Nikola Tesla: A Spark of Genius (Lerner Biographies) [ILLUSTRATED] (Hardcover)

by Carol Dommermuth-Costa (Author) "Ten o'clock in the evening approached as Nikola Tesla hurried back to his lab after dinner..." (more)
Key Phrases: New York, Nikola Tesla, Colorado Springs (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal
Grade 5-9?Many readers may have heard of the Tesla coil, but few understand what it is or know much about its inventor. This book partially fills that void in that it tells the story of the man's life, but it makes little attempt to explain his multitudes of inventions, which are basic to the use of alternating current and wireless transmission. He was a complex character?genius, showman, neurotic, recluse, and always more interested in giving the world cheap energy than in collecting on his patents?which may explain why we usually credit Marconi rather than Tesla with the invention of the radio. His internal complexity leads to some confusion in the text, but the result is far preferable to the paucity of information elsewhere. Good-quality, black-and-white photographs appear throughout.?Margaret Chatham, formerly at Smithtown Library, NY
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Booklist
Gr. 5-9. The author traces the life and career of an eccentric but brilliant inventor and pioneer in the field of electricity, from his birth in Croatia through his technical training in Europe and his subsequent successes and frustrations in America. A less familiar name in this country than fellow inventor and rival, Thomas Edison, Tesla discovered and perfected the principle of alternating current (AC), as opposed to Edison's direct current (DC). The author credits Tesla, rather than Marconi, with the invention of the radio and discusses Tesla's pioneer work in the field of robotics. The writing is sometimes disjointed, and much of the material is overly anecdotal. The fact that the author is a member of the Tesla Memorial Society and a definite "fan" comes through loud and clear, but this is a reasonable choice for libraries searching for a wider range of biographies for younger readers, especially in the area of science, and for developing collections that offer a multiethnic look at human achievement. There are many black-and-white photos, a few technical drawings with basic explanations as to how various inventions worked, and a short bibliography of books and articles. Jeanne Triner

Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Hardcover: 144 pages
• Publisher: Lerner Publications (October 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0822549204
• ISBN-13: 978-0822549208
• Product Dimensions: 8.6 x 6.8 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,044,203 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars "Tesla, an Unsung Hero to Many", December 26, 2007

By	Russell A. Rohde MD "Owl" (West Covina, California USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

"Tesla: A Spark of Genius", by Carol Dommermuth-Costa, Lerner Publications, MN 1994. ISBN 0-8225-4920-4, HC 144 pages, includes Index & Biblio., plus 76 B&W photos and illustrations. 8 3/4" x 6 1/4".

A delightfully written well-illustrated book authored by a teacher, importantly, a member of the Tesla Memorial Society which enabled her access to important documentary and photographic material of the TMS ,the Tesla Museum in Belgrade, a grandnephew, etc. Hence, it's well-research and the story nicely spun.

We are introduced to Nikola Tesla (1856-1943) of Croatia, born to a father who was a Priest and a mother, avid reader and of inventive mind who fostered his education. Nikola developed a distinctive disciplined mindset, exerted self-control of lifestyle and prone to uncanny real and imagined objects imageries enabling an inventive mind to forego pen and pencil drafting. In time, he excelled in physics, mathematics & mechanics and, working alone, he solved problem of creating A/C motors. After coming to America & working briefly with Thomas A. Edison, he was financed by George Westinghouse, lectured for the AIEE, worked with x-rays, devised the Tesla coil, wireless transmission (radio), generation of AC current for the 1893 World's Fair (Chicago) and divers inventions, almost too inumerable to tabulate but included the speedometer, lightweight airplane engines, geothermal turbines, efficacious transmission of electric current over long distances, oscillators, transformers, and condensers, etc.

Remaining single, but singularly active and inventive into his 80's, he died, an American citizen, in 1943 at age 86. His hobby, feeding pigeons, especially the white one with silver gray wing tips.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Nikola Tesla, January 29, 2008

By	Andrea L. Martin (CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Born on July 9 at midnight, Nikola Tesla's mother heard lightning strike and declared that her child was a "child of the light". As he grew up his brilliant mind was tested time and time again by challenges he met as he traveled from his hometown of Smiljan in Croatia to Gospic. His father would constantly bombard him with mathematical equations to stimulate his brain when he was young. After graduating school he went to series of colleges and universities in 1878. Nikola the looked for jobs, finding one in the city of Moribor.

Having a gift for engineering, Tesla invented the AC motor, or Alternating Current motor. His dreams were realized when a pleased man who was helped by Tesla's genius referred him to work for the esteemed Thomas Edison. He eventually was hired by Edison and invented the famous radio, which was wrongly considered to be the invention of another man Guglielmo Marconi. Although that this man was credited for his astounding work, he is remebered today as the "Electrical Wizard". The author of this book, Carol Dommermuth Costa illustrates the brilliance of Tesla's work and inventions through the story of his life, and photos. This book was great and I recomend this book to anyone interested in inventions, or the breakthroughs of science.