By Ray Palmer (reprinted from The Noble House Owl)

After reading Starling Lawrence’s substantive and entertaining historical novel, one must ask why schools don’t teach more about the importance of electric grids to modern societies. We do get taught about the steam engine, the cotton gin – even Edison’s electric light bulb. But the growth of heavy industries such as chemicals, paper, and pharmaceuticals could not have happened without the availability of reliable electric systems that make and deliver power. In today’s “post-industrial” world, we rely even more on electricity to power the Internet, our data centers, and telecommunications. Indeed, server farms have replaced steel mills and automobile assembly plants as the engines of our economy.

Fortunately, we need not subject ourselves to some dry class on the history of technology to learn about the genesis of this important industry. Instead, we have The Lightning Keeper, a book that artfully mixes the key elements of history with a compelling story of human relationships. Through the lead character of Toma Peacock (Americanized from Pekocevic) the story also highlights the contributions of immigrants to the growth of our country and the indignities often visited upon them.

Moreover, for those of us with a connection to the greater Norfolk area, we are treated to local history (including the fascinating role of General Electric). Even better, there is some thinly disguised local gossip. Indeed, a local reader may not give a whit about the technical, financial, or legal history but still find satisfaction simply from the exercises of identifying the book’s local geographical and personal references. In this regard, the reader will also want to consult a May 13, 2006 New York Times article/review for more background.

“The Lightning Keeper” successfully blends all these elements into a genuine page-turner that features love, intrigue, tragedy, and redemption. You feel sympathy for the characters, worry about them, and excuse their human flaws. When at last you finally close the back cover, you know you have read something of importance. A hardhearted writer might not have been so kind to his characters. A cynical writer would have ensured a bitter final treatment of Toma, his ideas stolen and his name discredited as happened to the great Nikola Tesla. But to this reviewer, the constant diet of cynicism and negativity offered by today’s culture doesn’t need another contribution. It’s nice to see a good guy win now and then.