Electric Universe

ELECTRIC UNIVERSE shocks us to reality by reminding us where our modern world would be--without computers, cars, television, and cattle prods--if we hadn't discovered and harnessed electricity. After the discoverers of the early nineteenth century play with magnets and batteries, we travel through the evolution of man's understanding of the electron, ending with a look at our own nervous system. Del Roy's mature and raspy voice sounds like wisdom itself, making a pleasant and important story fun to hear. Although a book about science can be dry, Roy uses changing inflections and a relaxing pace to create a conversational style likely to capture curious listeners. J.A.H. (c) AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine

December 6, 2004
This entertaining look at how electricity works and affects our daily lives is highlighted by Bodanis's charming narrative voice and by clever, fresh analogies that make difficult science accessible. Bodanis examines electricity's theoretical development and how 19th- and 20th-century entrepreneurs harnessed it to transform everyday existence. Going from "Wires" to "Waves" to computers and even the human body, Bodanis pairs electrical innovations with minibiographies of their developers, among them Thomas Edison, Alexander Graham Bell, Guglielmo Marconi, Heinrich Herz and Alan Turing. In each case, Bodanis deepens his narrative by charting early failures—Edison's difficulty in finding a workable filament for the electric light bulb, for example—and financial struggles. And Bodanis can be a wry commentator on his subjects, noting, for example, how bedeviled Samuel Morse was by his telegraph patents—when the telegraph was actually invented by Joseph Henry, who refused to patent it. Surprisingly, Bodanis goes beyond the inorganic world of devices, delving deeply into the role electricity plays in the seemingly inhospitable "sloshing wet" human body, such as why being out in the cold makes us clumsy, or how alcohol works in the nervous system. Those who don't generally read science will find that Bodanis is a first-rate popularizer—as he also showed in his earlier E=MC
2—able to keep a happy balance between technical explanation and accessibility. Agent, Katinka Matson.

September 1, 2005
Many people think of electricity as that mind-numbing subject they daydreamed through during science class. Bodanis alternates amazingly clear, low-tech descriptions of scientific discoveries with fascinating biographical vignettes of the eccentric geniuses, unscrupulous entrepreneurs, and others who created today's electrical network. The author's phrasing is ideally suited to the audio format, and Del Roy's lucid reading style supports the listener in untangling a sometimes complex subject. This is a rare example of a popular science book that is both fun to listen to and informative, even for the nonscientist. While listeners looking for a detailed or comprehensive history of electricity may be disappointed, "Electric Universe" should be on the list of anyone trying to teach science to unengaged adolescents. Recommended for all libraries. -I. Pour-El, Des Moines Area Community Coll., Boone, IA

Copyright 2005 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.