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 enlarge | Author: Jill Jonnes
Publisher: Random House Trade Paperbacks
Category: Book
List Price: $15.95
Buy Used: $4.20
You Save: $11.75 (74%)
New (16) Used (44) Collectible (1) from $4.20
Avg. Customer Rating:  22 reviews
Sales Rank: 163493
Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 464
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.6
Dimensions (in): 8 x 5.2 x 1.1
ISBN: 0375758844
Dewey Decimal Number: 621.309
EAN: 9780375758843
ASIN: 0375758844
Publication Date: October 12, 2004
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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| Customer Reviews:
 More Adjectives? March 6, 2007
4 out of 4 found this review helpful
More description always makes books longer, but it does not always make them better. This is the first lesson I learned from Empires of Light: save the details for when they can be truly useful. Jill Jonnes writes like a historian who just finished an intro-to-composition course; however, for this book she probably should have spent more time with aspiring electricians at her local trade school. A book about "the race to electrify the world" would better benefit from its author knowing too much about electricity than from her ability to generate great varieties of adjectives for the same basic subjects--Nikola Tesla is always elegant and awkward, the weather is either oppressively hot or frigidly cold, and the men's Gilded Age facial hair is always worthy of description. Jonnes even repeats some of the same proper descriptions chapter after chapter, as if some readers might read the book as a collection of essays--George Westinghouse travels in "Glen Eyre, his private railcar" and Tesla dines at "Delmonico's, America's most famous restaurant." On the other hand, I found myself wondering about the basic voltage equals current times resistance (V=IR) electricity equation: was Jonnes avoiding it because the inventors of electricity didn't understand it yet, or did she just not think it was important to her readers' understanding of the subject?
There may not be any better books available on this subject, but Jonnes does neither the Gilded Age nor the birth of electrification justice. This book would benefit either by being edited to half its length or expanded to improve the social and technical context; as written, it's a lukewarm offering which I give three stars.
 Enlightenment January 9, 2007
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
Jill Jonnes has put together a well written and entertaining story of three men for the ages. Most of us have heard of T. A. Edison and have a certain familiarity with his many achievments. Jonnes gives us a view of him that is both interesting and novel. Her bios of Westinghouse and Tesla are a piece of American history that we all should know. Buy it, I think you will like it.
A great read--part history, part technical, all expert storytelling July 24, 2005
4 out of 6 found this review helpful
As an Electrical Engineer AND a history buff, I found this book to be outstanding. I expected a drier, more technical discussion but was very pleasantly surprised by how readable the entire book was. In my opinion, Jill Jonnes had a very good understanding of her intended general audience and mixed in just enough technical information to keep the storylines smoothly progressing while not bogging down the reader with tedious electrical theory and details.
With this in mind, this is a great book for just about anyone who wants to further understand how electricity as we know it today came into existence. From the earliest (even ancient) electrical discoveries that she superbly describes in just the right amount of detail, the book easily flows into the inter-twined lives of Edison, Westinghouse, and Tesla. Before this book, I vastly underestimated the contributions of Westinghouse and Tesla; I know feel I have a more accurate view of their roles.
Ms. Jonnes does a very good job of placing the efforts of Edison, Westinghouse, and Tesla (and their supporting casts, including the financiers) into the proper context of life and society at the time (1870-1910 or so). I feel this is critical since no events or major inventions occur in a vacuum and it greatly improves the storytelling.
In summary, this is an excellent book for most people with an interest in electricity AND history; some of the more critical reviewers, I believe, may be nitpicking a bit too much.
Empires of deLight April 1, 2005
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
Jill Jonnes's book about the electrical age addresses the lives and workings of two major inventors and one dramatically influential businessman during the time when electricity was first being introduced. The story of the origins of electrical thought as well as the origins of the two greatest electricians, Thomas Edison and Nikola Tesla, is very well told. The book thoroughly discusses the inventions of these two great men stretching from the invention of the light bulb and the direct current system of Edison to the wireless transmission of signals the Tesla invented near the end of his prestigious career. Life in America was changed by electricity and the book shows this through significant events such as the Chicago World's Fair and the first ever execution by the electric chair. Adding in the battle between Westinghouse's alternating current system and the direct current system of Edison, the book is full of corporate fights and disasters. The backbiting that occurs between the AC and DC forces is incredible as men attempt to resist beneficial change in the interest of capital. With Jonnes's great ability to tell the story of the "mysterious fluid," it is easy to become enthralled in the compelling story of how electricity came to be the engine for today's society.
 Great on Niagara Falls and the fate of inventors February 17, 2005
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
Jonnes gives us a look at the story of electrification from Edison's discovery of the incandescent light to completion of the Niagara Falls hydroelectric generating station (using Westinghouse equipment based on Tesla's AC patents). She begins with an overview of what was known about electricity-the relationship between electricity and magnetism, discovered by Michael Faraday, and the development of electromagnets by Joseph Henry. Development of practical generators in the 1870s, was soon followed by the first arc lights, but they were cumbersome and too bright for home use. Edison took up the challenge to develop an electric light suitable for home use in 1878, completed in 1879, and installed in New York City in 1882.
Edison firmly believed in his DC power system, but it was poorly suited to transmitting power long distances. Once AC transformers were invented, in 1885, George Westinghouse realized that AC was the more practical system. He licensed Tesla's patents for AC generator and motor and began installing systems. A major battle ensued with Edison promoting DC and charging that AC was unsafe. That resulted in the adoption of the AC powered electric chair as a means of execution. Edison General Electric and Westinghouse found themselves in direct competition many times.
Edison was a darling of the media. His side of the story has been told many times. Westinghouse was personable, but far less open to the press. No biographies have appeared since 1926. Tesla was a frequent publisher, gave numerous demonstrations especially at technical meetings. His eccentric nature leads to some treatments as a man of mystery.
The detailed treatment of the Niagara Power project is much appreciated. This was the first major hydroelectric project in the US. It was financed by a Wall Street syndicate headed by JP Morgan. We see the details of how the bankers brought in experts to get the best available advice on the project. Finally Westinghouse won the competition because he had licensed the Tesla AC patents. There was no nearby customer for the power from Niagara. Buffalo, 26 miles away was the logical one. But the project also spawned numerous industries that took advantage of low cost electric power. This is the founding of well known companies. Among them Alcoa (first production of low cost aluminum), Carborundum (abrasives made by electric furnace), Union Carbide (acetylene made by electric furnace), and Hooker Chemical (chlorine, bleach, alkalis, sodium hydroxide, sodium all made by electrolysis of salt water). Niagara began supplying power to Alcoa on Aug 26, 1895.
The book also gives us a profile of three inventors: Edison, Westinghouse, and Tesla. We are shown how financiers dealt with them. In Feb, 1892, JP Morgan and associates merged Edison General Electric with another holding, Thompson Houston, renamed the combine General Electric Co., and put CEO Charles Coffin in charge without even consulting Edison. George Westinghouse lost control of his company after it sank into bankruptcy in the Panic of 1907. He was soon forced out of the company. A proxy fight to regain control in 1911 failed. Tesla licensed his key AC patents to Westinghouse and initially received generous royalties. But he agreed to give up those royalties as part of a Westinghouse rescue plan in the Panic of 1891. His other patents were tied up in a deal with JP Morgan to fund radio development. After Marconi beat him to market, he was unable even to defend his own patents. He died penniless.
This is a great read for those interested in technology and how it all came together. We are left hungering for a second volume to cover the rest of the electrification story. We hear nothing of Samuel Insull, very little of the development of electric street cars, electric railroads, interurbans, the electric automobile, TVA, rural electrification, or the expansion of electrical systems throughout the country. Excellent bibliography. Many references. Index.
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