Synopses & Reviews
A Scientific American Best Science Book of 2012 An Atlantic Wire Best Book of 2012
A New York Times Book Review and#147;Editor's Choiceand#8221;
The and#147;fascinatingand#8221; (The New Yorker) story of Athanasius Kircher, the eccentric scholar-inventor who was either a great genius or a crackpot . . . or a bit of both.
The interests of Athanasius Kircher, the legendary seventeenth-century priest-scientist, knew no bounds. From optics to music to magnetism to medicine, he offered up inventions and theories for everything, and they made him famous across Europe. His celebrated museum in Rome featured magic lanterns, speaking statues, the tail of a mermaid, and a brick from the Tower of Babel. Holy Roman Emperors were his patrons, popes were his friends, and in his spare time he collaborated with the Baroque master Bernini.
But Kircher lived during an era of radical transformation, in which the old approach to knowledgeand#151;what he called the and#147;art of knowingand#8221;and#151; was giving way to the scientific method and modern thought. A Man of Misconceptions traces the rise, success, and eventual fall of this fascinating character as he attempted to come to terms with a changing world.
With humor and insight, John Glassie returns Kircher to his rightful place as one of historyand#8217;s most unforgettable figures.
and#160;
Review
and#8220;Like his subject,and#160;Athanasius Kircher, writer John Glassie has the rare gift of authentic quirkiness.
A Man of Misconceptions leaves you contemplating the big questions, delightedly scratching your head, and laughingand#8212;all at the same time.and#8221;
and#8212;Mark Kurlansky, author of Cod and Salt
and#8220;Iand#8217;ve been waiting my entire adult life for someone to write a popular biography ofand#160;the loopy, ingenious scholar-priestand#160;Athanasius Kircher, and John Glassie has delivered marvelously. A man of insatiable curiosity and staggeringly diverse intellectual passions, Kircher may have been the greatest polymath of all timeand#8212;or at least the most eccentric.and#8221;
and#8212;Joshua Foer, author of Moonwalking with Einstein
and#8220;Glassie brings the ultimate mad professor Athanasius Kircher vividly to life, revealing him to be a kind of cross between Leonardo da Vinci and Mr. Bean. A most entertaining foray into the history of science.and#8221;
and#8212;Ross King, author of Brunelleschiand#8217;s Dome
and#8220;A marvelous insight into the mind of one of the worldand#8217;s most eccentric thinkers. Glassie brings Kircher to lifeand#8212;and what a life it is!and#8221;
and#8212;Adrian Tinniswood, author of The Verneys and Pirates of Barbary
and#8220;What a brilliant and revealing book about a fascinating character, one I had no previous knowledge about.and#160;Glassieand#8217;s genius is to make Kircher and his era come alive for us centuries later in such a way that I can hear and touch him.and#8221; and#8212; Abraham Verghese, author of Cutting for Stone
"This fascinating biography of the Renaissance polymath Athanasius Kircher explores the birth of modern science through the life of one of the last pre-modern geniuses."
and#8212;The New Yorker
and#8220;[A] brisk new biography...stirringand#8230;with impressive verve and un-Kircherian concision.and#8221;
and#8211; The New York Times
and#8220;In his quirky biography of Athanasius Kircher and#8230; Mr. Glassie uses Kircher as something of a comic foil to show how erroneous ideas about investigating nature helped lead to modern science... [A] spirited telling."
and#8212;The Wall Street Journal
and#8220;You will come away from Glassie's book ... feeling inspired by the incredible inventive spirit of the man behind such creations as the and#8216;cat pianoand#8217; and and#8216;the speaking trumpetand#8217; and#8212; and at the same time a bit sad that such characters as Kircher have been left mostly forgotten in the winds of time. You'll feel more knowledgeable about everything because of this book.and#8221;
and#8212; The Atlantic Wire
and#8220;Hooh boy! ... Why do I love Kircher so much? Chalk it up to the manand#8217;s passion for scientific inquiry, and his boundless curiosity about how the world works.and#8221;
and#8212; Scientific American
and#8220;Glassieand#8217;s biography ... brings into stark relief the pressures of the intellectual climate he lived in ... a time when witch trials flourished, prevailing logic said bees spontaneously generated from dung, and when it was widely believed that something called the vegetable lamb plant of Tartary produced actual sheep as its fruit.and#8221;
and#8212; The Daily Beast
"In the course of his life, Kircher opined, almost invariably incorrectly, about the nature of light, magnetism, and the geography of the earthand#8230;Glassie has a genuine affection for Kircher despite the latter's laughably bizarre theories and self-aggrandizing egotism. In fact, the author's affection humanizes Kircher, making him oddly credible." and#8212;Publishers Weekly (starred review)
and#8220;An entertaining reminder that skepticism can be good.and#8221;
and#8212;Library Journal
and#8220;excellentand#8230;An entertaining and enlightening biography of a man who has been, probably unfairly, almost entirely left out of the history of science.and#8221;
and#8212;Booklistand#160;and#160;and#160;
"His sharp eye for the absurd helps Glassie make Kircher's story interesting and superbly human.... Glassie tells Kircher's complex story with humor and genuine passion, using fascinating details to bring us into Kircher's world.and#160;"
and#8212; Bookslut
"What makes A Man of Misconceptions fascinating is how it sets the intellectual scene of the 17th century ... and it's that clarity of scene that helps make sense of a contradictory character."
and#8212;Mental Floss Magazine
"Fun and magisterial ... A simply fascinating book about a fascinating figure."
and#8212; Baltimore City Paper
"Very entertaining."
and#8212; NPR's "Science Friday"
and#160;
Review
andldquo;Like his subject,andnbsp;Athanasius Kircher, writer John Glassie has the rare gift of authentic quirkiness.
A Man of Misconceptions leaves you contemplating the big questions, delightedly scratching your head, and laughingandmdash;all at the same time.andrdquo;
andmdash;Mark Kurlansky, author of Cod and Salt
andldquo;Iandrsquo;ve been waiting my entire adult life for someone to write a popular biography ofandnbsp;the loopy, ingenious scholar-priestandnbsp;Athanasius Kircher, and John Glassie has delivered marvelously. A man of insatiable curiosity and staggeringly diverse intellectual passions, Kircher may have been the greatest polymath of all timeandmdash;or at least the most eccentric.andrdquo;
andmdash;Joshua Foer, author of Moonwalking with Einstein
andldquo;Glassie brings the ultimate mad professor Athanasius Kircher vividly to life, revealing him to be a kind of cross between Leonardo da Vinci and Mr. Bean. A most entertaining foray into the history of science.andrdquo;
andmdash;Ross King, author of Brunelleschiandrsquo;s Dome
andldquo;A marvelous insight into the mind of one of the worldandrsquo;s most eccentric thinkers. Glassie brings Kircher to lifeandmdash;and what a life it is!andrdquo;
andmdash;Adrian Tinniswood, author of The Verneys and Pirates of Barbary
Review
and#8220;Like his subject,and#160;Athanasius Kircher, writer John Glassie has the rare gift of authentic quirkiness.
A Man of Misconceptions leaves you contemplating the big questions, delightedly scratching your head, and laughingand#8212;all at the same time.and#8221;
and#8212;Mark Kurlansky, author of Cod and Salt
and#8220;Iand#8217;ve been waiting my entire adult life for someone to write a popular biography ofand#160;the loopy, ingenious scholar-priestand#160;Athanasius Kircher, and John Glassie has delivered marvelously. A man of insatiable curiosity and staggeringly diverse intellectual passions, Kircher may have been the greatest polymath of all timeand#8212;or at least the most eccentric.and#8221;
and#8212;Joshua Foer, author of Moonwalking with Einstein
and#8220;Glassie brings the ultimate mad professor Athanasius Kircher vividly to life, revealing him to be a kind of cross between Leonardo da Vinci and Mr. Bean. A most entertaining foray into the history of science.and#8221;
and#8212;Ross King, author of Brunelleschiand#8217;s Dome
and#8220;A marvelous insight into the mind of one of the worldand#8217;s most eccentric thinkers. Glassie brings Kircher to lifeand#8212;and what a life it is!and#8221;
and#8212;Adrian Tinniswood, author of The Verneys and Pirates of Barbary
and#8220;What a brilliant and revealing book about a fascinating character, one I had no previous knowledge about.and#160;Glassieand#8217;s genius is to make Kircher and his era come alive for us centuries later in such a way that I can hear and touch him.and#8221; and#8212; Abraham Verghese, author of Cutting for Stone
"In the course of his life, Kircher opined, almost invariably incorrectly, about the nature of light, magnetism, and the geography of the earthand#8230;Glassie has a genuine affection for Kircher despite the latter's laughably bizarre theories and self-aggrandizing egotism. In fact, the author's affection humanizes Kircher, making him oddly credible." and#8212;Publishers Weekly (starred review)
and#8220;An entertaining reminder that skepticism can be good.and#8221;
and#8212;Library Journal
and#8220;excellentand#8230;An entertaining and enlightening biography of a man who has been, probably unfairly, almost entirely left out of the history of science.and#8221;
and#8212;Booklistand#160;and#160;and#160;
"His sharp eye for the absurd helps Glassie make Kircher's story interesting and superbly human.... Glassie tells Kircher's complex story with humor and genuine passion, using fascinating details to bring us into Kircher's world.and#160;"
and#8212; Bookslut
and#160;
About the Author
John Glassie, a former contributing editor to The New York Times Magazine, has written for The Believer, McSweeney's, The New York Times, Salon, Wired, and other publications. He is the author of the photo book Bicycles Locked to Poles and lives in Brooklyn, New York.