Albert Einstein

Since 1922, Princeton University Press has been honored to publish the work of Albert Einstein (1879‑1955). That year, the Press published Einstein’s The Meaning of Relativity, becoming the first US publisher to produce a book by the the most important scientist of the twentieth century. Based on lectures Einstein delivered at Princeton University in 1921, the book provided an overview of his then-controversial theory of relativity. A foundational book of modern physics, The Meaning of Relativity has been in print ever since its first publication, has been translated into more than fifty languages, and is at the heart of the Press’s science publishing.

Today, the Press’s Einstein publishing program extends to all his writings. Providing the first assemblage and English translation of Einstein’s massive written legacy, The Collected Papers of Albert Einstein is published by Princeton University Press and edited by The Einstein Papers Project at the California Institute of Technology with the assistance of The Albert Einstein Archives at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. In addition, these three partners together produce The Digital Einstein Papers—an online platform that provides readers around the world with open access to The Collected Papers.

A range of additional Einstein-related books published by the Press—including works of popular science, histories of science, critical editions, biographies, and textbooks—amplifies and supports Einstein’s own writings, and reflects his enduring relevance.

Albert Einstein’s writings are protected by copyright. Learn more about Permission Guidelines for Albert Einstein’s Writings.

Collection Titles

Einstein Was Right: The Science and History of Gravitational Waves Edited by Jed Z. Buchwald

An authoritative interdisciplinary account of the historic discovery of gravitational waves

Einstein on Einstein: Autobiographical and Scientific Reflections Jürgen Renn and Hanoch Gutfreund

New perspectives on the iconic physicist's scientific and philosophical formation

Einstein in Bohemia Michael D. Gordin

A finely drawn portrait of Einstein's sixteen months in Prague

Relativity: The Special and the General Theory - 100th Anniversary Edition Albert Einstein

A handsome annotated edition of Einstein’s celebrated book on relativity

The Physicist and the Philosopher: Einstein, Bergson, and the Debate That Changed Our Understanding of Time Jimena Canales

The explosive debate that transformed our views about time and scientific truth

The Travel Diaries of Albert Einstein: The Far East, Palestine, and Spain, 1922 - 1923 Albert Einstein

Albert Einstein’s travel diary to the Far East and Middle East

Einstein for the 21st Century: His Legacy in Science, Art, and Modern Culture Edited by Peter L. Galison, Gerald Holton, and Silvan S. Schweber

More than fifty years after his death, Albert Einstein's vital engagement with the world continues to inspire others, spurring conversations, projects, and research, in the sciences as well as the humanities. Einstein for the 21st...

Gravitation Charles W. Misner, Kip S. Thorne, and John Archibald Wheeler

First published in 1973, Gravitation is a landmark graduate-level textbook that presents Einstein’s general theory of relativity and offers a rigorous, full-year course on the physics of gravitation. Upon publication, Science called...

The Little Book of Black Holes Steven S. Gubser and Frans Pretorius

Dive into a mind-bending exploration of the physics of black holes

No Shadow of a Doubt: The 1919 Eclipse That Confirmed Einstein's Theory of Relativity Daniel Kennefick

On their 100th anniversary, the story of the extraordinary scientific expeditions that ushered in the era of relativity

Einstein and the Quantum: The Quest of the Valiant Swabian A. Douglas Stone

The untold story of Albert Einstein's role as the father of quantum theory

Traveling at the Speed of Thought: Einstein and the Quest for Gravitational Waves Daniel Kennefick

Since Einstein first described them nearly a century ago, gravitational waves have been the subject of more sustained controversy than perhaps any other phenomenon in physics. These as yet undetected fluctuations in the shape of...

The Formative Years of Relativity: The History and Meaning of Einstein's Princeton Lectures Hanoch Gutfreund and Jürgen Renn

First published in 1922 and based on lectures delivered in May 1921, Albert Einstein’s The Meaning of Relativity offered an overview and explanation of the then new and controversial theory of relativity. The work would go on to...

The Road to Relativity: The History and Meaning of Einstein's "The Foundation of General Relativity", Featuring the Original Manuscript of Einstein's Masterpiece Hanoch Gutfreund and Jürgen Renn

An annotated facsimile edition of Einstein's handwritten manuscript on the foundations of general relativity

An Einstein Encyclopedia Alice Calaprice, Daniel Kennefick, and Robert Schulmann

The complete guide to everything you ever wanted to know about Einstein

Einstein on Politics: His Private Thoughts and Public Stands on Nationalism, Zionism, War, Peace, and the Bomb Albert Einstein

The most famous scientist of the twentieth century, Albert Einstein was also one of the century's most outspoken political activists. Deeply engaged with the events of his tumultuous times, from the two world wars and the Holocaust, to...

The Curious History of Relativity: How Einstein's Theory of Gravity Was Lost and Found Again Jean Eisenstaedt

Black holes may obliterate most things that come near them, but they saved the theory of general relativity. Einstein's theory was quickly accepted as the true theory of gravity after its publication in 1915, but soon took a back seat...

Einstein: A Hundred Years of Relativity Andrew Robinson

An authoritative and richly illustrated biography—published on the centenary of Einstein's general theory of relativity

Einstein Gravity in a Nutshell A. Zee

An ideal introduction to Einstein's general theory of relativity

Einstein's Miraculous Year: Five Papers That Changed the Face of Physics Albert Einstein

Five extraordinary papers by Albert Einstein that transformed physics, edited and introduced by John Stachel and with a foreword by Nobel laureate Roger Penrose

The Ultimate Quotable Einstein Albert Einstein

This is the definitive edition of the hugely popular collection of Einstein quotations that has sold tens of thousands of copies worldwide and been translated into twenty-five languages.

The Ultimate Quotable Einstein features roughly...

The Nature of Space and Time Stephen Hawking and Roger Penrose

From two of the world's great physicists—Stephen Hawking and Nobel laureate Roger Penrose—a lively debate about the nature of space and time

The Meaning of Relativity: Including the Relativistic Theory of the Non-Symmetric Field - Fifth Edition Albert Einstein

In 1921, five years after the appearance of his comprehensive paper on general relativity and twelve years before he left Europe permanently to join the Institute for Advanced Study, Albert Einstein visited Princeton University, where...

General Theory of Relativity P. A.M. Dirac

Einstein's general theory of relativity requires a curved space for the description of the physical world. If one wishes to go beyond superficial discussions of the physical relations involved, one needs to set up precise equations for...