Famous thinkers in your attic? A review of Einstein in the Attic

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Introduction

Einstein in the Attic is a wonderful and quirky book written by Dana Dargos and Said Al Bizri. Dargos is a U.S. fiction author, and Al Bizri is a writer and existential researcher. This is their first novel, which took them five years to research and write.

Published in January 2022, it is a contemporary novel that addresses themes of philosophy/theology, academic politics, self-doubt, with the unusual plot involving bringing famous thinkers from the past into the present to debate science and religion.

Having degrees in theology, music, and law, this book interested me greatly. I generally dislike discussions about the “conflict” between science and religion because those fields try to do two different things. Science attempts to understand how; theology attempts to understand why. Science asks such questions as, “how did the world come to be?” and “what forces made it happen?” Theology asks such questions as, “why was the world created?” and “does it have a meaning and purpose?” To contrast a creation narrative from Genesis (why the world was created) with evolution (how life came to be) are two different issues.

Having said that, this book does not try to “prove” the Bible with science or vice versa. Instead, it approaches the question in a responsible and factual way: are there holes in evolutionary theory, and has the world accepted a theory as fact when there are still many, many questions?

It is true that some are prone to treat science as their religion: in other world, it becomes emotional, my-way-is-the-only-way, be all and end all of human existence. I’ve always thought that was short-sighted, and actually does the opposite of what the scientific method is supposed to do (unbiased fact-finding).

Dargos and Al Bizri have written this book as a way to approach the topic in an interesting, quirky, humorous and serious manner. Well worth a read!

Summary of Einstein in the Attic

While the central idea of the novel is really a treatment of whether science rules out God or not, the plot is fascinating. It takes the idea that radio waves and sound waves do not escape the earth into space and disappear, but get trapped in a bubble on earth. The white noise on televisions and radios is actually all the voices from all time. With the proper equipment, you can hear the voices of people from the past, and perhaps, with the right technology, bring them into the present for a time.

The story is about a protagonist, Adam (which means “human” in Hebrew), who has struggled with his faith and science.

Set against the backdrop of the war between science and God, reason and faith, Einstein in the Attic is the story of one scientist’s search for truth and meaning when faced with the ultimate question: Is there a God? Fleeing war-torn Lebanon, Adam Reemi’s faith is shaken by the hardships he has endured, but when he and a colleague successfully construct a nano hadron collider, and using sound waves, Adam finds unheard-of power at his fingertips.

To help him answer the greatest question mankind has ever posed, he zaps the best philosophical minds of all time–namely Albert Einstein, Isaac Newton, Søren Kierkegaard, and Baruch Spinoza–from the past and into his attic. Not all goes according to plan, however, and Adam finds himself in a race against time to formulate an answer to the question of intelligent design… or risk losing everything.

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Plot, character, setting

Plot and Setting

The plot is fairly well-designed and written. For the most part, it keeps the reader engaged. Some scenes and Adam’s constant psychological traumas seemed a bit much at times, and other scenes appeared unnecessary or too long. Still, the narrative kept me engaged because I wanted to find out what happened—a key for any good writing.

The premise is quite fascinating, to bring philosophers and scientists back from the past. I was curious why the authors chose these four (Einstein, Kierkegaard, Spinoza, and Newton). After all, they lived in very different times, and not all are scientists and theologians or philosophers (at least not in modern definitions).

Still, it is a fascinating group of some of the world’s famous thinkers: a modern German theoretic physicist, a 19th-century Danish theologian and philosopher, an 18th-century mathematician/physicist/astronomer, and a 17th-century Jewish Dutch philosopher. What they all have in common is an interest in theology.

Characters

The authors knew the works of these philosophers and did a pretty good job of representing them in tone, personality, and thought. Perhaps they adjusted to being transported to modern times a bit too easily and quickly, but that is in service to the novel—fiction requires some shortcuts at times.

At times, the four men seem almost cartoonish, almost caricatures of themselves in some silliness. While that might seem to diminish the portrayal of the famous men, it also serves to lighten up the treatment of a serious and possibly pedantic issue. I assume that is the reason for the levity. (For example, Adam and Muntz first take the four men to Starbucks to discuss the existence of God and the purpose of reality. Imagine a 17th century man in a “woke” Starbucks.)

The book begins with Adam as a young boy, experiencing a set of traumas: his mother died, his father’s personality changed, his life was a constant struggle with mental issues, and some dysfunction with his girlfriend. Grave and rather dark, but well done Then, suddenly, the humor and levity emerges once the philosophers appear. It was a stylistic shift that seemed too sudden (although, to be fair, Adam’s traumas do arise throughout, and he even makes some progress by the end, though he seems quite slow to learn.)

Literary aspects and critiques

Quality of Manuscript

There are some minor typos throughout, primary missing punctuation, accidental capitalizations, misplaced quotation marks, and wording problems. All of this would be an easy fix with a good outside editor.

For example,

“as if a bomb were about to implode at any minute.”

Bombs don’t implode, they explode. Paragraph returns are sometimes missing, making it a bit difficult to tell who is speaking. The authors not only use quotations marks for dialog, but sometimes for what a character is thinking. This is confusing until I realized what was going on. (The accepted way is to use quotation marks, attribution, or exposition.) For example,

“Is she ignoring me? Did I do something wrong?” I began to grow hot, and my shoulders tensed up. “Evie?”

Literary Content Issues

The protagonist is Adam, and much of the book is written from his first-person perspective. However, once in a while, it will shift to 3rd person perspective, sometimes of Adam, but sometimes of other people. There is nothing wrong with this technique, but it seems to have to literary purpose, but just a random choice. It is quite possible I am missing something, however.

For me, the ending dragged out. Not only does it take too long to get there, but at thew final debate, the climax, there was no reason to introduce every participant in excoriating detail combined with stage directions.

My final critique also has to do with the opposing sides in the debate: pro-evolution who are anti-intelligent designer party versus evolution skeptic, intelligent designer party. Those four options are not always on the same side. I know scientists who are evolution-skeptic but do not believe in an intelligent designer. Likewise, I know some who embrace the theory of evolution in full, but believe an intelligent designer is behind it.

However, in the scope of a novel, the selection of opposing sides works fine, if a bit contrived. The antagonist, Nelson, throughout the book, is perhaps a bit too flat: selfish, conniving, self-absorbed, and evil in wanting to destroy someone because they think differently. Still, this not unusual in novels where we want to pit good versus evil. I prefer a bit more ambiguity between the sides.

These last critiques are minor, however, and, in the scope of a novel, probably necessary. I’m aware I often think more rationally than creatively—and creatively wins out here.

Summary and recommendation for Einstein in the Attic

Aside from my minor critiques above, this is an interesting and engaging read for its unusual plot, engaging characters, and the way in which the main theme is addressed. My interest in theology, science, history, and literature made it a wonderful experience.

If you have an interest in science and philosophy, you’ll probably enjoy this book. We’ve all likely felt as unprepared and inadequate as Adam, and the authors take us through his journey is a realistic and sound way. Even if you don’t have any particular interest in these issues, I think any reader who enjoys being entertained and challenged to think would appreciate Einstein in the Attic.

Kudos to Dargos and Al Bizri for a creative, thought-provoking, and well-written novel. I will remember this one for a long time, and look forward to the next book.

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