Skip to main content
PBS logo
 
 

Search - A Beautiful Mind

A Beautiful Mind
A Beautiful Mind
Author: Sylvia Nasar
In this dramatic and moving biography, Sylvia Nasar re-creates the life of a mathematical genius whose brilliant career was cut short by schizophrenia and who, after three decades of devastating mental illness, miraculously recovered and was honored with a Nobel Prize. A Beautiful Mind traces the meteoric rise of John Forbes Nash, Jr., f...  more »
ISBN-13: 9780571212927
ISBN-10: 0571212921
Publication Date: 2/4/2002
Pages: 461
Rating:
  • Currently 3.5/5 Stars.
 2

3.5 stars, based on 2 ratings
Publisher: Faber and Faber
Book Type: Paperback
Other Versions: Hardcover, Audio Cassette, Audio CD
Members Wishing: 0
Reviews: Member | Amazon | Write a Review
Read All 8 Book Reviews of "A Beautiful Mind"

Please Log in to Rate these Book Reviews

miss-info avatar reviewed A Beautiful Mind on + 386 more book reviews
I liked the movie and I like reading biographies, so this should have been a really good book for me. Unfortunately, I felt the need for a higher math education than I have to understand the first third of the book. Most of what's left is a detailed, play-by-play account of Nash's madness. The movie was very accessable, but the book is much more cerebral. The author used letters, diaries, and interviews to put together the facts, which are presented in a somewhat choppy method that does not draw one into the telling.

That said, I did read the entire book (minus the difficult parts that I skimmed) and did find his overall life interesting. I do not recommend this book to the casual reader.
miss-info avatar reviewed A Beautiful Mind on + 386 more book reviews
I liked the movie and I like reading biographies, so this should have been a really good book for me. Unfortunately, I felt the need for a higher math education than I have to understand the first third of the book. Most of what's left is a detailed, play-by-play account of Nash's madness. The movie was very accessable, but the book is much more cerebral. The author used letters, diaries, and interviews to put together the facts, which are presented in a somewhat choppy method that does not draw one into the telling.

That said, I did read the entire book (minus the difficult parts that I skimmed) and did find his overall life interesting. I do not recommend this book to the casual reader.
reviewed A Beautiful Mind on + 43 more book reviews
Much more in depth than the movie. It does spend more time on his childhood, how he influenced the field of mathematics, and his decent into schizophrenia. Well researched, but a bit dry. It may be a great book to read if you are interested in a good biography or mathematics and/or economics.
miss-info avatar reviewed A Beautiful Mind on + 386 more book reviews
I liked the movie and I like reading biographies, so this should have been a really good book for me. Unfortunately, I felt the need for a higher math education than I have to understand the first third of the book. Most of what's left is a detailed, play-by-play account of Nash's madness. The movie was very accessable, but the book is much more cerebral. The author used letters, diaries, and interviews to put together the facts, which are presented in a somewhat choppy method that does not draw one into the telling.

That said, I did read the entire book (minus the difficult parts that I skimmed) and did find his overall life interesting. I do not recommend this book to the casual reader.
reviewed A Beautiful Mind on + 81 more book reviews
A good book but needs lots of concentration to read. Lots of math descriptions as are appropriate for a story about a math genius.
miss-info avatar reviewed A Beautiful Mind on + 386 more book reviews
I liked the movie and I like reading biographies, so this should have been a really good book for me. Unfortunately, I felt the need for a higher math education than I have to understand the first third of the book. Most of what's left is a detailed, play-by-play account of Nash's madness. The movie was very accessable, but the book is much more cerebral. The author used letters, diaries, and interviews to put together the facts, which are presented in a somewhat choppy method that does not draw one into the telling.

That said, I did read the entire book (minus the difficult parts that I skimmed) and did find his overall life interesting. I do not recommend this book to the casual reader.
reviewed A Beautiful Mind on + 33 more book reviews
Interesting; basis of the movie.
reviewed A Beautiful Mind on + 9 more book reviews
The story of a man from West Virginia who was a mathemetical genius who slipped into a state of madness. It took a beautiful woman and a community who believed in him to bring him back into reality. He went on to win a Nobel Prize and world acclaim.


Genres: