Kent J. Williamson - American Heat Engine: Hydrocarbons and the Power of the United States - Coal. Oil. Natural gas. This is the incredible story of how hydrocarbons have energized the United States and its people.

Hydrocarbons, naturally occurring combinations of mostly hydrogen and carbon atoms with almost limitless uses, are much more than simply “fossil fuels”; they are the lifeblood of modern human civilization.

They are central to economic and geopolitical power, even determining the fate of nations and empires. They have played a critical role in U.S. history, and they will be no less important to its future.

In American Heat Engine: Hydrocarbons and the Power of the United States, join Kent J. Williamson on an epic journey through American hydrocarbon history, weaving together the amazing pasts of coal, oil, and natural gas in America, from the country's earliest days all the way to today and beyond.

You will see how a now-almost-forgotten form of coal sparked the American Industrial Revolution, witness the birth of the American oil industry and its production of everything from lamp fuel to jet fuel, and follow natural gas as it transforms from an unwanted byproduct to a fuel and feedstock so ubiquitous that there are now millions of miles of pipelines carrying it across America!

You'll also discover how the United States strategically employed its hydrocarbon resources to defeat totalitarianism and help usher in a period of unprecedented global prosperity.

Kent J. Williamson grew up in Littleton, Colorado, not far from Coal Mine Road. He now lives in Tulsa, Oklahoma, the Oil Capital of the World, in a home with several natural gas-fueled appliances and a propane grill out back.