American Eclipse

A Nation's Epic Race to Catch the Shadow of the Moon and Win the Glory of the World

By: David Baron

Narrated by: Jonathan Yen

In the scorching summer of 1878, with the Gilded Age in its infancy, three tenacious and brilliant scientists raced to Wyoming and Colorado to observe a rare total solar eclipse. One sought to discover a new planet. Another - an adventuresome female astronomer - fought to prove that science was not anathema to femininity. And a young megalomaniacal inventor, with the tabloid press fast on his heels, sought to test his scientific bona fides and light the world through his revelations.

David Baron brings to three-dimensional life these three competitors - James Craig Watson, Maria Mitchell, and Thomas Edison - and thrillingly re-creates the fierce jockeying of 19th-century American astronomy. With spellbinding accounts of train robberies and Indian skirmishes, the mythologized age of the last days of the Wild West comes alive as never before. A magnificent portrayal of America's dawn as a scientific superpower, American Eclipse depicts a young nation that looked to the skies to reveal its towering ambition and expose its latent genius.

©2017 David Baron (P)2017 HighBridge, a division of Recorded Books

Critic reviews

"With verbal aplomb and a jaunty pace, Jonathan Yen deftly narrates this tale of scientific adventure.... Yen keeps listeners engaged by embracing the momentum of discovery, driving the plot, and adding color through voices and accents." (AudioFile)

The history of various inventors. I liked the description of the women and the part that placed in history.

Too many facts and numbers. There was.not enough information regarding what the characters looked liked..

Nature, Scientific Discovery, Equality, & Eclipse

This a good primer for what to expect out of the 2017 eclipse and the one coming in the 2020's. It is a wonderful historical narrative about the slow development of scientific theories. Especially how the only scientific facts are those that tell us what Nature isn't. In some small part this book gives an insight into how scientific progress comes after a society is able to fund it when its economy has developed excess capital much like that needed for the arts. There is also some exposition on the negative effects of competition and ego in science. It also reminds us of the slow recognition of woman's place in science and society.

wonderful tale

while the book stumbles a bit after the headliner event, the while is still a great story. I loved hearing about the state of science before and after the Great Eclipse.

Good, but dated to this year's eclipse.

The book's premise was validated in that the eclipse described was influential in establishing America as a world scientific power, but this book was only marginally engaging.

Eclispse brought to life!

I loved this book! I heard about it on the podcast Science Talk and decided to purchase it. I am a regular Jane who loves science but doesn't learn it easily. I am more of a history person so this was a perfect way to learn about solar eclipses. Baron truly brings the stories of Edison, Mitchell, and Watson to life. I knew little about Mitchell and now have a new historic woman to discover. I'm from Cincinnati and a member of the Cincinnati Observatory so I loved reading about us and Abbe Cleveland in Chapter 13. Once I started it, I couldn't stop. It was engaging and made so many scientific principles simple and enjoyable to understand. Will be looking into more of David Baron's books. So glad I heard him on the podcast.