A Remarkable Exhibition for a Momentous Holiday

The Fourth of July was a very special holiday in 1876, the occasion of the hundredth birthday of the United States. As we celebrate Independence Day, I wish to draw your attention to the portion of my historical novel, Feel the Spin, that takes place at the 1876 Centennial Exhibition in Philadelphia. The Exhibition was a grand international display of culture, machines, products, and new inventions, which were demonstrated for all to see. It was also, at a time when the Civil War still resided hauntingly in most Americans’ memory and imagination, a showcase for Northern wealth and manufacturing prowess.

The novel’s two main characters, professors at a small-town college, traveled shortly before the holiday from Charleston, South Carolina, to Philadelphia to visit the Exhibition. I don’t want to spoil an absorbing story, so I will reveal no more about their spellbound response to the marvels of the Centennial and their adventures during the run-up to the city’s Fourth of July celebrations. When you read my book, the experience will unfold for you as it did for these teachers. I hope that you will be moved, as they were, by the prospect of a nation—and a world—guided by reason and scientific progress.

I invite you to read the excerpt posted on my author page: https://www.feelthespin.com/moskow