No comments about Wernher Von Braun: Crusader for Space : An Illustrated Memoir.

No comments about Collins Gem Royal Britain: Fascinating Insight Into British Royal Life (Collins Gem).

1 comments about Listen Up!: Alexander Graham Bell's Talking Machine (Step into Reading).

1. I bought this book for my grandson who loves to read, but sometimes gets discouraged by the length of "chapter books." Most shorter books at this reading level are fanciful fiction. This book is not too long, and it's informational as well. He loved reading about a "real man" who invented a "machine" we use daily.

No comments about Isaac Newton: Adventurer in Thought (Cambridge Science Biographies).

No comments about Of the Human Heart: A Biography of Benjamin Peirce.

1 comments about James Watt.

1. Andrew Carnegie was one of the major figures in American history, who made his fortune in steel (giving most of it away for libraries) and wrote this biography three years before he died in 1919. Watt invented the improved steam engine that revolutionized the world. I can't think of any other biography written by such a great man, about such a great man, possibly excepting the Gospel of Mark.

   Carnegie's description of Watt's life is reverent almost to the point of unseemly hero-worship, but is laced with some most interesting insights into his own psyche and personal history. Watt, according to this account, was a giant to his contemporaries, not only for his technological accomplishments, but also because of his sweet and loyal disposition. I'm sure that Carnegie saw parallels there too. Although the language that Carnegie uses can seem archaic at times, the book is quite enjoyable: inspiring, even.

   His description of Watt's inventions and the technical insights required to achieve them are lucidly explained in the book, and it is clear that Carnegie was no mere business tycoon. Even his explanation of latent heat is clear and insightful, and a delight to read. When he describes the business relationship between Watt and his partner Boulton, one learns something about the goodness in them both, unqualified and complete.

No comments about Science on the Texas Frontier: Observations of Dr. Gideon Lincecum.

1 comments about In Their Own Words: Conversations With the Astronauts and Men Who Led America's Journey into Space and to the Moon.

1. Compiled and edited by Scott Sacknoff (President of the International Space Business Council), In Their Own Words: Conversations With The Astronauts And Men Who Led America's Journey Into Space by is a unique collection of candid interviews with astronauts offering the reader behind-the-scenes glimpses into the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo programs; as well as a discussion by Walter Cronkite and colleagues about how the media covered historic achievements in space travel; and a great deal more. In Their Own Words is commended to the attention of aerospace enthusiasts and scholars as an engaging, primary source on the history of man's efforts to stretch beyond the boundaries of the Earth itself.

No comments about Richard Trevithick: Giant of Steam.

No comments about Real Estate and Collectibles (Secrets of the Great Investors).