Travelling to Infinity ( The True Story behind "The Theory of Everything" by Jane Hawkings *****

This was a wonderful memoir of Jane's life with Stephen Hawking, who is probably the greatest scientific genius of modern times, and who has suffered from motor- neuron disease, known in North America as ALS since he was in his 20s. 

If I had seen that the print was as small as it was, I might not have purchased the book, and at 479 pages of text, it was sometimes demanding physically to read it, but I thoroughly enjoyed every single page. It is a clear, honest depiction of the duties of a caregiver, and in Jane's case, those duties fell on her shoulders from before their marriage through the births and growth of their three children, all the while trying to fulfill her own academic goals, not to mention the high level of care required around the clock for her husband, whose celebrity had several adverse effects on their lives: people thought they were rich, so didn't need assistance, Stephen himself naturally enough bathed in the glow of this celebrity and the knowledge that he was the center of everyone's attention,,so that Jane felt herself just to be a caregiver, and in the opinion of his family and the nurses who eventually took over his care, not a good caregiver. 

There was an interesting dynamic in this family, with the musician Jonathon - I don't think we're ever told his last name- becoming a part of the family, and actually a godsend to Jane, whose emotional and physical well-being were somewhat restored by his inclusion. 

Probably one of the best memoirs I've ever read.

I reread this for Book Club , November 14, 2015. I found Jane a little harder to take in this reading. I think she should have stood up to Stephen a little earlier, and I feel she became very bitter towards everyone as time went on. Considering her relationship with Jonathon, I think she should have welcomed Elaine's involvement with open arms.