In Uncle Tungsten Sacks evokes, with warmth and wit, his upbringing in wartime England. He tells of the large science-steeped family who fostered his early fascination with chemistry. There follow his years at boarding school where, though unhappy, he developed the intellectual curiosity that would shape his later life. And we hear of his return to London, an emotionally bereft ten-year-old who found solace in his passion for learning. Uncle Tungsten radiates all the delight and wonder of a boy's adventures, and is an unforgettable portrait of an extraordinary young mind. 'If you did not think that gallium and iridium could move you, this superb book will change your mind' The Times 'Uncle Tungsten is really about the raw joy of scientific understanding . . . Sacks perfectly captures the sheer thrill of finding intelligible patterns in nature' Guardian 'His boyhood passion was for chemistry: and this is a marvellous memoir of his early "love affair" with it . . . It is rare to read so rich and honest a description of an intellectual coming of age' Daily Telegraph