anne's essays show an in-depth understanding of human nature, surprising for one so young. This is a poignant book filled with fables, short stories, essays and even part of an unfinished novel. It's worth reading after you have read "The Diary of Anne Frank" simply because the diary will give you more insight to this amazing girl's life. However "Tales from the Secret Annex" stands on its own too, and like the diary should be on every school child's list of books to read.

1 comments about Rememberings: The World of a Russian-Jewish Woman in the Nineteenth Century (Studies and Texts in Jewish History and Culture, 9).

1. Being an avid reader, I rarely read a woman's perspective on history, but Pauline Wengeroff's story opened my eyes to Jewish history from a totally different viewpoint. The story is magnificent and a must for independent minded women of any age. People of the twenty-first century will be able to identify easily with a woman of the 1840-1860's. Conditions of life change, but people don't.

No comments about ... And Heaven Shed No Tears (Shoah Studies).

5 comments about Swimming Up the Sun: A Memoir of Adoption.

1. This month our book club read 'Swimming Up the Sun' and we all loved it! It was hard to put down the book while following Nicole on her journey to find her biological parents. Once they were located, Nicole faced more challenges as she struggled to build mutually comfortable relationships with them. Of course, this part of the book rings true for all of us, whether we were adopted or not. Ultimately, we need to discover contentment within our own lives, while leaving ourselves open to the unexpected. As Nicole states, "... happiness happens in its own good time."



2. I purchased the book in the morning, started reading it about an hour later and kept reading and reading. The book was engaging -- at the end of each chapter I couldn't wait to find out what happened next. Ms. Burton's sleuthing and tenacity are good lessons for anyone searching for anyone or anything.



3. Very interesting and realistic twist on the adoption search story. The author doesn't sugarcoat anything, and produces a nice mix of humor and deep emotion.
   
   Characters are realistic, which is fitting because this is a memoir, not fiction. But it's very hard to convey a realistic view of family members. Hats off to Nicole Burton for that.
   
   Needs a little editing, otherwise 5 stars.



4. This book rivals some of the best mystery novels. The reader accompanies Nicole Burton as she solves the mystery of who her parents are and describes the relationships she forms with them. The book was sensitive, insightful, and beautifully written. Although it was a serious subject, I found the book witty and humorous. It was a pleasure accompanying her on this adventure.



5. This is a very eloquent and heartfelt account of one woman's search and reunion. The author provides a very moving and well-written account of the events surrounding her search for her birth family and the ensuing reunions and relations. She honestly portrays the feelings and relationships that occured for her. I would highly recommend this book to anyone touched by adoption.

No comments about In The Garden of Memory: A Family Memoir.

No comments about My Life As a Radical Jewish Woman: Memoirs of a Zionist Feminist in Poland (Modern Jewish Experience).

2 comments about Who Were the Magi?.

1. This book is of extraordinary quality. The stunning artistry and literary attention to detail is breathtaking, and you won't want to put the book down. From the first page, you are drawn into a rich and vibrant account that will inspire, instruct and encourage!



2. I am excited about this book because it was written in love and in a differnt light than we are used to seeing. I couldn't put the book down after I started reading it as it grabbed my curiousity and interest as I have never heard why or how the Magi came to visit baby Jesus. Although the book may appear to reach a younger audience it held my attention as well as I feel it would to a younger audience. Great job!

5 comments about Through the Unknown, Remembered Gate : A Spiritual Journey.

1. Benedek's journey more deeply into Judaism is well-written and interesting. Especially fascinating were her observations and participation in the Orthodox community as part of a journey that ultimately leads her to a Conservative Jewish congregation. There were times that the book dragged and became redundant. For example, Benedek goes on and on and on about her therapy sessions. This part could have been condensed so that the reader understood that therapy was important to her journey without having to read every detail of every therapy session she ever attended. She also wasn't completely clear about the kinds of Orthodox communities she was hanging out with -- she does not fully embrace ultra-orthodox lifestyles, but had she ever considered modern Orthodoxy? This was never addressed, she just went from ultra-Orthodox to Conservative, but modern-Orthodox is a category between the two. Even with these criticisms, however, the book is a compelling read and Benedek portrays an honest, thoroughly questioning journey into faith.



2. The best thing about this deeply felt memoir is the way the author combines several searches that normally don't go together. Her highly successful psychoanalysis dovetails with a quest for spiritual awakening and rebirth, and we can understand why Freud and Judaism go together. The book also has a lot to say about the conflict felt by a highly educated, secular, intellectual woman between her need to be in the world and her desire to participate in Orthodox Jewish practices that still relegate women to a separate sphere. Benedek's negotiation of this strait is fascinating.



3. When she lived in and wrote of the intensely spiritual Navajo world, Benedek felt herself turn introspective. A horrific brush with loss of vision precipitated what became a search for her place in relationship to the divine. The beginning of this book thrusts the reader with lightspeed into the center of her search, through psychoanalysis and religious education, for the life of devotion and spirituality she ultimately crafts. Benedek's slick, smart writing, her longing to reorient herself after a bad relationship and a life she deemed soulless and her lucky, lucky life ever since are fascinating. (She found her husband through a writing assignment on hackers). Benedek is enviable and inspirational. And she can write!



4. One can't help feeling awe at ms. Benedek's struggle to create a life that is truly modern and truly religious. Her book compelled me from cover to cover. She is an entertaining, gifted writer who uses her intelligence compassionately.



5. Psychoanalysis has been under withering fire for the past decade. But anyone who reads of Emily Benedek's analysis in this book will have to fight the urge to run out and look up the telephone number of her analyst. You are brought into the rarified air of a very deep and meaningful friendship and are reminded of the supreme gift of good listening.