The Merchant of Power

A “brilliant” account of an American mogul who inspired Citizen Kane “brings Insull back to complicated life . . . should revive interest in a forgotten giant” ( Chicago Sun-Times ). A timely rags-to-riches story, The Merchant of Power recounts how Sam Insull—right hand to Thomas Edison—went on to become one of the richest men in the world, pivotal in the birth of General Electric and instrumental in the creation of the modern metropolis with his invention of the power grid, which