For someone with no prior acquaintance with the field of computer science, Lohr did an exceptional job of rendering intelligible the achievements of the wide array of individuals that contributed to the development of computing as we know it today. I was refreshed to read a historical account of the subject that didn’t make me cringe in disbelief every few pages. I applaud him for not becoming distracted with the few “glamorous” threads like Microsoft’s rise to power and instead digging deep enough to tell an interesting tale about the myriad people and events that actually shaped the field.