SKU: 16532625476

Uncle Tungsten: Memories of a Chemical Boyhood

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Description

Uncle Tungsten: Memories of a Chemical BoyhoodLong before Oliver Sacks became a distinguished neurologist and bestselling writer, he was a small English boy fascinated by metals also by chemical reactions (the louder and smellier the better), photography, squids and cuttlefish, H. G. Wells, and the periodic table. In this endlessly charming and eloquent memoir, the author of The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat and Awakenings chronicles his love affair with science and the magnificently odd and

Long before Oliver Sacks became a distinguished neurologist and bestselling writer, he was a small English boy fascinated by metals-also by chemical reactions (the louder and smellier the better), photography, squids and cuttlefish, H.G. Wells, and the periodic table. In this endlessly charming and eloquent memoir, the author of The Man Who Mistook His Wife for a Hat and Awakenings chronicles his love affair with science and the magnificently odd and sometimes harrowing childhood in which that love affair unfolded.

In Uncle Tungsten we meet Sacks' extraordinary family, from his surgeon mother (who introduces the fourteen-year-old Oliver to the art of human dissection) and his father, a family doctor who imbues in his son an early enthusiasm for housecalls, to his "Uncle Tungsten," whose factory produces tungsten-filament lightbulbs. We follow the young Oliver as he is exiled at the age of six to a grim, sadistic boarding school to escape the London Blitz, and later watch as he sets about passionately reliving the exploits of his chemical heroes-in his own home laboratory. Uncle Tungsten is a crystalline view of a brilliant young mind springing to life, a story of growing up which is by turns elegiac, comic, and wistful, full of the electrifying joy of discovery.

Binding Type: Paperback
Publisher: Vintage
Published: 09/17/2002
ISBN: 9780375704048
Pages: 337
Weight: 0.75lbs
Size: 7.90h x 5.20w x 0.70d

Review Citations: BookPage 10/01/2002 pg. 25
New York Times 09/22/2002 pg. 28
Entertainment Weekly 10/18/2002 pg. 118
Kliatt 03/01/2003 pg. 53
People Weekly 09/14/2015 pg. 50

Accelerated Reader Quiz #/Name: 60053 / Uncle Tungsten: Memories of a Chemical Boyhood
Reading Level: 10.7 / Interest Level: Upper Grade / Point Value: 25
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SKU: 16532625476

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Kimberly M
Massapequa, US
★★★★★ 3
Comfy shoe, Not a great dupe
Size: 6.5, Color: Black Leather, Size: 6.5, Color: Black Leather
These are so cute and comfy and I love them. Minus two stars because I specifically bought them for the little silver SM on the bottom so they’d look better than the ones at Walmart. These did not come with the little silver logo on the bottom.
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Reviewed in the United States on March 9, 2026
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Cydpea23
Chelsea, US
★★★★★ 1
Super cute but came damaged & really annoying to walk in
Size: 8, Color: Black Leather, Size: 8, Color: Black Leather
Super cute but mine came damaged and the straps don’t stay up great… I love Steve Madden shoes, and own a few pairs already, so I had high hopes for these heels. I ordered these for a wedding coming up and I hadn’t opened the package right away as I was out of town, when I got back I was so excited to try them on only to find that they came already scuffed on the toes and heels!! It looked like they had been worn multiple times already, so that was upsetting. In terms of fit, I ordered a size 8, and it fit true to size as far at the sole goes, as for the strap that goes from in between your toes and around your heel, it falls off after taking 3 steps and is honestly really annoying! The strap that goes across the top of your foot was also wayyy loose on my feet and didn’t help the other strap stay in place much making it super difficult to walk in them, every step felt like they were about to fly off my feet! Unfortunately, I will be returning them.
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Reviewed in the United States on May 15, 2025
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Dawn Goodreaux
San Leandro, US
★★★★★ 5
Comfortable and cute
Size: 9, Color: Coral Leather, Size: 9, Color: Coral Leather
Loved!!!
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Reviewed in the United States on June 7, 2025
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Mrs.Picky
Draper, US
★★★★★ 2
Blue kitten heels
Size: 9.5, Color: Blue Leather
These are very pretty shoes with a comfortable heel height. The first time I wore them, they started slipping in the back. The strap that goes around the heel is not adjustable and they ended up flopping as I walked. I ordered my normal size and they fit perfectly so I couldn’t go down a size. Oh well…. Too late to return them.
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Reviewed in the United States on June 7, 2025
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Marcie Ragano
Omaha, US
★★★★★ 5
Love these shoes
Size: 5.5, Color: White Leather
These Steve Madden shoes are so comfortable. I can wear them all day. I also have them in.
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Reviewed in the United States on June 17, 2025

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