The Day the World Took Off - the Roots of the Industrial Revolution Book

The Day The World Took Off, explores as its subtitle says, "the roots of the Industrial Revolution". And it does it in a novel way by working from the heights, or depths, depending on your point of view, of the Industrial Revolution in the 1830s back over 10,000 years to the beginnings of the domestication of nature. In doing so, it takes us from Victorian England through Europe to China and Japan where it all began. The Dugan's bring history to life for the general reader in this fascinating and beautifully illustrated book, supplemented by a useful reading list and index. There are plenty of surprises here. The authors have been able to use the contributions to the TV series from five internationally known academics. These lift basically familiar stories such as the growth of manufacture and the railway network in Britain by giving new details and insights. The use of quotes from contemporary writers and observers provides the tone of the times. An extract from the Liverpool Mercury tells how the local MP, William Huskisson, was the first fatality, being run over by the Rocket at the opening of the new Liverpool-Manchester railway. Although a spin-off from a Channel 4 TV series produced by David Dugan, the book easily stands alone as an entertaining and informative insight into a topic which we all think we know something about.--Douglas PalmerRead More