"The Age of Edison: Electric Light and the Invention of Modern America" by Ernest Freeberg

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    The late nineteenth century was a period of explosive technological creativity, but arguably the most important invention of all was Thomas Edison’s incandescent light-bulb.

The light bulb became a catalyst for the nation’s transformation from a rural to an urban-dominated culture. City streetlights defined zones between rich and poor, and the electrical grid sharpened the line between town and country.

In The Age of Edison: Electric Light and the Invention of Modern America, author Ernest Freeberg places the story of Edison’s invention in the context of a technological revolution that transformed America and Europe in these decades.