The biographical novel begins in late nineteenth-century Munich, where the young Albert Einstein lives happily with his affluent, loving family but hates the highly disciplined German schools. Emphasizing rote learning, the teachers discourage students from asking questions and confuse the young Jewish boy by teaching the Catholic religion in the same matter-of-fact manner in which they teach reading and arithmetic.

When Albert is a teenager, the setting shifts to Milan, Italy, where his father has gone to make a fresh start after a business failure in Munich. Albert stays in Munich for a while to continue his schooling but becomes so unhappy that he leaves and joins his family. In Italy he enjoys an atmosphere of freedom, hiking in the mountains, visiting art galleries, and attending concerts and operas. But his father's business does not prosper, and it is necessary for Albert to prepare himself for a career...