When Lightning Strikes

by Tracy Ross

Inspired by the life and career of Nikola Tesla, When Lightning Strikes (Nikola's Dove) speaks of the life, career, visionary contributions, and personal struggles of the engineering giant who is responsible for the design of the modern electricity supply system. The first part of this fine collection highlights Nikola Tesla's young life and his relationship with his family, and the second part looks at his early experiences as an inventor and the ensuing struggles getting his work and vision accepted. Part three looks at his middle-age years and his move toward isolation and loneliness. Part four presents the demise of Nikola against the background of having his immensely innovative intellectual property pirated. Throughout the story of Tesla, the poet, Tracy Ross, compares and contrasts her own experiences with solitude and neurodivergence with those of Tesla, including vignettes of her life in Detroit and Chicago as well as in the nature-rich Boundary Waters of northeastern Minnesota and the rural farming areas of southwestern Minnesota.

110 pages, Paperback

Published August 15, 2023