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The Grid: A Journey Through the Heart of Our Electrified World
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318 pages, Hardcover
First published December 1, 2006
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Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews
April 29, 2013
As I work in the Utilities field, I appreciated this book a great deal. It is well written and provides an excellent history and overvieww of one of life's present necessities--electricity.
This is far from a dry book on what some may take as a dull subject. I really appreciated the historical background on Edison, Tesla, Westinghouse, and Insull--all early giants in the field.
The author details the causes and impacts of the 1960's Northewastern blackout which I found very interesting. I found prose sections of the text that bordered on the lyrical, suprisingly. It made it a very enjoyable read and I would recommend this book.
This is far from a dry book on what some may take as a dull subject. I really appreciated the historical background on Edison, Tesla, Westinghouse, and Insull--all early giants in the field.
The author details the causes and impacts of the 1960's Northewastern blackout which I found very interesting. I found prose sections of the text that bordered on the lyrical, suprisingly. It made it a very enjoyable read and I would recommend this book.
December 29, 2007
Does the author realize that asked and answered questions are really annoying? Apparently not. It's a bad enough rhetorical device - even worse in writing, particularly in constant repetition. Good lord, what an awful book.
And I'm a big fan of public works stuff... so the subject matter is actually very interesting to me. He beats to death the same set of limited points, layering on his terrible writing (isn't it amazing that the socket in your wall is connected through electricity to places all over North America? It is amazing).
I can't believe I read the whole thing.
And I'm a big fan of public works stuff... so the subject matter is actually very interesting to me. He beats to death the same set of limited points, layering on his terrible writing (isn't it amazing that the socket in your wall is connected through electricity to places all over North America? It is amazing).
I can't believe I read the whole thing.
May 20, 2008
This book presents an excellent overview of the development of the electrical power grid. I'd have liked more technical detail, but as it was, it was an enjoyable book for a certain kind of person.
A certain kind of person being a geek like me.
I recommended it so several of my engineer friends, and they enjoyed it. I described it to some of my more emotional friends, and they said I was nuts.
A certain kind of person being a geek like me.
I recommended it so several of my engineer friends, and they enjoyed it. I described it to some of my more emotional friends, and they said I was nuts.
August 27, 2021
What I liked
Schewe has a talent for imagining "What if?" about things that the rest of us take for granted. That's useful when investigating something as ubiquitous and invisible as the electric grid. What if we tried to make a power grid out of steam instead of electricity? What was life like before electicity? What if we decided, once a month, to turn off all the generators?
Schewe also has a talent for picking out seemingly small historical details that really bring things to life. Some of my favorites:
I especially liked the chapter "Touching the Grid," where Schewe takes us on a tour of the daily operations of an electrical utility company. Apparently those little barrels at the top of power poles are called "drop-down transformers;" they convert 7,200 volt power to the mere 120 volts used in homes; and they're full of clear oil for insulation. I thoroughly enjoyed these details about a small, recognizable part of the grid.
What I didn't like
Schewe's style is often vague, flowery, and grandiose. In a book about a technical subject, it's strange for so much of the writing to be poetic. Poetry is good if you want to stimulate creative thinking, which is great for pondering philosophical questions about the future and the meaning of the grid for humanity. But technical writing is meant to be crystal clear, without room for misinterpretation. It's hard to reconcile the two. For example, in describing the onset of the 1965 blackout:
Schewe has a talent for imagining "What if?" about things that the rest of us take for granted. That's useful when investigating something as ubiquitous and invisible as the electric grid. What if we tried to make a power grid out of steam instead of electricity? What was life like before electicity? What if we decided, once a month, to turn off all the generators?
Schewe also has a talent for picking out seemingly small historical details that really bring things to life. Some of my favorites:
On the occasion of Edison's [death], his old associates inquired respectfully into the possibility of New York City's power being turned off for one minute in tribute. The request was denied (p. 107).
The subcomponents of the power grid [...] have been around for a scant dozen decades. This is far less than the lifetime of a single Sequoia (p. 24).And (I can't find the exact quote but) there were also some fun details about what New Yorkers did during the big blackouts of 1965 and 2003. Conscientious citizens took it upon themselves to direct traffic in the absence of traffic lights. At night, groups of coworkers held hands on the walk home so they didn't get lost in the dark streets.
I especially liked the chapter "Touching the Grid," where Schewe takes us on a tour of the daily operations of an electrical utility company. Apparently those little barrels at the top of power poles are called "drop-down transformers;" they convert 7,200 volt power to the mere 120 volts used in homes; and they're full of clear oil for insulation. I thoroughly enjoyed these details about a small, recognizable part of the grid.
What I didn't like
Schewe's style is often vague, flowery, and grandiose. In a book about a technical subject, it's strange for so much of the writing to be poetic. Poetry is good if you want to stimulate creative thinking, which is great for pondering philosophical questions about the future and the meaning of the grid for humanity. But technical writing is meant to be crystal clear, without room for misinterpretation. It's hard to reconcile the two. For example, in describing the onset of the 1965 blackout:
In some undefinable way the electric sea has roused itself. This rebellious act does not go unnoticed by sensors tirelessly keeping watch. They see the squall coming well enough. [...] Their micro-bookkeeping is reported not quarterly or monthly but secondly, and the findings are not good. The energy sea is turbulent, and small-craft warnings are being issued.In terms of content, I wish Schewe had provided more details about how the grid works. If the whole book had been an extended "Touching the Grid" chapter, I would have been happier. (The historical sections on Edison and Tesla were also good.) Anyway, this book is not that book. I'm not sure such a book exists.
Read
February 13, 2008Overview with some depth covering the origin of the mass generation, use and popularization of electricity and the creation of the electrical grid. Of particular interest were the treatment of famous major blackouts; how deregulation has influenced the generation and transmission of electricity and changed who owns the facilities; and the stories of the major personalities that created the industry of power generation.
March 6, 2011
For many of the two billion people enjoying consistent and adequate wattage, electricity is overlooked and taken for granted. If you can pardon a gawky sense of humor and the adventurous prose, The Grid will fill in the gaps in your understanding of how we make, distribute, and use electricity. Schewe is a mirthful science writer, and his 'journey' is fun.
January 30, 2016
n every room there sits a caged beast waiting to cause mischief, but which most of the time is put to honest work, instead. When Thomas Edison began selling electrical service for artificial illumination in the close of the 19th century, did he realize how radically he would transform the world? Steam engines went a long way, but they never took up residence in the house. At the opening of the 21st century, homes are linked together not just by ribbons of asphalt but by buzzing wires overhead, and those are only the first part of a complicated apparatus that can sink an economy for days if it hiccoughs. Phillip Schewe's The Grid is a layman's introduction to the world of the electrical grid, an educational sampler. He lightly touches on the grid's early history, moves into the social relevance of electricity, writes about some of the aspects of electrical infrastructure, and then looks to the future.
It is as the author describes it, a "journey" -- rather like passing through a city on a bus and catching a sight of very interesting things but not being able to get out to spend time studying them. The early book is quite jumpy, as the reader passes from early electrical enterprise straight to electricity being seen as vital infrastructure that the government can't leave to the hands of the people who paid to create it. The latter half is more integrated, especially as Schewe uses his chapter on the home's internal electric works to argue that the future of electricity may be more distributive, with solar-paneled homes supplying much of their own electricity and sometimes contributing their excess into the grid. This is followed by a chapter on nuclear plants, the concentrated alternative. The Grid has a frustrating lack of focus, though, and this is worsened by the author's creative gifts. His subject may be mechanical infrastructure, but Schewe waxes lyrical about it -- literally, at one point offering commentary in verse form and filling another paragraph with so many allusions to Hamlet that one wonders if he had a quota. Although electricity is regarded by most everyone in the book as an unmitigated good, Schewe vainly includes Lewis Mumford and Henry David Thoreau as counters, both being technological critics, but neither really bares their teeth; it's as impact as someone musing on how over-much we depend on electricity when there's an outage, and then forgetting about it as soon as the lights pop back on. It was a nice gesture, though. The Grid is thus tantalizingly incomplete, offering just a taste and then charging ahead into China or Africa to look for different things to sample.
Related:
Consuming Power: A Social History of American Energies, David Nye
Electric Universe: The Shocking True Story of Electricity, David Bodanis
It is as the author describes it, a "journey" -- rather like passing through a city on a bus and catching a sight of very interesting things but not being able to get out to spend time studying them. The early book is quite jumpy, as the reader passes from early electrical enterprise straight to electricity being seen as vital infrastructure that the government can't leave to the hands of the people who paid to create it. The latter half is more integrated, especially as Schewe uses his chapter on the home's internal electric works to argue that the future of electricity may be more distributive, with solar-paneled homes supplying much of their own electricity and sometimes contributing their excess into the grid. This is followed by a chapter on nuclear plants, the concentrated alternative. The Grid has a frustrating lack of focus, though, and this is worsened by the author's creative gifts. His subject may be mechanical infrastructure, but Schewe waxes lyrical about it -- literally, at one point offering commentary in verse form and filling another paragraph with so many allusions to Hamlet that one wonders if he had a quota. Although electricity is regarded by most everyone in the book as an unmitigated good, Schewe vainly includes Lewis Mumford and Henry David Thoreau as counters, both being technological critics, but neither really bares their teeth; it's as impact as someone musing on how over-much we depend on electricity when there's an outage, and then forgetting about it as soon as the lights pop back on. It was a nice gesture, though. The Grid is thus tantalizingly incomplete, offering just a taste and then charging ahead into China or Africa to look for different things to sample.
Related:
Consuming Power: A Social History of American Energies, David Nye
Electric Universe: The Shocking True Story of Electricity, David Bodanis
April 24, 2023
This is an important book for understanding electricity and the American power sector (and somewhat beyond the US). It is a solid history of electrification from Edison to this very day (yes to the present almost whenever you read this book).
There are text books, technical manuals and narrative books. If you are looking for a textbook or something technical, you may be disappointed by the style more than the content.
The chapters on the 1965 blackout, the TVA and Enron are some of the most factual, detailed and insightful narratives you will ever find. For example, “Lost completely was the notion that delivering power was a civic service and an important obligation for the public good.” p182
The narrative style does not resonate with everyone, at sometimes I struggled to follow, but in persisting I learned a great deal. I’m certain these stories -in this detail- are not frequently told elsewhere.
“What you’re getting here is not a comprehensive or scholarly HISTORY of the electrical grid but rather the essence of the STORY of the grid during some very turbulent years.” p166. This last quote from the book really says it all.
There are text books, technical manuals and narrative books. If you are looking for a textbook or something technical, you may be disappointed by the style more than the content.
The chapters on the 1965 blackout, the TVA and Enron are some of the most factual, detailed and insightful narratives you will ever find. For example, “Lost completely was the notion that delivering power was a civic service and an important obligation for the public good.” p182
The narrative style does not resonate with everyone, at sometimes I struggled to follow, but in persisting I learned a great deal. I’m certain these stories -in this detail- are not frequently told elsewhere.
“What you’re getting here is not a comprehensive or scholarly HISTORY of the electrical grid but rather the essence of the STORY of the grid during some very turbulent years.” p166. This last quote from the book really says it all.
July 9, 2008
The first 188 pages are interesting, and the last 98 are filler, a kind of bastardized attempt to enter John McPhee territory, but at least without the pretense of being quite so pretty the prose stylist.
Basically, the experience of reading the book was like watching or listening to a Seahawks game. There's going to be good quarters and bad quarters, and the end result depends all upon the sequencing.
Seahawks lost this one, especially once all the Apollo moon mission jibber jabber stepped on the field.
Basically, the experience of reading the book was like watching or listening to a Seahawks game. There's going to be good quarters and bad quarters, and the end result depends all upon the sequencing.
Seahawks lost this one, especially once all the Apollo moon mission jibber jabber stepped on the field.
August 26, 2012
Just finished this book, encouraged by reviews found elsewhere. For the uninitiated, this offers exellent coverage of a very important topic. If you know something of electronic fundamentals, you can skim parts, but the book's strong part is relating the technology with the human historical context. Schewe uses some analogies that work, such as how electricity leaking unexpectedly from the grid can be like a grain of sand giving rise to an avalanche. Readers remembering the late 1960s blackout will relive something of the panic; younger folks should read about this and take heed.
March 5, 2018
This was an interesting book; I learned a fair bit about the history and the dynamics of the electric grid. Sometimes I felt Schewe was being flippant about any of the concerns about the grid, such as environmental issues, but they were at least discussed. Schewe has a sense of humor throughout the book that was also appreciated. Seeing this was published about 10 years ago, I would be interested in knowing what Schewe's thoughts are about the current status of the grid.
August 3, 2007
The Grid provides a serviceable and populist introduction to electricity, with a narrative grounded in people and stories rather than technical detail or engineering. While Schewe’s prose can tend towards the florid, his great accomplishment is in weighing the philosophical and moral implications of electricity’s pervasiveness and convenience in parts of the world, and its utter lack elsewhere.
November 24, 2010
It seems that the author can't decide which way to go: a history of the USA grid? A description of how the grid works by practical examples and anecdotes? A dissertation about the "philosophy" of the grid and its effects on the human life? All those things are present, but not developed (sometimes only hinted) in a satisfactory way.
February 17, 2017
Book describes the history of the grid including major contributors such as Edison, Tesla and Westinghouse. Among the history, some of the science behind the grid is also described. I enjoyed the book. Good for anyone that wants an understanding of how electricity gets from generator to your home.
February 14, 2012
Informative book on the history of electricity in the US. Writing style is highly idiosyncratic and makes heavy weather of simple concepts. Needed to really wade through some sections and cringe. But overall a good read for those wanting to understand more about what makes our modern world tick.
January 20, 2008
A well grounded historical overlay on our current electrical Grid priority's and issues.
Touching on Enviomental and social effects of an elctrified society
Touching on Enviomental and social effects of an elctrified society
Read
August 4, 2016If you'd like to know what I thought of this book, please contact me directly and I'd be happy to discuss it with you.
All the best,
- TB
All the best,
- TB
July 9, 2024
A very well written and entertaining way to describe the history and structure of our electrical system.
March 3, 2017
It was terrible. The author's writing style over-dramatizes everything which makes a simple point take too long. And makes reading it impossible. I couldn't get past the first chapter on how the grid was conceived. Get to the damn point!
tried-and-failed
February 21, 2017I tried, for about 64 pages, but it was all too terrifying to continue...
April 27, 2009
This isn't an official NAE/NAS book, but it may represent the best set of ideas going-forward, Amin's concept of the microgrid. Note that they have defined the grid to be all-things transmission AND distribution.
September 8, 2009
I had to give this one up about 50 pages in. The subject seemed interesting to me, and I love a natural history as much as the next reader, but this guy's writing style was so choppy, so unnecessarily intrusive that I couldn't slog any further. Too bad :-(
January 1, 2012
A book about the electric grid. It discusses such subjects as the 1965 and '2003 blackouts in the northeast, the battle between Edison and Westinghouse and the electric infrastructure in Noew York City.
November 12, 2008
I've had a brown-out on this one...
May 2, 2013
I would have loved more detail. This book is a very high-level, non-technical survey of the electric grid.
January 4, 2015
This book has some interesting stuff on the early development of the grid and AC versus DC, but a modern reader would find little if he/she wants to understand how the grid operates.
Displaying 1 - 26 of 26 reviews