Long before America became an international economic powerhouse in the late 19th century,

a generation of visionary inventors gambled on innovations they hoped would bring them riches.

Chief among them was Charles Goodyear, who in the 1830s began an obsessive quest to find the recipe for rubber, the material he believed would change the world.

Chasing his dream exacted a stiff price plunging Goodyear and his family into an

underworld of poverty and litigation. He spent extended periods in debtors prison and acquired powerful enemies determined to control

this miracle substance before he did. His victory in a dramatic lawsuit argued by Daniel Webster made Goodyear into an American legend, but it never

released him from his tragic fixation or relieved the pain it caused those close to him.

The Goodyear story is a fascinating biography that also provides a panoramic view of America

at the dawn of its industrial evolution.

Drawing on recently discovered archival sources, Richard Corman tells a

suspense story of scientific experimentation and legal struggle while

he vividly portrays one of the godfathers of today's new economy pioneers.

Okay, so that is actually from the back cover of the book that I have in my hand and the one I want to talk to you about the one I read this week which was

The Goodyear story and inventor's obsession and the struggle for a rubber monopoly by Richard Korman.

Before I jump into the book too,

I just want to read some of the blurbs

that I felt were helpful.

They're on the back cover as well.

Here's one.

It says a case study in psychopathology, remember that that word, a case

study in psych pathology and business. It also portrays the waning era of the inventor

as tinkerer before science puts such investigation on a systemic

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