White also does a good job of explaining the bleak atmosphere at Cambridge University in the 17th century, and the workings and politics of the Royal Society, then in its infancy. His Principia, for example, was twenty years in the making and when it was published it was in Latin and deliberately written in a way to ensure very few people would be able to understand it. He explains in detail how Isaac Newton had a troubled childhood and how this may have adversely affected his personality in later life, leading him to be very secretive, trusting few people and disliking criticism, and resulting in him being reticent to publish his theories. In my opinion, Michael White has written an excellent, well researched biography of one of our greatest scientists.
Yet the scientific discoveries he gave to his contemporaries as well as to posterity will last for as long as the heavenly bodies whose secrets he so brilliantly unraveled. I came away from this book with conflicting views of the genius that was Isaac Newton on the one hand you simply can't be anything but in awe of his supreme mind, tenacity, ambition and imagination, yet on the other hand he was a rather wicked bastard who seemed hellbent on creating chaos and acrimony wherever he went, something I absolutely despise and imagine I would have despised the man himself on a personal level, had I known him. Non-fiction is one of my favorite genres some non-fiction authors have a tedious style but not Michael White, who I found to be highly engaging and easy to follow - his wealth of scientific knowledge is impressive indeed and his presentation is not at all plodding or boring quite the opposite.
I thoroughly enjoyed learning more about not only Newton but also his contemporaries, as well as the scientific and political affairs of that period in history and also the role alchemy itself playing in Newton's groundbreaking discoveries. Nevertheless, it was still fantastic insight into one of the most brilliant minds ever born. This book was different than what I'd expected - I thought it would contain more detailed mystical elements regarding Newton's work in alchemy (a subject which fascinates me).
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