Measuring the World
Measuring the World (German: Die Vermessung der Welt) is a novel by Austrian author Daniel Kehlmann, published in 2005 by Rowohlt Verlag, Reinbek. The novel re-imagines the lives of German mathematician Carl Friedrich Gauss and German geographer Alexander von Humboldt—who was accompanied on his journeys by French explorer Aimé Bonpland—and their many groundbreaking ways of taking the world's measure, as well as Humboldt's and Bonpland's travels in America and their meeting in 1828. One subplot fictionalises the conflict between Gauss and his son Eugene; while Eugene wanted to become a linguist, his father decreed that he study law. The book was a bestseller; by 2012 it had sold more than 2.3 million copies in Germany alone.[1]
 First edition (German) | |
| Author | Daniel Kehlmann |
|---|---|
| Original title | Die Vermessung der Welt |
| Translator | Carol Brown Janeway |
| Country | Germany |
| Language | German |
| Genre | Novel |
| Publisher | Rowohlt Verlag Pantheon Books |
Publication date | September 2005 |
Published in English | November 7, 2006 |
| Pages | 304 (German hardcover edition) 272 (English hardcover edition) |
| ISBN | 3-498-03528-2 (German hardcover edition) ISBN 0-375-42446-6 (English hardcover edition) |
| OCLC | 61714982 |
| LC Class | PT2671.E32 V47 2005 |
A film version directed by Detlev Buck was released in 2012.[2]
Translations
The English translation is by Carol Brown Janeway (November 2006).[3]
Rosa Pilar Blanco translated the book into Spanish.
References
- Zwei Genies erforschen die Welt – in 3D!, bild.de, 25 October 2012
- Measuring the World IMDb
- Oort, F. (2008). "Review of Measuring the World by Daniel Kehlmann, trans. by Carol Brown Janeway" (PDF). Notices of the AMS. 55 (6): 681–684.