mondojohnson

David Leavitt, the author of The Lost Language of Cranes, among others, wrote this excellent biography of computer science legend Alan Turing.

Previous biographies of Turing have tended toward two extremes. At one end, there is the mathematical & philosophical exegesis: these usually focus on his considerable contributions to cryptanalysis, AI, and the practical mechanics of how “thinking machines” would function. These accounts tend to be a bit desexed: Turing’s sexuality is mentioned, as it must be, but usually as a part of his other professorial eccentricities.

The other extreme of Turing biographies soft-soap the mathematics and try to make him into a patron saint of homosexuality.

Leavitt’s book skillfully splits the difference between these poles. The often difficult mathematics are made engrossingly readable, in a manner reminiscent of my man Simon Singh (to whom he respectfully refers). The issues surrounding his sexuality and identity are woven throughout the book in a meaningful way; as opposed to being “tacked on” as they often are in other Turing books (“oh, and he was prosecuted for a homosexual act and committed suicide by eating a poisoned apple…”).

Leavitt, while recognizing the literary possibilities of Turing’s biography and work, doesn’t labor them. He has a light touch that gently leads the reader to these insights.