Thunderstruck

Larson possesses a rare ability to give historical non-fiction sustained tension and drama while clinging closely to the treacherous face of factual accuracy. As his 48 pages of notes and references will attest, his attention to detail is obsessive. He clearly relishes the research that goes into a project of this scale. He emphasizes that every time a statement appears enclosed in quotation marks, it is taken from a written account. Thunderstruck is the parallel stories of two men: Guglielmo (pronounced "goo-yee-ail-mo") Marconi, one of the primary inventors of what we now call radio, and Dr. Hawley Harry Crippen, a soft-spoken quack and the second most notorious murderer in modern British history. For most of the book, the narrative alternates between these two separate plots, with the action often taking place on different continents. The sense of inevitability builds until the stories cross near the end. This is a rich, full, well-developed piece of work that reads like a novel. The title is a reference to the deafening crackle and roar produced by the earliest versions of the transmitting equipment (some of which were huge towers more than a hundred feet high), as each dot and dash created a visible electrical arc. One of the aspects that I personally found morbidly amusing was the way even in 1910 a real-time media frenzy builds around a sensational case that captures the public's interest -- including dangerous and unethical behavior by reporters of the day. Some may think of tabloid journalism as a contemporary phenomenon, but it was alive and well more than a century ago. Also intriguing were the snarky exchanges and vicious personal attacks involving the scientists and engineers who were racing towards the goal of achieving practical wireless communication. These arguments were carried out through open letters that the general public read in newspapers and magazines, but aside from the quaint language and the multi-day response time, they are pretty much just like the comment wars that spontaneously erupt around an Internet news article today. Likewise, the business dealings were every bit as much of a shark-infested pool as they are in 2013 -- churning with feuds, back-stabbing, betrayal, secret alliances, international spies and a bloody scramble for that all-important treasure: the Government Contract. More than anything, I am deeply impressed with Larson's talent for holding the reader's interest with an exciting, engaging, character-driven story. That is a tricky feat to pull off when constrained by the need to adhere to the truth, and once again he does it. I enthusiastically recommend Thunderstruck to anyone who enjoys reading true history -- and even if you usually prefer historical fiction, give this one a chance. It's as entertaining as anything anyone ever made up.

This is the third book of Erik Larson that I have read. All of his books, including this one, are highly researched and easy to read. If you can only choose one of his books to read, I would say by far, his book "Devil in the White City" is his best. Thunderstruck, uses the same format as the "Devil in the White City", where he interweaves two stories together. One story is about Marconi, who invented the wireless. The other story is about Dr. Crippen, who murdered his wife. The two stories are connected because Marconi's wireless is used to capture Dr. Crippen as he tried to escape to America. First let me talk about the Marconi part of the book. As stated above, Erik Larson does an amazing job researching this book. He has a "Notes and Sources" section at the end of the book, where he shows his sources. For the first half of the book, I was riveted to the Marconi story. Mr. Larson does a great job explaining how Marconi created the wireless, how he tried to improve on the wireless, and how other people also claimed credit for creating the wireless before Marconi. This story at times drags though in the second half of the book. Mr Larson tries to write about all of his research, an at times it felt that what he was saying was not advancing the story. It felt repetitive at times, even though the event happened at three different locations. Just an FYI, Mr. Larson sometimes goes on historical tangents. Usually I found these tangents extremely entertaining and informative. But I can see some readers finding them unnecessary for the story. But please note, I am extremely happy he put them into the book. The other part of the book is about Dr. Crippen. For the first half of the book I found this part of the story somewhat boring. Once Dr. Crippen meets Ethel, the story become really interesting. If you are looking to read about a sick and devious murderer, this is not the book for you. Dr. Crippen and Ethel seem like really nice people, while his wife is not that likeable. One thing the reader needs to take account is this murder actually happen, and it occurred in the early 1900's. No matter how well Mr. Larson investigated this story, he couldn't find all of the answers. He can't go into the mind of Dr. Crippen, he can only state the facts as he know them. Thus some aspects of the murder, Mr. Larson can't explain. He will give different theories, but he can't say for sure how the murder went down. Also, some actions of Dr. Crippen really confused me as a reader. Here is an example of the one that bothers me the most. His wife always was threatening to leave him, and telling him that other men would wan't her in a minute. She even takes steps in terms of leaving him. Why did Dr. Crippen not just leave his wife. instead of murdering her? Mr. Larson as an historical writer can't answer that question, but it is a question that really bothers me. The reason I gave this book 4 stars is that the story about Dr. Crippen is boring for the 1st half of the book. And sometimes the author goes overboard about Marconi. A good editor should have seen this problem and fixed it. Thus I recommend this book, with those small caveats.

Enjoyed the two stories presented in the same book and the mixture of them back and forth . Interesting concept .

This story is typical Erik Larson fare. It follows two different story lines that eventually cross each other. It is set in the late 1890s and early 1900s. H. H. Crippen is a mousy little milk toast and G. Marconi is an absolute jerk. How their lives could ever collide is gripping. Now here is my problem with this book. I bought it on my Kindle. The story ends on page 449, but that is only 80% of the book!! The rest of the book is bibliography, credits and thank you's, author profile, list of other books by Larson, and a preview (just a few pages from chapter 44) of his latest? book The Splendid and The Vile. Even though this book was released in 2006, it is still being sold at an outrageously high price. I felt like I got ripped off. This book should have sold for half the price, like $7.49... I believe that Kindle editions should always be the cheapest option when purchasing books...

Erik Larson is a writer of nonfiction whose books read more like novels. In Thunderstruck, he follows the formula that he started with The Devil in the White City in actually presenting two stories in one book. In The Devil, he recounts how a serial killer worked the Chicago World's Fair in 1893. In Thunderstruck, he relates the story of a famous murder case in London against the backdrop of Guglielmo Marconi and his invention of wireless radio waves. The story of Marconi is fascinating by itself. While still a boy, Marconi became fascinated by electromagnetic waves. While he didn't discover their existence, he did create the equipment to transmit them wirelessly. Critics thought that trans-Atlantic wireless transmissions could not be accomplished. And even when Marconi proved them false, nay sayers still believed this mode of communication to be but a passing fad. What is amazing is that "Marconi was an inventor, an amateur, hardly even an adult, yet he had bested the great scientific minds of the age." Larson spends a good amount of time detailing Marconi's experiments, his successes and failures, his company and even a bit of his private life. The second story that Larson relates is that of the second most famous murder in London history--next to Jack the Ripper. The unlikely murderer was Dr. Hawley Harvey Crippen, a small, quiet, gentle man who was married to a large, robust, sensual showgirl who was described as a "thunderhead of silk and diamond." When Belle Crippen mysteriously disappears, Belle's friends suspect the unassuming doctor of foul play. Larson alternates chapters between Marconi and Dr. Crippen until the climatic capture of Dr. Crippen because of Marconi's device. While I thoroughly enjoyed this book, there are two things that would have enhanced Thunderstruck. First, while Larson gives us a pretty good background on the history of the transmitting of wireless radio waves, he should have also provided a basic tutorial on radio waves themselves. What is the difference between AM and FM waves? How is it possible to transmit in different frequencies? Why do waves travel around the globe instead of going straight out into space? And why is the reception of waves better in the evening? I suspect that most readers won't know the answers to these questions. My other major complaint is a characteristic of the two previous Larson books that I've read, and that is the paucity of pictures. Larson goes to great lengths to describe people, places and things. It would have been more helpful to have photographs of these things as well. I had to use the computer to find photos of Egyptian Hall, Dromoland Castle, Belle Crippen, Ethel LaNeve, and Oliver Lodge. Larson tells us how Marconi's first wedding became a media event with lots of photographs in all the newspapers. Why couldn't Larson include a wedding photo or two? Overall, Larson has become one of my favorite nonfiction writers and I look forward to each new work he publishes.

This book took me some time to generate interest in at first due to the historical nature of its text, but once I set myself on the task, I grew compelled more than ever and finished the majority of the book in a fraction of the time that it took to read the first few chapters. I had never thought seriously about where radio, television, and wireless communications originated and am surprised that the history is so colorful. Marconi unleashed the power of Hertzian waves by applying them in a fashion practical for communication via morse code. He had no knowledge of the waves with regards to their characteristics of travel and wavelengths, but he was able to continue making advances in the distances that he could send his signals. He experimented with each component of his system, from the ether to the mechanics of the transmitter and most prominently to his antannae. He believed that the larger and more powerful his stations, the further the waves could travel. It was a logical conclusion based on his results. However, his critical mistake that took him nearly three decades to discover was that his use of long wavelengths was not necessary and that short waves travelled much further with less power. I think now about short wave radios like the one that my Dad had set up for awhile in the backyard and I remember my own fascination with the ability to speak with someone on the other side of the world through such a seemingly simple device. Now that I know its origins, I am fascinated by the logic that conspired to its existence. Marconi was so enthusiastic and dedicated to his work that he was able to surpass the scientists and physicists at the time without the knowledge of what was going on with his system. Instead of spending time formulating a theory and answering questions, he pushed on with experiment after experiment until he accomplished what he set out to do. This feat is a testament to the abilities of a person to accomplish something incredible, something innovative and inventive, without being formally schooled in that area. Simply by playing with the nature of things and using a fresh perspective it is possible to creative a new technology such as this wireless communication system. Of course, it is worth noting that Marconi himself did not invest the wireless transmitting capability. That was Oliver Lodge, and for the rest of his life that man fought to be recognized as the founder. In addition, there were other key players at the time, including Fleming who was also not recognized despite his planning for the station that first transmitted signals across the Atlantic Ocean from Pordhu to Canada. Marconi was a man set on acquiring the title as the man who created this application, and he succeeded. In his time, wireless telegrams were even referred to as Marconigrams. He won the Nobel Prize for Physics, much to the dismay of Lodge and myriad other competitors, just seven years after the Nobel Prize came into existence. There are other wonders held in the book, including the details of the interesting life of Dr. Crippen who would become one of the most famous murderers of his time. Having this drama depicted on a timeline parallel to Marconi's allowed for a better illustration of the world at this time. The scenes of London, the talk of war with Germany as inevitable, and the other inventions being released within the same timeframe. Some of the most entertaining facts were trivial, such as the origins of the word "taxi" which is simply a shortened version of the word for the device developed by a German to automatically calculate of a customer's fare in a cab; the "taximeter." Additionally, I revelled in the foresight that Nicola Tesla posessed in his reference to "television" in 1900 as a capability now that wireless had become so established. Tesla made statements alluding to his own ability to bring this to the world, but was unable to accomplish this feat. Overall, the book was a testament to the wonders of history. It especially gives insight into the mindset required to invent a new technology that a century later may be used as a common way to control the human environment. I am inspired by what Marconi was able to achieve, and I feel that knowing of his works will serve as subconscious motivation to achieve what is said to be impossible. It's a matter of a passionate pursuit for technological advancement.

Thunderstruck by Erik Larson Doctor Hawley Henry Crippen is infamous for the alleged murder of his wife, Cora, who called herself Belle Elmore. Their marital home at 39 Hilldrop Crescent, Camden Road, Holloway, London was far from being a happy one. Dr. Crippen was a small, mild-mannered man who was dominated by his larger and demanding wife. No amount of clothing or jewelry was ever enough for her. She seemed to like putting her husband down in public. She also admired (and may have had an affair with) another man, Bruce Miller. All of that changed when Belle disappeared on January 31, 1910 following a party at their home. Dr. Crippen said she had run away, gone back to America. He later claimed that she had died and was cremated. But Belle’s friends were suspicious. Dr. Crippen had taken up with his secretary, Ethel Le Neve. Miss Le Neve was even openly wearing Belle’s clothing and jewelry. Detectives searched the home on several occasions and found nothing. Then came a rather disagreeable discovery. There was flesh under the floor, a body without hands, head, or even bones... But Dr. Crippen was spooked. He and Le Neve fled England posing as father and son. Their alias was John Robison, Sr. and Jr. Their luck had already run out. Despite their attempted disguise, they were recognized by an alert Captain Henry George Kendall, who was skipper of the ship they chose to cross the Atlantic, the Montrose. But it was the inventor Guglielmo Marconi who provided the means by which Crippen was tracked and arrested, the wireless telegraph. If not for the wireless, Crippen and Le Neve might have reached Canada and vanished before authorities were alerted to their presence. Due to the wireless and a faster ship, Inspector Drew of Scotland Yard was able to arrest the couple before they disembarked. Crippen was later hanged. Erik Larson, the man who has made history as interesting to read as fiction, tells the story of the second most famous murder in London against the backdrop of Marconi’s struggles with perfecting the wireless. He manages to keep the reader’s attention even as he shuffles back and forth between the two stories until the moment is ripe to bring them together. History was never this exciting in school! Readers fascinated with true crime and readers who love to read history as it was lived will both enjoy this book. It is a solid five stars! Quoth the Raven…

Erik Larson juxtaposes a murderer and a inventor and makes it work! This writer will never run out of ideas as witnessed by this historical non-fiction, which is an exemplar of this likable genre of writing. I'm a big fan of this kind of book, only because the reader gets a good dose of history while thinking he, or she is reading a novel. Erik Larson is becoming the most salient author of this style, at least as far as I'm concerned. The book starts out slowly as Larson builds up the backgrounds of Gulielmo Marconi, the father of wireless telegraphy and London's famous murderer, Dr. Hawley Crippen, who becomes as notorious as Jack the Ripper! By the way, if you are having trouble pronouncing Marconi's first name, it's Goo-yee-ail-mo, phonetically! Anyway, the reader finds out about Marconi's struggles to obtain dominance in wireless communication while fighting numerous competitors; such as, Oliver Lodge and William Preece of England and the powerful Telefunken Company of Germany. The trials and tribulations of Marconi start out somewhat as a cognitive challenge, but become absorbing later in the book, especially when women enter his life. On the other hand, the life of 5' 4" meek Dr. Crippen was a delight from the start. Here we have a homeopathic doctor who switches medical fields as often he needs to better his position. His second wife Belle, who desires to be a opera diva, spends his money faster than he can make it. She dominates his life, consumes his assets, ridicules him and constantly threatens to leave him. One day she does leave him, or does she? Enter Ethel Le Neve erstwhile his employee, now his future wife. Dr. Crippen can't explain Belle's disappearance well enough for her stage friends. They don't believe that Belle went to America to help a sick relative. Enter Chief Inspector Walter Dew of Scotland Yard to investigate. This is the cusp in the book that the reader gets a sense of how the stories of Marconi and Crippen will congregate. And believe it or not, they do! I enjoyed how Erik Larson told both stories in different years ( basically 1894 to 1910 ), alternating chapters between the doctor and the inventor, then climaxing in the year 1910. This is a well written original idea that only Larson would come up with. Every time I read a Larson book I come away with historical knowledge along with literary gratification. It is noteworthy to mention that Larson states in a note to readers that: " This is a work of nonfiction. Anything appearing between quotation marks comes from a letter, memoir, or other written document." That is a bold and confident statement that makes this reader a big fan.

Brilliant recounting of the famous Dr. Crippen murder and the emergence of Marconi and his invention of wireless that occurred at the same time -with both tales finally intertwining dramatically. Terrific, well researched book, by an author at the top of his game.

Bom

This is a gripping and well researched read.

Es gibt in diesem Buch 2 Handlungsstränge. Erstens Marconi's Erfindung der drahtlosen Signalübertragung und zweitens eine Lebensbeschreibung von Dr. Crippen, seinem Verbrechen und seiner Flucht. Gegen Ende des Buchs wird beides zusammengeführt und beschrieben wie Crippens Ergreifung ohne Marconi's Erfindung wohl kaum gelungen wäre. Wie bei allen bisher von mir gelesenen Büchern des Autors ist auch dieses wirklich exzellent recherchiert und es ist eine Fülle an Details vorhanden. Sehr empfehlenswert!

Excellent. Très documenté. Erik Larson a l'art de nouer deux intrigues apparemment sans lien. Ici, un fait divers célèbre et une découverte qui a changé la communication (ondes) autour du Dr Crippen et de Marconi. Ce n'est pas un roman mais cela se lit comme un roman.