Defined by her notorious father, the poet Lord Byron, Ada Lovelace longs to know more about his life and her resemblances to him. Her mother has different ideas. Ada receives a strict and traditional education, with absolutely no daydreaming or poetry allowed.
At no point is Ada allowed to talk about her father – the man who went abroad when she was one and never returned.
Her father dies, and Ada grows. Her love of mathematics and patterns emerges, but she finds joy in patterns everywhere, especially in poetry and writing. Dreaming isn’t limited to art – it allows her to pose and answer scientific questions.
Ada’s scientific and literary passions demand to fly, but will she take them to great heights or will her mother clip her wings?
Ada Lovelace is famous for her contribution to the field of mathematics and computer science. She is equally famous for being the daughter of Byron, whose romantic pursuits were equally as famous as his poetry. His affairs were the stuff of gossip, and his wife, Arabella Milbanke, split with him on the grounds of his behaviour. Despite being an educational reformist, interested in ideas about learning that were, at the time, seen as radical by many people in a conservative society, Arabella belived a traditional education grounded in maths and the sciences would prevent her daughter inheriting Byron’s traits. I, Ada explores the resulting relationship between Arabella and her daughter. A girl with an insatiably curious mind.
I, Ada is also a story about learning itself. Ada sees links between subjects and refuses to believe maths is purely about logic, or that the arts are entirely about dreaming. I found this aspect of the book so relatable, and so exciting. When I started writing and reviewing books, I fell in love with pattern. Plot structure and scene structure and how plotlines come together. I drew diagrams and dreamed in pattern – at the expense, sometimes of other aspects of story. Lots of people couldn’t understand, when they asked what I wanted to write, and I spoke with enthusiasm about patterns I wanted to create. The truth is they were right and so was I. Stories need dreams and stories need patterns. They need other things too, like observation of the world around us. They need empathy. Character. It is too little acknowledged that patterns exist in subjects outside of STEM and yet our brains natural pattern makers and seekers. Pattern is how we process the world.
This is a beautiful story. Ada’s character is made relatable to any young person who has clashed with their parent. Her growing understanding of her mother as a person, and empathy for the decisions Arabella made, are sympathetically set out and key to Ada’s growth as a young woman.
I, Ada is something quite wonderful. It explores the links between arts and STEM subjects and gives a voice to women. One woman who, by setting boundaries makes herself unpopular. Another who longs to study and explore. I highly recommend this to readers and those with an interest in the historical period.
- I, Ada is available now from Andersen Press. RRP. £7.99 (Provided as part of a promotional blog tour)
I read another fictional book about her a while back. She sounds fascinating.
Agree that she’s a fascinating character to learn about. I, Ada is well worth a read.