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The story ends in a heartbreak. A decade worth of effort and hard work was ultimately futile, as the invitation to visit Tuva came a few weeks too late. Time was but limited for Feynman, yet he hanged on the borrowed time, fighting with the cancer, and winning one battle after another. But that was not a war which could be won.
Ralph Leighton has mesmerized at several places while describing their effort to visit Kyzyl, capital of Tuva. And if you know Feynman one bit, it won't come as shock to you that he decided to visit the place for the simple reason that country's capital has no vowels in its name. That was enough for him, enough to convince him that the place must be 'exciting'. But not everyone in the American and Russian embassy were such buffoon. They needed a reason more subtle than that. And so the work started, an effort which will span over a decade bringing the largest Russian collection of antiques of Central Asia to America.
In 1988, they were sure to get an invitation and hence travel to Kyzyl. Unfortunately though, the Russians needed more time to draft the invitation for Feynman than the life itself gave him. He died of cancer on 15th February, 1988 (the invitation was drafted on 19th February), his dream of playing bongo to Tuvian audience in their auditorium unfulfilled!
Ralph Leighton has mesmerized at several places while describing their effort to visit Kyzyl, capital of Tuva. And if you know Feynman one bit, it won't come as shock to you that he decided to visit the place for the simple reason that country's capital has no vowels in its name. That was enough for him, enough to convince him that the place must be 'exciting'. But not everyone in the American and Russian embassy were such buffoon. They needed a reason more subtle than that. And so the work started, an effort which will span over a decade bringing the largest Russian collection of antiques of Central Asia to America.
In 1988, they were sure to get an invitation and hence travel to Kyzyl. Unfortunately though, the Russians needed more time to draft the invitation for Feynman than the life itself gave him. He died of cancer on 15th February, 1988 (the invitation was drafted on 19th February), his dream of playing bongo to Tuvian audience in their auditorium unfulfilled!
Was a pretty good book. Some cliches, some interesting turns. Started off a bit slow with lots of repetition in the plotline with similar events unfolding at the same pace. It picks up speed though and soon those repetitions are forgotten. Though after first few chapters one can guess how it's going to end, but the story remained captivating.
The prose was beautiful at times with great use of similes where words flowed in to each other and sentences interwove.
Just miffed at one of the sentences in what was almost the last chapter of the book. The line read something like "Belief is like gravity. Enough people believe it and suddenly it becomes as real as the ground underneath your feet." Wait...what? The author thinks that gravity is real only because enough people believe in it?
The prose was beautiful at times with great use of similes where words flowed in to each other and sentences interwove.
Just miffed at one of the sentences in what was almost the last chapter of the book. The line read something like "Belief is like gravity. Enough people believe it and suddenly it becomes as real as the ground underneath your feet." Wait...what? The author thinks that gravity is real only because enough people believe in it?
Loved it. Liked the idea and the premise of the book. The name sounds so apt now!
