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Charles And Emma: The Darwins' Leap Of Faith (2009)

by Deborah Heiligman(Favorite Author)

3.69 of 5 Votes: 5

ISBN

0805087214 (ISBN13: 9780805087215)

languge

English

genre

History & Biography

publisher

Henry Holt and Co. (BYR)

review 1: Heiligman, D. (2009). Charles and Emma: The Darwins’ leap of faith. New York, NY: Henry Holt and Company.Informational2010 YALSA Award for Excellence in Nonfiction WinnerHeiligman presents personal information about Charles Darwin, the man known for the theory of evolution and coining the term, natural selection, and his wife Emma in Charles and Emma. Although this text shows how Charles studied himself and his children in addition to his animal specimens, how he worked incessantly and struggled to balance his duties, and how he struggled with disclosing his ideas to others, this book’s larger message shows the audience the role religion played in 19th century England and the social customs of the era. Charles and Emma is an excellent nonfiction text for 9th-12th grade... more students, and it will connect well to both world history and biology classes in addition to being an excellent choice for a nonfiction reading in an English course. This text lends itself well to discovering how people actually lived in British society in the 19th century. Furthermore, it will facilitate students understanding of the interwoven role religion once played in every aspect of citizen’s lives and the scientific misconceptions people largely held at this time. I really enjoyed reading this book, and it really helped me understand why it took Charles Darwin so long to publish his book, The Origin of Species, after his voyage to the Galapagos Islands on the HMS Beagle.
review 2: This was a terrific, terrific read. I don't think I ever would have picked it up on my own. I mean, a nonfiction book about Charles and Emma Darwin. No, not really up my alley but last week I was going on a trip and had nothing to read and my mom had just bought this so I thought, "Hmm, why not." So, after finishing off Entertainment Weekly I started this and I am so glad. It is a delightful book and so interesting. It is the story of how Charles and Emma's marriage worked despite the fact that he did not believe in religion and she was very devout. The book is so well written and the author's words are so seamlessly woven together with so many primary sources. I was so impressed with how the author used so many direct quotations. It is amazing how many letters, notebooks, and documents the Darwin family kept. It was amazing to read about Darwin's discovery and how he worked on it for years and rewrote and revised. He was a genius. I think my favorite part of this book, however, was the story of the Darwin's marriage and the glimpse into this scientists love. Love for his wife and his darling children who he simply adored. Both of them did. They were uncharacteristic Victorian parents and had their children around them all the time and loved them. The Darwins marriage, which is at the forefront of this novel, is simply amazing. I was so impressed with their devout adoration for one another. Honestly, reading this book made me want to be a better wife and best friend. And it made me want to write hand written letters again! GO AND READ THIS! If I were in a book club (sigh, I miss Milwaukee) I would recommend this. Just a snippet from a letter Charles wrote to Emma:"I wish you knew how I value you; and what an inexpressible blessing it is to have one whom one can always trust, one always the same, always ready to give comfort, sympathy and the best advice. God bless you, my dear, you are too good for me." less

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