Thunderstruck
by Erik Larson, author of the Devil in the White City
This New York Times bestseller, Thunderstruck, is a ripping
yarn of murder and invention according to the Los Angeles Times. Erik Larson
weaves intricate details from history and actual cases straight from historic
news headlines, including scientific inventions of the day that changed the
course of history.
Filled with the names of the leading scientific geniuses of
the day like Faraday large hurts and even Alexander Graham Bell the story gives
an interesting perspective on how scientific discovery is accomplished with one
scientist building on the work of another. The political climate is intertwined
as well with everyone from Winston Churchill to the King of England, Mussolini
and Hitler, and Kaiser Wilhelm of Germany prayer.
Billed as the first media tracked “slow car chase”, a.k.a.
O.J. Simpson, a murder suspect boards and ocean liner in England and heads for
Nova Scotia with the police in hot pursuit. While the media knows suspect is
being pursued, and the captain of the ship knows the suspect is on board, the
suspect remains in the dark.
Other Erik Larson does a wonderful job of building a story
about a murder, a love triangle, and the technology first being used by the
media and the police in a new and exciting way. This case brought the wireless
to the attention of people all over the world. It spurred the expansion of
wireless on board ships and across the country, no, across the world. The world
suddenly became a much closer space.
A very enjoyable read especially for anyone interested in
the history of technology.
