FLY SWATTER, THE(ISBN=9780375700064)

　　A captivating memoir . . . showing personal triumphs over adversity. . . .The boy can do it. -Sylvia Nasar, The New York Times Book Review
　　
　　Wonderfully rich and precise. . . . Do me a favor. . . read the first paragraph. --Erik Lundegaard, The Seattle Times/Post Intelligencer
　　
　　Exquisitely written. . . . [C]ertain to charm away the idle hours. -Trevor Butterworth, The Washington Post Book World
　　
　　Both a study of the immigrant experience and a vivid picture of mid-century intellectual life at America's preeminent university. But most of all it is a touching portrait of a complex and staggeringly learned individual, written by one of the few people he allowed to touch his heart. Daniel Akst, Smithsonian
　　
　　An absorbing, psychologically nuanced and overall balanced appraisal of a complex man who lived in complex times. . . . A widely researched, meticulously documented portrayal. --Marion Abbott, San Francisco Chronicle
　　
　　Dawidoffs captivating family memoir is a tribute to his twice-exiled grandfather, the Harvard economist Alexander Gerschenkron, retracing his tortuous path to Cambridge and recounting the intellectual passion that earned Gerschenkron the title the last man with all known knowledge. The New York Times Book Review
　　
　　This is a splendidly crafted book: partly a valuable estimate of Gerschenkron's place in the history of theory, partly a study of academic life and politics in the 20th century and above all a thoughtful and often charming personal memoir. St. Louis Post-Dispatch
　　
　　Nicholas Dawidoff has written a wonderful book, full of humor, love, and understanding. The New York Sun
　　
　　It wouldnt be an overstatement to say this loving memoir is the most fascinating in its class. Chicago Tribune
　　
　　A loving, carefully researched, effortless-seeming booka delight to read. The story of the great Alexander Gerschenkron as told by his grandson combines the smallest and most telling personal details with an exhilarating wide-angle view of twentieth-century intellectual life. Ian Frazier, author of Family and Great Plains
　　
　　The Fly Swatter is a terrific book for many reasons. Amateur students . . . will appreciate Dawidoffs discussion of economic theory. Historians will likewise enjoy his chronicle of a human character moving through world events. . . . Dawidoffs unusual perspective as a grandson might be most compelling for another set of readers. The Austin Chronicle
　　
　　One marvelous memoir. Booklist
　　
　　To give birth to ones own grandfather is no mean feat, but that is exactly Dawidoffs great triumph. The Fly Swatter is a densely imagined, beautifully written book. Peter Carey, author of True History of the Kelly Gang
　　
　　If [Alexander Gerschenkron] has access to a celestial computer and can download (or perhaps upload) Nicky Boys moving tribute, he must be proudly savoring every word. The New Leader
　　
　　-- Review