The Christian Science Monitor has a review of a fascinating new novel which explores the last days of enigmatic scientific pioneer Nikola Tesla, titled The Invention of Everything Else (Amazon US and UK):
Some people thought he was literally from the future; others suspected Venus… Interplanetary theories aside, the electrical engineer was actually from a small village in Serbia, where at age 7, he created an engine that was powered by June bugs. As an adult, he showed up in New York at Thomas Edison’s factory with almost no money and a letter of introduction from Charles Batchelor, Edison’s factotum. It read simply: “I know two great men and you are one of them; the other is this young man.”
Samantha Hunt’s novel seems to lean towards hagiography, but by the same token sometimes its nice to leave the cynicism at the door. Tesla’s life certainly offered more than its share of strange and wonderful tales, so definitely worth taking a look at. The CSM review also features an audio interview with the author. Thanks Kat.
