Review: A Periodic Tale by Dr Karl Kruszelnicki

Let's face it. There was only ever going to be one biography that ever had a chance of being discussed on my blog today and Dr Karl's A Periodic Tale is it. One of the most interesting and engaging media personalities in Australia, Dr Karl has spent a long and legendary media career educating people about science. Not only is he knowledgable but his ability to speak to almost anyone and break down complex science to make it accessible is second to none. Australian radio is better off because he is in it. 

Dr Karl's work on Triple J (of which, clearly, I am a fan,) is just the tip of the iceberg. He's also had a slew of degrees, career changes and an interesting life outside of his working hours. And he's the author of forty-eight books. His latest A Periodic Tale is a departure from the popular science books that we all know and love. This time Dr Karl shares his engaging life story. Born in Sweden to Polish refugees who had survived the horrors of Nazi concentration camps, Dr Karl and his parents eventually moved to Australia. Prejudice was rife, but that didn't deter Dr Karl from a long and varied history of university study, career changes--including a stint as a taxi driver--to eventually become the scientist and media personality that we all know. There are anecdotes about family, his time living in a squat in Glebe and many other things. What I really loved, though, was that bits of science are weaved into the book where appropriate, truly making it a 'sciencey' memoir.

Overall, this is an interesting and engaging memoir. I was surprised to learn just how varied Dr Karl's life had been and I loved the way he details how he didn't stop when people put obstacles in his way. An engaging memoir.

Highly recommended.

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