Challenges such as pregnancy, marriage, and social gendered roles treat Mileva, as a woman, harshly and her life is not without struggle. She suffers injustice at the hand of the time period, the intense social stigma and pressure, as well as sexism. At the nature of her suffering is the exploration of both the corrosive nature of ambition and the danger of a lack of human connection. She struggles with her self-worth all the while being looked down upon and ignored. Mileva faces numerous obstacles including her Eastern European heritage and physical limp with her undeniable brilliance and determination to succeed in a world that will not accept her. From the course of history, the reader already knows part of the story’s ending, making the unfolding of this drama even more heartbreaking and emotional. I was biased to love this book from the summary on the back alone: a largely untold story about an intelligent woman’s journey isolated in a man’s world and profession and the struggle to balance love and career. This book was so difficult for me to read – not because it was not enjoyable, but because I could tell that Mileva’s work and life would involve sacrifice and erasure.
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