Entertaining Physics. Books One and Two. Entertaining Mechanics

This collection includes three books by the remarkable science popularizer Yakov Isidorovich Perelman (1882–1942) — both parts of «Entertaining Physics» and «Entertaining Mechanics». These works introduce readers to the world of scientific knowledge, help develop a taste for studying the exact sciences, and spark interest in independent creative activities.

478 illustrations in these books were created (in close contact with Perelman himself) by the staff artist of the Leningrad publishing house «Vremya», Yuri (Georgy) Dmitrievich Skal'din (1891–1951), the younger brother of the writer Alexei Dmitrievich Skal'din, who was able to wonderfully illustrate the most complex scientific phenomena and experiments.

Yakov Isidorovich Perelman (1882–1942) was neither a physicist, nor a mathematician, nor an astronomer - he graduated from the Forestry Institute in St. Petersburg (now SPbGLTU). He was neither a writer nor an educator - but he corresponded with the leading scientists and writers of the world, worked on compiling new textbooks and problem books in mathematics and physics, delivered over two thousand popular lectures, wrote about a hundred popular science books, and countless magazine articles. He did not make any scientific discoveries or inventions - but participated in the development of the project for the first Soviet anti-hail rocket, was the initiator of the introduction of decree time in our country, one of the founders of the genre of popular science literature, and the author of the term «science fiction». He did not hold any academic degrees or titles - but grateful readers invariably addressed him in their letters as «Dear Professor!». This is because in his writings, Yakov Isidorovich conveyed complex scientific problems in his own unique style, with astonishing clarity and visuality; even in the seemingly dry and boring topics, he managed to reveal bright, captivating features, making them extremely understandable even to the unprepared reader. It is not surprising that the books of the «people's professor of the Soviet Union» have survived dozens of reprints, have been translated into many languages, from English to Hindi, and their total circulation has reached tens of millions of copies to date.

This collection includes three books by Perelman - both parts of «Entertaining Physics» and «Entertaining Mechanics». These works introduce readers to the world of scientific knowledge, help develop a taste for studying the exact sciences, and spark interest in independent creative activities.

In the process of editing, we only replaced some outdated numbers, made some additions and notes, but as much as possible preserved the spirit of the time when these articles were created - when new discoveries had not yet been properly interpreted, airplanes were often called aeroplanes, Albert Einstein was a modest clerk at the patent office, and English science fiction writer Herbert Wells delighted readers with his new works. Fortunately, the scientific content of Yakov Isidorovich's articles is selected in such a way that it cannot become outdated ever.

All illustrations in these books were created (in close contact with Perelman himself) by the staff artist of the Leningrad publishing house «Vremya», Yuri (Georgiy) Dmitrievich Skal'din (1891–1951), who was able to beautifully illustrate the most complex scientific phenomena and experiments.