Baby Got Books

The Invention of Everything Else

The Invention of Everything Else by Samantha Hunt was the second book in what became an unplanned trilogy written by female authors that featured both Science and men of Questionable Psychological Soundness as focal points that I read in sequence. (The first was Rivka Galchen’s excellent Atmospheric Disturbances. For ten points and a possible bonus, can you guess the third?)

The Invention of Everything Else is a charming novel that imagines the last days of Nikola Tesla. Thomas Edison is remembered in this country as the father of electricity, but Hunt reminds us that Tesla developed the inventions that made modern electricity possible. He was also the inventor of the radio, but got screwed over by that Marconi guy.

Tesla arrived in this country when New York was lit by gas lamps, there were no cars, and two world wars had yet to take place. Needless to say, he was a witness to some fairly dramatic changes in NYC. The novel takes place in 1943 when Tesla is an old man living in a world that has been utterly transformed by his inventions. Rather than living in comfort from the proceeds of his inventions, Tesla lives alone and virtually penniless as a charity case at The New Yorker Hotel – then the tallest building in New York City. The scientist laments:

Some days I forget how completely I have been forgotten.

At The New Yorker, Tesla becomes friendly with Louisa, a maid at the hotel, whose own story is told alongside that of Tesla’s. As the reader begins to realize that Tesla may not be entirely in his right mind, it also becomes apparent that other men in Louisa’s life are battling their own demons. Through their shared stories, Samantha Hunt examines the big themes of loss, grief, transcendence, reality, the creative impulse, and the power of human connections. The Invention of Everything Else is an inventive novel that I cheerfully recommend.

The great tragedy of Tesla’s life is that he didn’t have (or want) the PR know-how or the business acumen sufficient to propel him to the fame and fortune that he justly deserved. On the plus side for Tesla, he is experiencing something of a belated comeback. David Bowie did a great job portraying Tesla in the movie The Prestige. There is also an electric car company, Tesla Motors, that may bring him some belated recognition.

Read an excerpt of the novel.

Tags: Invention of everything else, nikola tesla, Samantha Hunt

Books, Fiction, Review | Tim | June 10, 2008 1:01 pm

20 Comments

By Kerry, June 10, 2008 @ 3:52 pm

Did you read And Now You Can Go by Vendela Vida? (Though I’m not sure about the science…)
By russ, June 10, 2008 @ 8:50 pm

if it was The End Of Mr Y i am boycotting BGB for a good thirty, possibly forty-five, minutes
By Tim, June 10, 2008 @ 10:36 pm

Kerry: It was not. Although I loved Vida’s “Let the Northern Lights…” I may need to And Now to my to be read stack.

Russ: Nope. A hint though, you and I have discussed the third book in passing…
By richard, June 11, 2008 @ 2:28 am

I bet it’s Special Problems in Particle Physics – right?
By richard, June 11, 2008 @ 2:31 am

I mean, of course, Marisha Pessl’s Special Topics in Calamity Physics. I’m overtired and not very bright.
By Tim, June 11, 2008 @ 7:52 am

Not a bad guess, Richard, but incorrect. This is fun.
By shortbus, June 11, 2008 @ 8:36 am

Is it cheating if I play?
By Tim, June 11, 2008 @ 9:39 am

Since the book in question is on the desk in front of you, I’d say yes.
By russ, June 11, 2008 @ 9:41 am

is it…the Alzheimer’s book? but that’s not a female writer…
By Tim, June 11, 2008 @ 9:55 am

Alzheimer’s book? Nope. You are going to kick yourself when the title is revealed.
By shortbus, June 11, 2008 @ 12:57 pm

Oh, Heart, can I at least give Russ a hint?
By Tim, June 11, 2008 @ 1:24 pm

You just did!
By shortbus, June 11, 2008 @ 5:04 pm

hee, hee, hee. Russ, are you there?
By russ, June 11, 2008 @ 9:43 pm

………………………………………………………………..
……….
heart…sick?

I DUNNO I DUNNO I DUNNO

heart and souls? the 80s robert downey jr movie? I DO NOT KNOW AND TOP CHEF IS ON!
By shortbus, June 12, 2008 @ 9:42 am

OH if he had only used the RADIANT heat…
By russ, June 12, 2008 @ 9:45 am

OH MY GOD.

finally, tim. best book evar.
By russ, June 12, 2008 @ 9:46 am

<3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 <3 lydia