Hostage to Fortune: The Troubled Life of Francis Bacon

Rating:
Summary: Mixed Feelings
Review: A powerhouse of academic scholarship, this book is the most tedious and boring biography I have ever read. Too many pages on Bacon's political career, too little on his scientific achievements.

Rating:
Summary: Mixed Feelings
Review: A powerhouse of academic scholarship, this book is the most tedious and boring biography I have ever read. Too many pages on Bacon's political career, too little on his scientific achievements.

Rating:
Summary: Bacon for sceptics.
Review: While the book starts slowly with what seems to be an overly detailed account of Bacon's family and their activities, it is a clear headed and balanced account of a man who achieved fame across the centuries, as well as in his own time---but never great virtue, character or happiness in his own life. It is quite readable, and even engrossing in the second half. Scholars will appreciate the careful documentation and extensive reference to sources and supporting materials.