Renewable: The World-Changing Power of Alternative Energy Hardcover – November 26, 2013

Okay, maybe you’re not terribly interested in renewable energy per se (that’s me). But maybe you are curious about how we humans identify a problem and then tinker around possibly for centuries trying to find a workable solution. If so, then this book is for you. The need for reliable, low-cost energy has been apparent from caveman times to the present. Look, if you lived near a forest and could cut down trees at will to use as firewood, you were fine. But if you cut them all down, then what in the world were you going to do for power?In response to this question of what to do when the wood (insert coal, oil, gas, etc) runs out, man has been intrigued for millennia to find the means to harness sources of renewable energy on this earth. But the road to accomplishing this task in cost-effective ways, especially when viewed against competing technologies, is not so simple.Read Shere’s book to catch an accessible, but very challenging, account of where we have been on this issue and where we are likely to go.

I found Jeremy Shere's book to be well-researched, informative, relevant, and refreshingly unbiased towards the subject material. His trips through history are factual and wonderfully written, transporting the reader through time to witness the people and events that brought new renewable technologies into this world. And you are able to witness their unfolding stories - how those new technologies played out, how they were accepted or rejected, and as a result where things are today with or without them. I would recommend this book to just about anyone; it is a very good read, and leaves the reader better informed about the topic so they can draw their own conclusions about where we should go "from here".

This was a reasonably good basic summary of the main renewable energy options, but left me with a mixed reaction to the coverage of historical approaches to these technologies -- coverage that at times was interesting and at times seemed like filler. The interjection of personal accounts of writing the book also felt like filler; Shere would have better used these pages to focus on promising future advances leading to a stronger conclusion as to which are most likely to dominate our energy future.

I preordered this and read it as soon as it arrived. It's full of interesting stories about the the history and future of development of alternative energy technologies. Shere writes in an easily accessible and clear way, so it's easy to read, but it's also very informative and complete. Definitely recommend to anyone interested in understanding more about alternative energy.

Poor book quality, looks nothing like the product advertised. I haven’t read past chapter 2 but the book provides a basic understanding of renewables, nothing technical, and reads like a novel.

As someone with no connection to or bias regarding the author, I wondered why my rating differs from the previous, uniformly glowing reviews. But then I noticed that in every case of the preceding five-star ratings, this is the only book to be reviewed by the contributor. Just saying.If you’re looking for a superficial overview of the historical context for alternatives fossil fuel, this will be fine. But be warned that rather than focusing on the current state of alternative energy technologies, a large part of each chapter deals with their historical background. I admit that these stories were often interesting, but I don’t think it’s what most readers would expect form the title and description. For example, most people curious about the current state of solar power are probably expecting to read about silicon panels, not Leonardo da Vinci’s mirror designs.Another consistent feature I found distracting was the embedding of reporting into personal context. This seems to be a hallmark of the current crop of popular science writing. But I’m not really interested in how much snow was on the ground where he was driving, or what his kids were doing in the back seat. Do we really need to know that the main reason he wrote the book was as an excuse to see wind turbines up close, or that he finds geothermal energy boring? Maybe he finds fuel cell technology boring, too. This would explain why a book on alternative energy sources does not address this subject, even in passing. And after supposedly spending three years researching such an admittedly complex field, why could he not throw in at least a selective bibliography?For a relatively short review, it is remarkably repetitive between and within chapters. In one sense, this is effective. Almost every energy modality discussed ends with a real-world demonstration of how progress is impossible without committed government support. But then there is the thrumming insistence, as if it were an epiphany, that the world will eventually run out of oil. We get it. Just like the petroleum industry, those interested in this subject will be forced to dig a little deeper.

This book perfectly summarizes the past present and future of energy and leaves you with vast knowledge. I personally liked the book because it introduced me to some different energy technologies I had never heard of before. If you are even the slightest interested in energy or want some unique tidbits about its history I highly recommend this book.

new book , everything clear and understanding. so interesting about how we can create energy and how important is to human life!

good