The book begins by describing Albert’s childhood and experience in school. While most kids wanted to play games outside and have fun, Albert enjoyed spending his time solving puzzles and learning about science. In school he would ask a lot of questions; in fact, he asked so many that his teachers got annoyed with him and expelled him. Albert was then forced to learn things on his own. Although it took him time to gain respect in the science community, Albert published many theories and equations which were proven correct, and he became one of the most successful scientists of all time.
In The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, Rebecca Skloot explores the history of race and its relation to science, HeLa, and the woman behind the famous cells. While Skloot clearly details the scientific aspects of Henrietta’s story, she makes a nonfiction story read as though it is fiction by transforming a story about cells into one about family. This book was fantastic! It was filled with in-depth scientific accounts, legal research, and history lessons while still being entertaining.
The Battle for Room 314 by Ed Boland, published in 2016, tells the compelling story of his year teaching in an inner-city high school in New York City. As a young man, Boland worked for Project Advance, a non-profit working to place low-income, inner-city students in elite boarding schools and eventually Ivy League universities; however, he begins to feel unfulfilled and wants to widen his impact to help more deserving students.
