That $25 biography I swore would be boring actually hooked me

I thought a book about a 19th century inventor would put me to sleep, but the author's storytelling about their failed experiments made it feel like a thriller. Has anyone else had a book surprise them like that?

3 comments

3 Comments

avery_carr5713d ago

Actually have to disagree here. That book sounds like it would still put me to sleep. Inventors are boring people who tinker with stuff in a shed. The biography probably just dragged on about his childhood and his boring family drama. Thriller? That's a stretch. Books about old inventors always get hyped up but then you're stuck reading about failed experiments for 200 pages. No thanks.

richardk2613d ago

Actually reading the book i have to say it surprised me. The guy had 247 failed experiments before the one that worked, not 200 pages of them. The author did this thing where each failure is like a short chapter, tension building up to the next attempt. It reads more like a heist story than a boring timeline of his life. The family drama part is barely there, maybe 30 pages at most. The real focus is on the final race against a rival inventor who was trying to do the same thing at the same time. That part alone makes it worth a read if you give it a chance.

logan6482d ago

That rival inventor angle changes everything. Nothing gets the blood pumping like a good old fashioned race to be first, especially when both sides are working on the same thing but going different directions about it. The short chapters for each failure sound smart too, keeps you turning pages instead of getting bogged down in technical details. Honestly makes me want to give it a shot even though I usually stick to true crime.