Charles and Emma Summary
Deborah Heiligman

Charles and Emma Overview

Deborah Heiligman’s young adult book, Charles and Emma, tells the story of Charles and Emma Darwin, and their life-long conversation about religion, science, and family. Based on true events, notes, artifacts, letters, books, and diaries, Heiligman asserts that without Emma Darwin, Charles would not be the great scientist the world knows today. Heiligman proves how Darwin developed his most ground breaking ideas, and through it proves that no man is an island, particularly not the great Charles Darwin. This historical non-fiction young adult book shows the reader how the scientific process evolves, and explores the themes of the Tensions Between Religion and Science and The Connections Between Family and Work.