BATTERIES get a bad press. They are always flat when you need them, or too heavy and cumbersome. Rarely does anyone appreciates just how wondrous an invention the battery is: the miracle of electricity in a handy package.
And talk about power. The tale of the humble battery tracks the story of the modern world. After reading Henry Schlesinger’s enthralling book you will struggle to name an aspect of our lives in which the battery has played no part. Who knew that batteries helped establish the Reuters news agency, that nights spent in a battery room kick-started Thomas Edison’s career,…
