Britain's leading train expert tells the epic story of how the world's railroads shaped commerce, cultures, and countries, and created the modern era
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Dec 20, 2011
Marcus
rated it: 
Took me a while to finish this book, some parts were (unsurprisingly) dry and at time belabored. For example, the almost ubiquitous mention of the varying gauge of the lines at one point made me wonder if this book would have been better titled: Blood, Iron, & Gauge.
I would classify BIG as a general history on railroads throughout the world. The various railroads are covered with a wide breadth if not depth. He discusses their inception, key players, and anything notable in the rea More...
I would classify BIG as a general history on railroads throughout the world. The various railroads are covered with a wide breadth if not depth. He discusses their inception, key players, and anything notable in the rea More...
Sep 14, 2010
Robert
rated it: 
Primarily a book for train enthusiasts, written by one of the best - an Englishman with an almost encyclopedic knowledge of everything to do with railroads. The book is quite loosely written - more a series of entertaining lectures than a scholarly work. One gets the impression that the author's intent is to tell the reader everything he knows, everything he finds interesting, about railroading. His historical account of the origins of rail transportation and the development of national rail
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Feb 21, 2011
John
rated it:
A history of railroads in their various forms over the past 200 years; covers the whole world. Has maps, but not enough and with a couple of interesting routes on them. For the US it has the D&RG meeting the Central Pacific in Utah to complete the first US transcontinental route; it doesn't show the route of the Union Pacific that actually did meet the Central Pacific; the text has the right railroads doing the meeting. The first two thirds of the book covers the first century of railroads and t
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Jan 29, 2011
Lauren
rated it: 
I would not have expected to be fascinated with the idea of rail gauges but I was. I certainly never knew how central they were to both the history of the railways and the history of the modern world. Only one example is necessary--The Tsar decided to use a non-standard gauge for the Russian railway, fearing the ability of enemies to use the rails to invade. This very fact made transport very difficult for the invading Nazis during World War II...
Trains are made to fit the track (an More...
Trains are made to fit the track (an More...
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Feb 14, 2010
Mikko
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Christian Wolmar's Blood, Iron and Gold examines the history of the railways (or railroads, depending on which side of the Atlantic you are) from the perspective of their social and economical impact. It reviews the spread of the railways, the challenges of building them, the way they were accepted and incorporated to different societies, and how they inevitably transformed them. There is no need to fear running into anything technical or engineering-like here: the focus is on the people and soc
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Dec 01, 2010
penny
rated it:
I love trains, but have not really been able to find more than coffee-table books about them. What is their history, how did they impact life as they rolled out across the landscape, and what is their legacy today? Do they have a future in today's car centric society?
Wolmar's book answers many of my questions in an informative and intellectual tone. It covers considerable ground chronologically and in distance. He has done well to keep it all manageable to the reader. However, at ti More...
Wolmar's book answers many of my questions in an informative and intellectual tone. It covers considerable ground chronologically and in distance. He has done well to keep it all manageable to the reader. However, at ti More...
Jul 28, 2011
Social history of the effect of railways on society--including a new concept of time, the availability of fish and chips and anti-tourism. Wordsworth saw no reason why proles should visit the lake district, since "a vivid perception of romantic scenery is neither inherent in mankind nor a necessary consequence of a comprehensive education."
Nov 21, 2011
James
rated it:
Not a great book, but not bad, an interesting view of history
and a few pages of black & white photos, some very interesting.
and a few pages of black & white photos, some very interesting.
Feb 05, 2011
John
rated it:
I read this book for pleasure rather than information and wasn't disappointed - he turns what could be a repetitive story into an interesting exploration of the different ways that railways took over the world, linking developments in each country or continent into other developments (political and otherwise) at the time.
In terms of the book's balance, there was rather more than I wanted on railways in North America and less than I wanted on South America. I also thought the occasion More...
In terms of the book's balance, there was rather more than I wanted on railways in North America and less than I wanted on South America. I also thought the occasion More...
Feb 13, 2011
Steve
rated it:
Interesting, but not really absorbing, history of the railway's impact and decline over the last 200 years.
Sep 09, 2010
Ipswichblade
rated it:
There is no one better than Christian Wolmar at writing about railways. This is the follow up to Fire & Steam which covered railways in Britain whilst this one covers railways throughout the world. What the writer does with these books is write about normal intersting parts of the railway. It never gets remotely technical which makes this bookanothe delight to read. If you only ever read one book about trains then this has to be the one.
Jun 05, 2011
Greg
rated it:
Kind of light on freight railroading, but a very interesting, quick read through of the history of world railways. Felt it was too light and breezy in some spots though.
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