The Quest: Energy, Security, and the Remaking of the Modern World
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- Author：Daniel Yergin
- ISBN：0143121944
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Summary
A master storyteller as well as a leading energy expert， Daniel Yergin continues the riveting story begun in his Pulitzer Prize–winning book， The Prize。 In The Quest， Yergin shows us how energy is an engine of global political and economic change and conflict， in a story that spans the energies on which our civilization has been built and the new energies that are competing to replace them。
The Quest tells the inside stories， tackles the tough questions， and reveals surprising insights about coal， electricity， and natural gas。 He explains how climate change became a great issue and leads readers through the rebirth of renewable energies， energy independence， and the return of the electric car。 Epic in scope and never more timely， The Quest vividly reveals the decisions， technologies， and individuals that are shaping our future。
The Quest tells the inside stories， tackles the tough questions， and reveals surprising insights about coal， electricity， and natural gas。 He explains how climate change became a great issue and leads readers through the rebirth of renewable energies， energy independence， and the return of the electric car。 Epic in scope and never more timely， The Quest vividly reveals the decisions， technologies， and individuals that are shaping our future。
Reviews
Heidi Larson
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History of the modern world from the perspective of energy。。。 Oil， gas， solar， etc。 I had no idea some of the involvement。。。。
Nujood
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I keep forgetting that I should never write reviews directly in the GoodReads app， the box always closes before I get a chance to post， too bad， the last one was good。 ANYWAY… It’s been a while since I read a REAL book， BY REAL I MEAN FICTION， I was lucky enough to escape reality for a couple of months and delve into some wonderful worlds， until my studies caught up with me and dragged me against my will away from fiction so HERE WE ARE。 In all honesty， I have enjoyed the company of Daniel Yergi I keep forgetting that I should never write reviews directly in the GoodReads app， the box always closes before I get a chance to post， too bad， the last one was good。 ANYWAY… It’s been a while since I read a REAL book， BY REAL I MEAN FICTION， I was lucky enough to escape reality for a couple of months and delve into some wonderful worlds， until my studies caught up with me and dragged me against my will away from fiction so HERE WE ARE。 In all honesty， I have enjoyed the company of Daniel Yergin， although it was bumpy and lasted for way too long， I can finally put this book back to the shelf satisfactorily knowing that I have completed it。 The book follows the history and evolution of how the modern world came to be， I expected it to be much more dry than it actually was， but it was written with whit and charm that allowed me to step into some of the most significant moments of history and even laugh at times。 Some of the most important topics covered in this book include: 1。 The tension between the east and the west 2。 The recursive and oh so silly assumptions that shift the direction of the world， demonstrated best by the iconic “peak theory”。 Oh it’s gonna end， better change strategy， oh wait， we don’t want it anymore， all hail “peak demand”， oops， it’s actually cheap and there’s a huge accident over there， let’s use it， never mind， the future is gas， oh come on， the future should be clean。 3。 The entertaining politics: “Oh hello traitors”， man I wish I was in that conference， “Phone Buddha” we’re going atomic， “MUTUAL MASS DESTRUCTION” stop the nuclear madness 4。 How a series of curiosities have led to the NEW WORLD: from Einstein’s SOLAR PHOTOELECTRIC paper， who knew this genius brought us solar PVs TOO， to John Tyndall’s GHG experiment [Oh side note and spoiler alert， the guy gets killed by an ‘accidental’ sleeping pill overdose given to him by HIS WIFE “Oh my dear， you have killed your John”]， to a bunch of mountaineers who went up to measure the glaciers to see if it’s actually melting and feared global warming was actually a global cooling effect and then rejoiced on the warming effect by thinking ‘Oh how lovely， winter’s gonna be like a tropical island visit’ to Von Neumann [The father， NO THE SON， TURING IS THE FATHER， of modern computing] and his mathematical games with weather forecasting 5。 How there’s really no blueprint to the changing energy landscape， “self sufficiency” is an unlikely dream， and however plans and strategies are formed， exploration of new sources， new markets， new ideas are what really change the world， regardless of the political agenda Now there are some notable chapters that I really enjoyed and hope that you， the next reader might as well: Chapter 13-14: When the book finally gets sexy， the chapters tell you everything you need to know about how politics really work and how the whole thing is just driven by egos here and there Chapter 20: RISE AND FALL， RISE AGAIN - Nuclear games， shall we BEGIN？ It’s honestly much more than my little stupid rhyme， this chapter tells the story of strategic energy planning Chapter 21: The mountaineers and their questions Chapter 28: The whole “let’s clean the world， BRO” trend， the clean energy entrepreneurs and their gimmicks Chapter 35: I love anything electric vehicle related so this was a nice little recap of DARPA’s race， Musk’s cape minus the joint and a reminiscence of Ford’s revolutionary spirit Overall， pick it up， read it， but don’t take almost 10 months to get through it。 It’s yellow， shiny and pretty too so worth picking up。 Also， I should mention， my copy was personally signed by the legend himself， just had to put that out there。 。。。more
Adam
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Mostly fluff with few hidden nuggets。 Dropped it in the second half， as it started talking about things I had no real interest in
Ankur
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This book is a sequel of Pulitzer Prize winner book "The Prize"。 This book goes into detailed discussion on impact of fossil fuels on climate change， emergence of renewable energy sources， impact of this shift on various countries across the world。 It also gives behind-the-scenes insights on development of kyoto protocol， montreal agreement。 Towards the end， the discussion is focused on emergence of Electric Vehicles and how fast will this shift eventually happen。It is a must read book in the cu This book is a sequel of Pulitzer Prize winner book "The Prize"。 This book goes into detailed discussion on impact of fossil fuels on climate change， emergence of renewable energy sources， impact of this shift on various countries across the world。 It also gives behind-the-scenes insights on development of kyoto protocol， montreal agreement。 Towards the end， the discussion is focused on emergence of Electric Vehicles and how fast will this shift eventually happen。It is a must read book in the current scenario where we are facing the impacts of climate change across the world and there is emerging focus on ESG policies。 This book will provide detailed information to the reader which would be helpful in understanding the EV & ESG field globally。 。。。more
Mohd Ashraf
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There are several ideas I picked up from this book:1） Diversity - The modern era brought new technology， expertise， and money to unlock hydrocarbon from various locations around the globe and from previously uneconomical projects。 This brought diversity and is key in energy security and energy supply in the future。 Hydrocarbon is still going to be an important mix despite challenges ahead。 The world simply needs more energy in the future and renewables is a severely handicapped substitute at the There are several ideas I picked up from this book:1） Diversity - The modern era brought new technology， expertise， and money to unlock hydrocarbon from various locations around the globe and from previously uneconomical projects。 This brought diversity and is key in energy security and energy supply in the future。 Hydrocarbon is still going to be an important mix despite challenges ahead。 The world simply needs more energy in the future and renewables is a severely handicapped substitute at the moment。 2） Smart grid - Electric grid will have to modernize。 It should be flexible。 a） Has power plants that can generate electricity from various energy sources。 b） Transmission grid that is efficient， smart to balance peak load， and reliable during adverse times。3） Renewables - Need to be more efficient to convert energy to electricity。 Need to solve intermittency and reliability issue。 Progress are good but not great at the moment。 Mostly rely on incentives by governments to remain profitable。 4） Efficiency - to be able to double output using same amount of energy is a HUGE thing。 Every facet of modern living - appliances， equipment， transportation， building， etc need to embrace this idea。 "To valuable to waste" is a powerful Japanese concept introduced in this book that should be an everyday mantra for any industry。 5） Energy sustainability - to be self sufficient in energy is a mandatory national objective。 As much as possible government has to invest in energy production， make the economy efficient energy consumer， and to maintain network of good international relation to ensure support during troubling times。 。。。more
Prodyut Mukherjee
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Overall a nice read。 However， it's long and verbose。 The content could easily have been tighter。 Also it falls short in the actual details part。 For someone not from the energy sector， the person would only get a brief exposure to the issues and he/ she would yearn for details， especially on the technical side。 Overall a nice read。 However， it's long and verbose。 The content could easily have been tighter。 Also it falls short in the actual details part。 For someone not from the energy sector， the person would only get a brief exposure to the issues and he/ she would yearn for details， especially on the technical side。 。。。more
Borislav Boev
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Well written book， in a very informative and understandable fashion。 The Quest presents the complex story of energy in a historical context。 The significance of major scientific discoveries in the field of energy is well explained。 Most of these discoveries still have their influence today’s world。 The relationship between the political， financial， economic， social and cultural aspects that shape the energy policy is very well explained。 I recommend it to anyone who’s interested in researching a Well written book， in a very informative and understandable fashion。 The Quest presents the complex story of energy in a historical context。 The significance of major scientific discoveries in the field of energy is well explained。 Most of these discoveries still have their influence today’s world。 The relationship between the political， financial， economic， social and cultural aspects that shape the energy policy is very well explained。 I recommend it to anyone who’s interested in researching and understanding the complexity of the energy system。 。。。more
Jake
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I learned a lot about the energy business and had no idea it'd so interesting。 I learned a lot about the energy business and had no idea it'd so interesting。 。。。more
Stefan Langenberg
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Fantastic book。 The book provides everything you need to know about energy and how it shapes politics in the modern world。
قصي بن خليفة
，
وأخيرا انتهت هذه الرحلة الطويلة مع هذا الكتاب الضخم والمرجعي في تاريخ النفط والطاقةالكاتب الشهير في مجاله "دانيال يرجن" مبدع في عرضه للمواضيع المعقدة والمتشابكة فيبسطها ويقدمها للقارئ على طبق من فضة。。。 حكى قصة النفط والطاقة بأسلوب سلس مسترسل وكأنك تقرأ رواية。。。 ولكنه محترف في مجاله وبالتالي ليس له رأي في أي شيء سوى ما تراه الآلة الإعلامية الغربية والرأي العام الغربي دون أن يعلق على أي شيء سواء صح أو غلط~~~~ولكنه التاريخ الأمريكي للطاقة！！ وكأنه لا يوجد عالم آخر سوى ما يؤثر مباشرة على أمريكا، وكأن وأخيرا انتهت هذه الرحلة الطويلة مع هذا الكتاب الضخم والمرجعي في تاريخ النفط والطاقةالكاتب الشهير في مجاله "دانيال يرجن" مبدع في عرضه للمواضيع المعقدة والمتشابكة فيبسطها ويقدمها للقارئ على طبق من فضة。。。 حكى قصة النفط والطاقة بأسلوب سلس مسترسل وكأنك تقرأ رواية。。。 ولكنه محترف في مجاله وبالتالي ليس له رأي في أي شيء سوى ما تراه الآلة الإعلامية الغربية والرأي العام الغربي دون أن يعلق على أي شيء سواء صح أو غلط~~~~ولكنه التاريخ الأمريكي للطاقة！！ وكأنه لا يوجد عالم آخر سوى ما يؤثر مباشرة على أمريكا، وكأنه موظف في الحكومة الأمريكية فلا تتوقع وجهات نظر أخرىومن ذلك أنه ينفي بشدة أن غزو العراق كان بسبب النفط حيث ساق أسباباً للغزو غير مقنعة ومما قاله أن انتاج النفط في العراق انخفض بنسبة 20% وأراها مفاجأة فهذا انخفاض بسيط ويدل أنه لا توجد مصلحة لأحد في توقف النفط وفي بلد كالعراق。。。 إنه النفط يا 。。。。。 للعلم فقد خصص فصلاً كاملاً ليدحض كون الحرب بسبب النفط وهو فصل فاشل。。。 بل إنك كلما تعمقت في موضوع غزو العراق سترى النفط يبرز مرة بعد مرةوقد يكون هذا بديهياً فهو من الواضح لا يريد زعل الكبار。。。 ولذا أراه وبالذات عندما بدأت أقرأ الفصول الأخيرة أنه موجه لأعضاء الحكومة الأمريكية لعله يجد منصباً استشاريا عندهم。。。 وعند البحث وجدت ذلك حقيقة فهو من أكابر المستشارين فعلاً~~~~~النصف الثاني من الكتاب لم يكن عن النفط وإنما عن مصادر الطاقة الأخرى ومتعلقاتها حيث تحدث بإسهاب عن تاريخ الرياح والشمس والسيارة الكهربائية ورغم أن الكتاب حديث نسبياً فقد صدر في 2011، إلا إنه حدثت تطورات ضخمة خلال هذه السنوات التسع وبالطبع لم يذكر منها شيئاً فبدا لي الموضوع وكأنه قديم جداً وكانت القراءة ثقيلة في آخر الكتاب。。。 أبرز هذه التطورات انخفاض تكلفة الطاقة الشمسية بشكل كبير، وبروز السيارة الكهربائية، وازدهار انتاج الغاز الأمريكي، ولم يذكر شيئاً من ذلكوللحق فقد صدر كتابه الأول "الجائزة" والذي حصل على شهرة فائقة، وفاز بجوائز، وأصدرت البي بي سي سلسلة وثائقية تحكي ما ورد فيه، صدر هذا الكتاب الشهير في 1990。 وكتابنا هذا صدر في 2011 ويبدو أنها فترة معقولة ليغطي الكاتب تطورات العشرين سنة ويضيف مواضيع أخرى。。。 ولكن كما قلت حدثت أمور عظيمة بعد ذلك وأعتقد أن الكتاب هذا انتشر معتمداً على شهرة الكاتب والكتاب "الجائزة"。。。 ولكن كاتبنا المحترف انتبه لذلك ولم يتوان فقد أصدر كتاباً جديداً في2020 ！！。。。 ونصيحتي لك ألا تشتري هذا وخذ الجديد~~~~~تعلمت منه أن للنفط نقمة خطيرة في ثوب نعمة كبيرة。。。 ولها أعراض وأمراض، ومنها المرض الهولندي الشهير。。。 ولكن الأمراض تكون أخطر عندما تتجمع الثروة في المركز فيكثر الطامعون من جمع الأشكال، وينتشر ما يسمى بالسعي وراء الريع وهي أمور تدمر الاقتصاد رغم قوته الظاهرية بالنفط ولكنها قوة جوفاءوتعلمت منه أن التعاونيات ليست فقط للبقالة！ وإنما استخدمت في نشر الكهرباء ولها الفضل في ذلك。。 لاحظ لا الحكومة لها القدرة ولا القطاع الخاص له المصلحة في بعض من هذه المشاريع الكبيرة。。。 ولكن التعاونيات بين المنتفعين حلت الإشكال وأوصلت الكهرباء لمناطق نائية في أمريكا。。。 مثال جيد لفكرة د。 جميل أكبر في قوله أن الحكومة لا ينبغي لها أن تنشئ المشاريع الضخمة وإنما الأفراد المتعاونين 。。。more
Thom
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Thought this was a fair and interesting book on Energy and the policy that shapes it。 Also a interesting look at predictions made in 2010 compared to what happened by 2020。I will be looking forward to getting his next book and seeing his take on the last 10 years
Nicolas Marrel
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I had expected much more economics and engineering in that book， comparing the different pros and cons of different energy sources。 This was explained but more details would have been welcome as well as less information about the whole geopolitics of energy which， while important， was too much detailed for my taste for a book about energy （it is interesting to know about the geopolitics of Venezuela but I did not need to know about the whole story of the rise and fall of Hugo Chavez）。
Alla
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Full and detailed description of people’s quest for energy that covered so many important aspects and really opened my eyes on energy problems: economics and politics around oil and gas， phenomenon of oil countries， connection between global politics and oil hunt， era of electricity， negative and positive sides of nuclear energy， and， of course， climate change。 The science of climate change is explained in a very comprehensive way: greenhouse effect， greenhouse gases， UV and infrared waves， clim Full and detailed description of people’s quest for energy that covered so many important aspects and really opened my eyes on energy problems: economics and politics around oil and gas， phenomenon of oil countries， connection between global politics and oil hunt， era of electricity， negative and positive sides of nuclear energy， and， of course， climate change。 The science of climate change is explained in a very comprehensive way: greenhouse effect， greenhouse gases， UV and infrared waves， climate modeling。 The book also covered different types of sustainable energy （solar and wind）， biofuels and competition between EVs and ICE cars that started not in XXI century， but back in times of Thomas Edison and Henry Ford。 。。。more
Michael
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This bro needs to learn about climate change。 But otherwise it was really good。 Geopolitics and all。
zhixin
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I'm glad to have read The Quest -- it taught me a lot about the sources of energy， how they have driven the currents of politics throughout history， and the technology behind them。 But boy did I take a long time to finish， and I do think the book could have benefitted from more rigorous editing for greater impact from a sharper focus。The book is divided into six parts:1。 The New World of Oil: this series focuses on the role that oil has played in nations like Russia， the Caspian （or ex USSR nati I'm glad to have read The Quest -- it taught me a lot about the sources of energy， how they have driven the currents of politics throughout history， and the technology behind them。 But boy did I take a long time to finish， and I do think the book could have benefitted from more rigorous editing for greater impact from a sharper focus。The book is divided into six parts:1。 The New World of Oil: this series focuses on the role that oil has played in nations like Russia， the Caspian （or ex USSR nations）， the Middle East， Venezuela， Nigeria， USA， and China。 These countries were specifically covered for the outsized impact of oil on their economies and politics， whether as a major producer or consumer。 Corporations feature significantly as well; Yergin outlines the politics at play in the formation and mergers of petroleum companies including BP， Exxon-Mobile， and other big names。 I found the section on petro-states illuminating -- petro-states are economies that are highly dependent on oil， and as such birth what is termed "rent-seeking behaviour"， where people compete for a share for the pie （the rent） rather than engage in productive activities like entrepreneurship and innovation。 The economies are also afflicted with the Dutch disease， a phenomenon whereby the national currency becomes overvalued due to the influx of wealth from oil， rendering exports and domestic business uncompetitive in the face of cheap imports。 This can be mitigated by absorbing sudden large flows of revenue into sovereign wealth funds。 The other effect of an oil economy is more difficult to tackle: the volatility of oil prices leads to variability of government revenues， and whichever government is in power faces public pressure to increase spending during the good times。 The public expects the spending to continue even when oil prices go down， and， coupled with their expectation of enjoying cheap oil and natural gas， means governments are locked in an ever-increasing spending spiral。 The reliance on state spending also makes economies more rigid and unresponsive。 Yergin considers the heavy dependence on oil a significant factor in the collapse of the USSR: for years， the high oil prices allowed the Soviet economy to finance its military and food shortages without undergoing crucial reformation; the end of USSR came when oil prices collapsed and food shortages became catastrophic。 Another section I enjoyed was the explanation for the demand shock that hit the world oil market in 2004。 Prior to this， oil prices were only shaken due to supply shocks， for instance the oil embargo in the 1973 October War or the Gulf crisis of 1990-91。 Usually the oil industry operates with a few million barrels of shut-in capacity as a security cushion to manage sudden surges in demand， but the rise of developing economies like China's shrank spare capcity to less than a million barrels a day。 The industry previously had tried to rein in spending in response to the 1998 price collapse， and its capital-intensive nature makes it harder to pivot in response to demand changes。 This combined with the rapid increase in futures and options trading in oil led oil prices to balloon， only collapsing with the 2008 financial crisis。2。 Securing the Supply: this series examines the pervasive fear of running out of oil， and gives a historic overview of the significant discoveries of oil supplies， as well as technological advancements allowing for their more efficient use， that have thus far kept this fear hypothetical。 Nevertheless， it is still in everyone's interest to diversify their sources of energy; the series goes on to cover natural gas liquids， oil sands， shale oil， and the technological advancements that have allowed their extraction and processing into energy。 Nations have also banded together to form the International Energy Agency （IEA） to coordinate an emergency sharing of supplies in the event of a supply shock; this was put into use during the Gulf crisis of 1990-91， Hurricanes Katrina and Rita， and in response to the loss of supply from the Libyan civil war。 Of interest to the Singaporean would be the chokepoint for trading routes that has played a significant role in our fortunes， otherwise called the Melacca Strait。 Some 80% of Japan and South Korea's oil， and 40% of China's total supply traverse this strait。 Security is obviously a concern to all the players involved， but beyond that， as a Singaporean， it gives food for thought about how much it would affect us if/when a canal is built above us， rerouting sea traffic， as well as what happens when energy sources pivot away from oil。3。 The Electric Age: this series gives us a history of the rise of electricity。 In my mind as a software engineer， electricity is life-changing because it abstracts the source of energy away from energy itself， that is， it doesn't matter whether it's oil or gas or a wind turbine， as long as it gets converted into electricity that can then power our appliances。 The series also covers nuclear energy -- the public perception of it at various points in time in different nations， especially influenced by the various reactor accidents， and the ease of making nuclear weapons after acquiring the capabilities for a reactor。 （Feels like this would have fit better in the previous series， as an examination into alternative sources of energy。） I liked learning about the development of the electric grid -- it isn't enough to just have invented the light bulb; the infrastructure has to be in place to democratize it as well。 The economic model is marvellous: it transitioned from charging by the bulb to charging for the energy used， which involved the invention of a meter to measure usage （another form of abstraction！ Tie prices not to the material good but the underlying thing powering it！） Another invention: the regulatory bargain， where government worked with the private sector to form a "natural monopoly" that gave fair prices， whatever that meant， in order to take advantage of economies of scale much needed because of the capital overlay。4。 Climate and Carbon: this series gives an overview of the history of the discovery of the negative effects， namely greenhouse gases， from the generation of energy， a cause-and-effect one takes for granted now， and the seesawing attitudes of politicians towards the climate。 Included too is the process of inventing a free market solution for taking into account the negative externality of carbon generation， that is， carbon credits， as opposed to using the blunt instrument of government regulation。 This approach was initially not well-received due to the moral resistance agaisnt selling pollution credits， and it went down to the last day of the Kyoto Protocol for European countries to come on board。5。 New Energies: this series covers clean energy， including the history of the technological advancements in solar and wind energy， as well as how the increase in efficiency of energy use is another way of tackling the energy problem。 It also goes into how countries like Japan and Germany have previously pushed the envelope on this with government subsidies due to their anxieties relating to energy independence， the entry of venture capitalists into cleantech， and its challenges。 There's an interesting paragraph on an unsual niche market found by solar cells: illegal marijuana growers realised their activity was being detected through the big surges of electricity used by the lights they installed indoors， and solar arrays allowed them to detach from the electricity grid。6。 Road to the Future: this series covers newer tech such as biofuel and electric cars and their challenges。 I enjoyed learning about the tech in hybrid cars， like the Prius which uses its electric motor in stop-and-go city driving and its internal combustion engine for higher speeds， recharging its electric battery through both the gasoline engine as well as the kinetic energy from the heat generated from cars braking， or cars that accept flex-fuel， a mixture of gasoline and ethanol， adjusting the engine according to the proportion of ethanol in the fuel。The ambition of the book is obvious， with its coverage of so many forms of energy in so many polities。 I feel that it could have sacrificed some detail especially in messy negotiation processes between companies and countries， which， while providing for human interest， tended to get tedious and lost in a sea of names as the book unfolded。 Its choice to divide the book into forms of energy meant it ended up repeating sections especially relating to political attitudes。 Nevertheless， it was valuable learning broadly how the different sources of energy were extracted and employed， and the rise and fall of political fortunes according to how well governments juggled the cost of and revenues from consuming or producing energy。 。。。more
Marks54
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I have encountered parts of the book for some time but never got around to reading the whole thing。 Then I realized he had a new book out that builds upon this so I decided to work through this。 This is a book that provides a fairly comprehensive history of macro economic and macro political issues related to energy （taken broadly） from the end of the Soviet Union until around 2010。 The focus is on the policy issues related to energy at the national and regional levels of analysis。Think about th I have encountered parts of the book for some time but never got around to reading the whole thing。 Then I realized he had a new book out that builds upon this so I decided to work through this。 This is a book that provides a fairly comprehensive history of macro economic and macro political issues related to energy （taken broadly） from the end of the Soviet Union until around 2010。 The focus is on the policy issues related to energy at the national and regional levels of analysis。Think about that。 A book like this rapidly morphs into a policy-oriented history of the world since 1990 with a focus on energy （oil， natural gas， LNG， nuclear， wind， etc。）。 So it is a focused history of the modern world from the standpoint of energy related products and services。 Each chapter is about a different area of energy concern。 Each area is immensely complex and， beyond the technical details of products and services， is filled with economic and political issues that have their own logics and yet interact importantly on a continuing basis。This is an absolutely essential book for anyone who works in areas tied to energy。 How do oil markets work？ What in LNG？ Which Persian Gulf states are which and who cares？ What does China have to do with energy markets？ I could go on， but that misses the point。 There is a lot of material here。 Every chapter in this book is well constructed and thoughtful and the different stories vary widely across the book。 They are all complex but also represent the “tip of the iceberg” of the history and issues associated with each area covered in the book。 Have an ipad or PC handy to look up the different lines of referral。The book is fairly straightforward to read and follow， although it can be a bit of a slog， with not many areas where skimming will be rewarding。 The book is well written and organized and there is not that much wasted text。 This is a chore to work through and it can serve as a background reference - it is a lot to read at one time。 Anyone interested in energy should try to work through it。 It is well worth the effort。 。。。more
Julia Fonteles
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Encyclopedia to understand the energy world
Joe
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Great books with a focus on history should either provide interesting frameworks to understand the world or enough detail for the reader to get a visceral sense of the era。 This book fell into the middle and did neither。
Janetymj
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I bought this book out of curiousity - this is such a big topic and I really wanted to have a deeper understanding on it。 A very comprehensive book on the history and evolution of energy itself and the economics and politics related to it。 Can feel a little dry sometimes because of the large amount of details and facts - like a documentary。 Still， even if I am not able to absorb everything from the book， I think it really helps one develop a new perspective of understanding this world - from the I bought this book out of curiousity - this is such a big topic and I really wanted to have a deeper understanding on it。 A very comprehensive book on the history and evolution of energy itself and the economics and politics related to it。 Can feel a little dry sometimes because of the large amount of details and facts - like a documentary。 Still， even if I am not able to absorb everything from the book， I think it really helps one develop a new perspective of understanding this world - from the energy perspective。 。。。more
Todd
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At first this seemed like pro oil propaganda but turned out to be an amazing read about the overall status and history of energy post 1990。 We go back in time a bit to discuss the history of alternative fuels and all over the world。 You’ll be surprised how many conservative lead governments have actually been on the front lines of spearheading the green energy movement and the desire for change and improvement。 Thankfully， Daniel Yergin， the foremost energy historian of our time， is able to admi At first this seemed like pro oil propaganda but turned out to be an amazing read about the overall status and history of energy post 1990。 We go back in time a bit to discuss the history of alternative fuels and all over the world。 You’ll be surprised how many conservative lead governments have actually been on the front lines of spearheading the green energy movement and the desire for change and improvement。 Thankfully， Daniel Yergin， the foremost energy historian of our time， is able to admit that even though things will change out of necessity， he’s not naive enough to say politics won’t get in the way when it comes to propping up fossil fuels。 Hopefully they’ll accelerate the change we need as we face a scary future。 I know this will take time and capital。 But do we have a choice？ I wish that was answered in this book。 Maybe next time。 。。。more
David Bradshaw
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oil is in the mind of manCarnot's heritage - motivation of firemontainai to precious to waste a Japanese understanding driving achievements & conservation oil is in the mind of manCarnot's heritage - motivation of firemontainai to precious to waste a Japanese understanding driving achievements & conservation 。。。more
Brian
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Great follow-up to "The Prize"。 Brings this history of petroleum oil up to 2010 or so， and also has extensive coverage of renewable energy sources。 Great follow-up to "The Prize"。 Brings this history of petroleum oil up to 2010 or so， and also has extensive coverage of renewable energy sources。 。。。more
Prashant Sinha
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Extension of Yergin's "The Prize" that takes a holistic view on World energy scenario。Lots to learn from this work。 Extension of Yergin's "The Prize" that takes a holistic view on World energy scenario。Lots to learn from this work。 。。。more
Adeel
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This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Read this book in 2012 and is still one of my all time favourites。 What’s incredible is how much you learn and how easy it is to keep flipping through the pages。My favourite segments were:1。 Geopolitics surrounding the building of pipelines near the Caspian Sea2。 Oil company conglomerates and Khodorovksy3。 The life of Samuel Insull4。 The building of US nuclear submarines A truly exceptional piece of work。
Sonia
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A primer to energy。 Was prepared to really like it， but it bored me to death。 There's a lot of really good information but it just wasn't engaging。 And for a book this size， it was a chore to get through。 A primer to energy。 Was prepared to really like it， but it bored me to death。 There's a lot of really good information but it just wasn't engaging。 And for a book this size， it was a chore to get through。 。。。more
Brian
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Probably best book I’ve read this year。 There were many aha moments where I understood the worlds energy market much better due to it’s discussion。 It also made me appreciate how complicated our energy system is。 I thought the last two sections of the book on global warming and renewables were especially interesting because the author took a very scientific approach to it， which is hard to find due to the political nature of energy。 Overall， I think this book has made me a more informed citizen Probably best book I’ve read this year。 There were many aha moments where I understood the worlds energy market much better due to it’s discussion。 It also made me appreciate how complicated our energy system is。 I thought the last two sections of the book on global warming and renewables were especially interesting because the author took a very scientific approach to it， which is hard to find due to the political nature of energy。 Overall， I think this book has made me a more informed citizen in the trade offs associated with all the energy problems facing our world。 。。。more
Melissa
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This text is 804 pages of heft jam packed with information。 This book is really trying to answer a question: What will the future of energy look like over the next 50 years？ In addressing that issue， Yergin takes on a myriad of other topical questions: Are we running out of oil？ Is natural gas the answer？ What about shale gas？ Is global warming a real danger？ Is solar power the answer？ He addresses each one of these in a chapter or series of chapters that mix recent history and fair-minded analy This text is 804 pages of heft jam packed with information。 This book is really trying to answer a question: What will the future of energy look like over the next 50 years？ In addressing that issue， Yergin takes on a myriad of other topical questions: Are we running out of oil？ Is natural gas the answer？ What about shale gas？ Is global warming a real danger？ Is solar power the answer？ He addresses each one of these in a chapter or series of chapters that mix recent history and fair-minded analysis。Because he tries to confront all these topics — and many more — this book can occasionally be inelegant， I felt it lacked a sense of readability。 。。。more
Nathan Punwani
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I don't do book endorsements very much but this book is THE BEST book I’ve read in a while。 In ancient Babylon， a person's daily wages could only afford 10 min of light。 Things didn't change much for nearly 4000 years。 Today， a day's worth of income can buy 20，000 hours of electricity。 Daniel Yergin has written a relentlessly perspicacious tome on the scientific basis， history and the geopolitical， environmental and economic ramifications of mankind’s quest to power civilization。 I don't do book endorsements very much but this book is THE BEST book I’ve read in a while。 In ancient Babylon， a person's daily wages could only afford 10 min of light。 Things didn't change much for nearly 4000 years。 Today， a day's worth of income can buy 20，000 hours of electricity。 Daniel Yergin has written a relentlessly perspicacious tome on the scientific basis， history and the geopolitical， environmental and economic ramifications of mankind’s quest to power civilization。 。。。more
Sam Crisanti
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A great and lengthy tome that discusses the world-wide energy and energy security landscape。 Mostly a non-technical book， that paints a detailed picture of the economic and political landscape surrounding oil， natural gas， electricity generation and overall energy security。 In its over 900 pages， and covers things from the Iran/Iraq/Kuwait conflicts of the 1970s-2000s， to modern day United States and even goes all the way back to the days of Samuel Insull （the father of The Grid） trying to creat A great and lengthy tome that discusses the world-wide energy and energy security landscape。 Mostly a non-technical book， that paints a detailed picture of the economic and political landscape surrounding oil， natural gas， electricity generation and overall energy security。 In its over 900 pages， and covers things from the Iran/Iraq/Kuwait conflicts of the 1970s-2000s， to modern day United States and even goes all the way back to the days of Samuel Insull （the father of The Grid） trying to create the world’s first electricity grid and subsequent market。 This book took me forever to read， and it is impossible to do it justice just because of the shear amount of information it possess。 In that sense it is like a textbook， and the chapters can be read somewhat independently。 Overall， would recommend this to anyone who wants an in-depth account of the current state of energy on a global scale， and how humans became dependent on the energy resources and geopolitical organizations that they are today。 。。。more
Amitra Jyoti
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