April 2004. Nothing Like it in the World. The Men who Built the Transcontinental Railroad 1863-1869, by Steven Ambrose.  If you are an engineer or scientist, and you like history, then this book is for you.  Ambrose paints a clear picture of both the men and the engineering feats they pulled off 100 years before tools like GPS and laptop computers were available.  If you are ever driving through Utah on I-84/15, take the turn-off at Brigham City to go out to the Golden Spike Historical Monument where the Union Pacific and Central Pacific joined up in 1869. Back to reading list