"More years ago than I care to reckon up, I met Richard Feynman." So begins THE LANGUAGE GOD TALKS, Herman Wouk's gem on navigating the divide between science and religion. In one rich, compact volume, Wouk draws on stories from his life as well as on key events from the 20th century to address the eternal questions of why we are here, what purpose faith serves, and how scientific fact fits into the picture. He relates wonderful conversations he's had with scientists such as Feynman, Murray Gell-Mann, Freeman Dyson, and Steven Weinberg, and brings to life such pivotal moments as the 1969 moon landing and the Challenger disaster. Brilliantly written, THE LANGUAGE GOD TALKS is a scintillating and lively investigation and a worthy addition to the literature.
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Herman Wouk's acclaimed books include The Will to Live On, This Is My God, Pulitzer Prize winner The Caine Mutiny, The Winds of War, and War and Remembrance.
At age 94, Wouk embarks on an autobiographical journey through his monumental writings (The Caine Mutiny; The Winds of War; War and Remembrance), people he has met in his life, world events, and books he has read (including the Talmud) to weave a testament of faith. Throughout the book, he returns to his friendship with Nobel laureateRichard Feynman, whose work as a scientist on the atomic bomb and life as a humanist challenge the author's Orthodox Jewish beliefs. Along the way the reader meets other scientists and their accomplishments and also some of Wouk's fictional characters. What most impresses Wouk is the big bang (the first three minutes) and the small bang (the universe giving birth to the mind) so that humans could comprehend God. Ever so faithful to his Jewish heritage, he discusses how research in the scientific and secular world strengthened his faith. This book will interest any person of faith who has followed Wouk's storied career and read his fiction. (Apr.)
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The first half of Wouk’s third book on religion (after This Is My God, 1959, and The Will to Live On, 1999) is as engaging as his megaselling historical novels. It’s about his encounters with famous scientists, foremost among them physicist Richard Feynman, who suggested Wouk learn the “language God talks”—calculus. Wouk tried, unsuccessfully, but anyway kept on meeting and palavering with scientists, a habit acquired researching the atom bomb for The Winds of War (1971) and War and Remembrance (1978). His recounting of the science history he learned, predominantly about space exploration, is done so personably that stargazing laypersons ought to be tickled pink. He uses a little paleoanthropology and more WWII research to bridge from science to religion but then, unfortunately, bogs down abstracting the Battle of Leyte and Holocaust episodes in the war novels. He finishes well, though, with an imaginary dialogue with Feynman that winningly binds him and the physicist as Jews and affirms the continuing viability of questioning God. Hard not to like. --Ray Olson
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