The iron road The illustrated history of railways

A journalist with an expertise in railroad history, Wolmar has expanded on his previous book (Blood, Iron and Gold), telling the story of past, present, and possible future of a 19th-century technology that touched almost every corner of the earth. More than mere history, this book describes the challenges and successes surrounding the development of networks that went on to play a significant role in the ways people lived, worked, fought, and traveled. Mostly focusing on passenger services, this narrative is a highly readable survey of the events that shaped the growth and popularity of rail service and the heroes and villains along the way. Although the many diagrams, photographs, and maps were not seen in color, the reader can expect them to be of similar quality to other books by this publisher. In particular, the technical drawings of brakes, rails, cars, gauges, and other elements are well placed and clearly rendered, making them helpful for anyone new to the subject. VERDICT This is a worthwhile choice for popular reading on the topic and will please fans of Bill Laws's Fifty Railroads That Changed the Course of History.-Barbara -Ferrara, Chesterfield Cty. P.L., VA (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.