Exploring the scientific contributions of Thomas Edison and Charles Proteus Steimetz in upstate New York at the confluence of the Hudson River and its tributary the Mohawk--and the fate of the same place in the mid-sixties--this is a "novel of America, of its great scientific ingenuity and its emotional ambition; one that frames the birth and evolution of its towns against the struggles of its indigenous tribes, the immigrant experience, a country divided, and the technological advancements that ushered in the modern world"--Amazon.com.