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drdena's review against another edition
3.0
Not Petroski's most engaging work, but still worth the read if you're a fan of his.
It's actually an anthology of essays he's published in various magazines, so some of the information is quite dated (he started writing them in 1991) and has advanced or been modified since publishing, but that's the nature of science and technology writing.
I prefer his books about engineering theory, as opposed to this collection looking at engineering achievement. It provides a good analysis persuading the reader of the importance of engineers in society; but as an engineer myself I have a good grasp on this concept and didn't need much persuading.
I'd recommend it if you've read Petroski's other works, but I likely won't read it again myself.
It's actually an anthology of essays he's published in various magazines, so some of the information is quite dated (he started writing them in 1991) and has advanced or been modified since publishing, but that's the nature of science and technology writing.
I prefer his books about engineering theory, as opposed to this collection looking at engineering achievement. It provides a good analysis persuading the reader of the importance of engineers in society; but as an engineer myself I have a good grasp on this concept and didn't need much persuading.
I'd recommend it if you've read Petroski's other works, but I likely won't read it again myself.
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