Lunar Men: The Inventors of the Modern World 1730-1810

In the 1760s a group of amateur experimenters met and made friends in the Midlands. Most came from humble families, all lived far from the centre of things, but they were young and their optimism was boundless: together they would change the world.
One of the most lavishly praised books of the year, Jenny Uglow's masterful history is a swarming, hugely-readable group portrait of the Lunar Society of Birmingham, the group of friends who launched the industrial revolution.