The Search for E. T. Bell: Also Known as John Taine (Spectrum)

But his early life was rather a mystery, and when Albers and Alexanderson, two mathematicians who were attempting to profile Bell, talked to Reid, she became intrigued by the contradictory statements and minimal evidence about where he lived up until the early 1920's. He'd always claimed to be Scottish--but was he born in Aberdeen or Peterhead? He said he'd traveled around the world as a teenager--but never said exactly when or how. He claimed to have been at the University of London, which didn't fit with what else was known about his education. Reid talked to Bell's son Taine, and soon decided that she had a mystery to unravel. Initially she agreed only to write the story of his early life, but eventually wrote a full biography.

The book is told in the present tense, as Reid walks us through her early discoveries. This is a device that works well in the early chapters, when she is talking to folks in Peterhead and San Jose, trying to find clues; but it palls later. By the twenties Bell's career was enough in the public record that it would have been pointless for him to lie about it, and from that point on Reid's occasional interjections in the present tense, as she relates a discovery or inconsistency, are a little jarring.

That's a minor point though. The book is fascinating, both in its portrait of Bell, who was multi-faceted--a distinguished mathematician, a prolific sf author, and a top-flight popular mathematics writer--and in the story of the detective work Reid had to do. Eventually Reid does uncover almost everything one could hope for, though Bell's motivation for lying about his past will probably never be known. It becomes apparent by late in the book that Bell never even told his wife the truth about his first years.

His mathematical career is covered in reasonable detail, with some input from Lincoln Durst, who has spent much time studying Bell's papers. It's clear that Bell was original and influential, though oddly it appears that the gift of smooth exposition so in evidence in his popular work was sometimes missing from his mathematical papers. Apparently there have been many instances when later mathematicians have rediscovered results originally due to Bell, mainly because his papers were often obscure or poorly written.

The only real criticism I have is the lack of a bibliography. Even a list of twenty or so important papers would have sufficed for the mathematics, but for the books I think it is a real omission. Other than that, however, this is a great biography and a fascinating read. Recommended.


Sleuthing for the truth about E. T. Bell   March 16, 2000
 11 out of 11 found this review helpful

Disingenuous about his past and occasionally a rubber sheet geometrist in his writings, Eric Temple Bell was a most complicated person. However, his writings on the history of mathematics are examples of extremely effective prose and are a joy to read. Many people have testified to the fact that his books led them to pursue a career in mathematics. Constance Reid captures all of this, in a book that at times is more of a detective story than a biography. She captures the soul of the man so well that immediately after reading the book, this reviewer went back and reread Bell's book, Men of Mathematics. And that is the highest compliment that a biography can receive.
Exactly where Bell was and what he was doing in his early years had never been conclusively determined and his statements were false and contradictory. With amazing perseverance, Reid manages to answer most of the questions, in a fascinating account of searching the most mundane of records. One is truly astonished at the thoroughness of human record-keeping back into the middle of the nineteenth century. Why Bell chose to make the claims that he did about his past is something that will never be known.
Of course, Bell was also an extremely prolific author of mathematical papers and a writer of science fiction under the pen name of John Taine. It is unfortunate that his talent for fiction crept into his other work. As is mentioned in the book, some of Bell's historical writings were false, and there is little doubt that he knew it. Just another twist in his complicated persona.
A fascinating, thorough account of a legend who deserves the pedestal, this work captures all of the man - the good, the bad and the confusing.

Published in Journal of Recreational Mathematics, reprinted with permission.