Surely you're Joking Mr Feynman: Adventures of a Curious Character

Richard Feynman is one of the most wonderfully eclectic personalities of the 20th Century. A noble prize winning physicist, bongo player and artist this collection of memoirs recounts the myriad of crazy adventures and observations this man made during his most remarkable life. It was a pleasure to read, uplifting, funny and insightful, the man is an inspirational power house. If you've ever seen his lectures or heard him talk on documentaries then the words on the pages of this book will leap from the paper as you hear him speak them, his infectiously joyous personality bounds from page to page in a roaring adventure through his wonderful existence. It'll make you think for sure, it may make you cry, but most importantly of all it'll make you smile as you consider the world through the uniquely brilliant lens of this man's vast and quirky intellect.

Feynman is a genius, I am not. However, I also don't produce or research major theoretical physics papers in topless bars. Judge that as you may, but this book is a fascinating insight into the psyche of a genuine genius who seems to be as eccentric as you might expect a mad physicist to be. Feynman also has depth, passion and strong opinions on the development of science, research and education as well as drumming. Whilst the first half of this book is light and entertaining, the second half follows Feynman's passion more and I found it all the better for it. I was slightly disappointed the book didn't explore his personal life, but I'm not sure we're supposed to know - his professional and social life are intriguing enough. This is a thoroughly absorbing book and well worth the read.

I love this book. Constructed from a series of interviews, it covers Richard Feynman's life from childhood to probably the late 1970's. Clearly it's from his point of view, and only covers areas he felt like discussing, so there's very little about his marriage (although there is another book which has more detail on that), and nothing about the Challenger disaster (again, another book). But the anecdotes are interesting, some are hilarious, and I've managed to get my son to read and enjoy this as well. His time with the Manhattan Project is a particular source of amusement, and his move to Brazil is another rich fountain of anecdotes. The Big Bang Theory has probably brought his name to the attention of another generation of people. You've probably got at least 2 series' worth of material in this book.

Fun read

Richard Feynman is a genius in an unconventional way. He has an original way of thinking about problems and never seemed to things to seriously as he says himself he likes to play with physics. The book is not all about physics and also filled with wonderful anecdotes from his college days to later in his life. Feynman has a variety of interests from fixing radios in his younger days, to picking locks whist working on the atomic bomb, playing the bongo drums and trying his hand at Brazilian and Japanese. Whilst the book doesn't follow a strict chronological order the reader never gets lost. In summary, its an excellent book in my opinion, its easy to read and whilst I am still not finished it I find it to be a breath of fresh air. Richard Feynman is a man who plays with things because he is interested in them and never takes things to seriously, he just has to quench his thirst for a solution. In my opinion he is guy who really enjoyed life to the full! When you read it you will see what I mean!

I thought about putting 3 stars, but the book clearly states it is a series of anecdotes.... And that's what it is. Read half of it, could not stand just reading random anecdotes about opening safes and whatnot for pages and pages. I did not find the anecdotes particularly insightful or engaging, and the writing style felt a bit all over the place in may sections - probably a reflection of his genious or something. I would have enjoyed having an insight into his thoughts, views on different issues, but again that's my fault, the book never said it did that. The anecdotes show his eccentricity, but that's not enough to make it interesting.

A BBC Radio 4 book review programme left me expecting more. It's an OK, quirky, episodic canter through incidents in this brainy physicists life. The book spills over with ingenuity and all manner of telling observations. It is also quite two-dimensional and souless. He's quite the centre of his own universe. All rather sad I'm afraid and not at all uplifting for this reader. His approach to women left me spluttering in my coffee. 3 stars may actually be too generous.

Highly funny and entertaining book for Feynman fans and anyone who likes reading about interesting characters.

Nice anecdotes of a brilliant man. Mr. Feynman strikes me as a man that I would like to have a beer with - he is nothing like the stereotype scientists we see in movies these days.

Eğer bilime, şeylerin nasıl olduğuna ve arkasındaki hikayelere meraklıysanız soluksuz okuyabileceğiniz bir kitap. Feynman'ın üslubu her zamanki gibi çok akıcı ve keyifli. Tabii ki fizik, matematik ve analitik düşünmeye olan ilgisini kitabın her yerinde hissediyorsunuz.

題名どうり、何処までが真実でどこから冗談話なのか分からない。分かるのは著者の思考法がユニークで自由闊達、何よりも興味対象が並はずれ広い。量子力学が専攻だが、暗号解読、音楽、ダンス、教育、ストリップ鑑賞、玄人と素人への口説き方の違い？、言語（含む日本語）、幻覚症状等、何にでも手を出す。それらの合間に量子力学を研究し、ノーベル物理学賞を得るのだから、天才中の天才の頭脳です。逆に、名誉や地位には一切興味が無くノーベル賞を受賞したら、その権威でトップレス・バーに通えなくなると一度は辞退したとか？ 異文化が好きでブラジル滞在時、懸命にノートを取る学生の授業態度に関心し、質問をしたら内容は丸暗記しているが論理を理解してないので、回答できないと知り啞然とする。今でもどこかの国は同じです。私は学生時代本書を読み、「学者の半分も量子力学を理解してない」との一節に触れ、物理学から離れました。宇宙人のような著者の試行錯誤と興味の対象を広げる生き方は大変参考になります。

Richard Feynman begeistert in diesem Buch mit diversen Anekdoten aus seinem Leben. Es sind lustige, interessante, aber auch zum Nachdenken anregende Geschichten aus seinem Leben, die diese Biographie so lesenswert machen. Feynman war ein sehr antiautoritärer Mensch, der stets den Status Quo in Frage stellte und Regeln, die er für sinnlos erachtete, einfach ignorierte. Er hielt nichts von Preisverleihungen und jeglichem Pomp zugunsten einer Person. Dies führte dann, wie von ihm im Buch sehr amüsant erzählt, zu lustigen Ereignissen rund um den Nobelpreis, den er zusammen mit Kollegen 1965 gewann. Richard Feynman war und bleibt aufgrund seiner Art, gegen ihm völlig schwachsinnig vorkommende Sachverhalte humorvoll zu rebellieren, eine Inspiration Jener, die sich im Alltag oft von sinnfreien Vorschriften und abstrusen Regelungen veräppelt vorkommen. Er würde natürlich dagegen protestieren, wenn ihn jemand als Inspiration bezeichnet. Das Buch ist an erster Stelle eine tolle Sammlung an Anekdoten und Geschichten aus seinem Leben, die chronologisch angeordnet sind und aus verschiedenen Lebensabschnitten erzählen. Es geht um viel Physik, Reisen und persönliche Erlebnisse. Was das Buch großartig macht, ist dass man hier einen tiefen Eindruck in die persönliche Entwicklung von Feynman bekommt und sein Handeln und Blick auf die Welt grundlegend zu verstehen beginnt. Ich kann das Buch uneingeschränkt jedem empfehlen, der ein wenig Bereitschaft mitbringt auch über ein wenig Physik zu lesen.

Feynman's brilliant and eccentric personality charms through the pages of this wonderful book. His curiosity is contagious and makes you want to live life as full as he did.