Seduced by the Light, Alexandra Rimer
Seduced by the Light, Alexandra Rimer
List: $22.95 | Sale: $16.07
Club: $11.47

Seduced by the Light
The Mina Miller Edison Story

Author: Alexandra Rimer

Narrator: Bernadette Dunne

Unabridged: 13 hr 27 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 05/02/2023

Includes: Bonus Material Bonus Material Included

Synopsis

Seduced by the Light is the first and only biography of Mina Miller Edison, the wife of Thomas Edison, the woman who created and shaped the myth of one of the most seminal figures in America’s history. The Thomas Edison we think we know was essentially created by Mina Miller Edison. Exhaustively researched by author Alexandra Rimer, this account draws on unprecedented access to Edison family diaries, memoirs, and letters to look below the surface of the Edison family during the Gilded Age from the little-known perspective of this female protagonist.Following his first wife’s death, Thomas Edison went in search of the next mother to his children and chose a wealthy twenty-year-old socialite from Ohio who was nineteen years his junior. What Mina did not know at the time was that Edison was a terrible father, completely neglecting his children and, ultimately, Mina herself. Absorbed in his work, he only interacted with his family at dinner, and sometimes not even then. The result was a dysfunctional family overseen by a saintly matriarch who went to great lengths to protect Edison’s reputation as well as that of his wayward children.

About Alexandra Rimer

Alexandra Rimer has been an assistant editor at the Thomas A. Edison Papers at Rutgers University since 2005. She is a corecipient of the Eugene S. Ferguson Prize (Papers of Thomas A. Edison), Society for the History of Technology, 2005. She is also a frequent lecturer on Mina Miller Edison at the Thomas Edison National Historical Park in West Orange, New Jersey, where she lives with her husband, David Katz, and children Zach, Dalya, and Jacob.

About Bernadette Dunne

Bernadette Dunne is the winner of numerous AudioFile Earphones Awards and has twice been nominated for the prestigious Audie Award. She studied at the Royal National Theatre in London and the Studio Theater in Washington, DC, and has appeared at the Kennedy Center and off Broadway.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Anna on May 31, 2023

Biography of Mina Edison, Thomas Edison's wife. It was interesting to read about Mina and her life with Edison but the book was difficult to get through. Lots of details on her family and her siblings as well as Thomas Edison's children from his first marriage and then their 3 children together. She......more

Goodreads review by Susan on November 04, 2023

I enjoy learning about women who have traditionally been relegated to the background. Mina was a product of her time and upbringing (as we are). It was interesting to get more a sense of who Edison was as a person. I had heard that Edison had either ADHD or was on the autism spectrum which could hav......more

Goodreads review by Mary on February 22, 2025

Interesting book - the book revealed the real side of Thomas A. Edison. To sum up, he wasn't a good father or husband at all. Not supportive and way too involved in his various inventions. It was fascinating to read about the connection of Mina Miller's family to the Akron area as well as Chautauqua......more

Goodreads review by Reuben on June 20, 2023

Great topic by an engaging author. Thomas Edison is so lionized, that it's refreshing to read an honest portrayal of the man as seen by the people who should have been the most important in his life.......more

Goodreads review by Elaine on August 06, 2024

Interesting. But kind of a slog. Still glad Mina’s story has been examined.......more

Quotes

“A fascinating analysis of the important role Mina played in creating and perpetuating Edison’s public image.” Paul B. Israel, director and general editor, Thomas A. Edison Papers, Rutgers University

“Bernadette Dunne maintains the prim and proper formality of the Victorian era that influenced Mina Miller Edison, the second wife of the famous inventor, in this intriguing production…The frustration, tension, and loneliness of dealing with her workaholic husband during their 45-year marriage and raising five children is evident in Dunne’s performance.” AudioFile

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