The Industrial Revolutionaries: The Making of the Modern World 1776-1914 (Paperback) (ISBN-13: 9780802144843)

Gavin Weightman's sweeping history of the industrial revolution shows how, in less than one hundred and fifty years, an unlikely band of scientists, spies, entrepreneurs, and political refugees took a world made of wood and powered by animals, wind, and water, and made it into something entirely new, forged of steel and iron, and powered by steam and fossil fuels. Weightman weaves together the dramatic stories of giants such as Edison, Watt, Wedgwood, and Daimler, with lesser-known or entirely forgotten characters, including a group of Japanese samurai who risked their lives to learn the secrets of the West, and John "Iron Mad" Wilkinson, who didn't let war between England and France stop him from plumbing Paris. Distilling complex technical achievements, outlandish figures, and daring adventures into an accessible narrative that spans the globe as industrialism spreads, The Industrial Revolutionaries is a remarkable work of original, engaging history.


Author: Gavin Weightman
ISBN-10: 0802144845
ISBN-13: 9780802144843
Publisher: Grove Press
Language: English
Published: 05/25/2010
Pages: 432
Format: Paperback
Weight: 0.85lbs
Size: 8.00h x 5.40w x 1.30d

Review Citation(s):
New York Times Book Review 05/23/2010 pg. 24