"Nicholas Christopher follows the remarkable life of Franklin Flyer - a restless young inventor named after the train on which he was born - through the tumultuous years of the Great Depression, into the Second World War." "Raised by his suffragette aunt, at various times a vagabond and tycoon, Franklin travels across the U.S.A. and around the globe, seeking adventure and enlightenment, charting his fate by pursuing the unexpected.".

"He encounters a glittering cast of characters: among them Rita Hayworth, Josephine Baker, OSS founder "Wild Bill" Donovan, and a host of political zealots, opportunists, and dreamers thrown together in a world on the brink of collapse.".

"With each new invention - devices that help to revolutionize everything from early television to the technology with which the Allies respond to the Axis powers - Franklin makes his mark. Gaining fame and fortune, he also suffers terrible heartbreak, and through numerous transformations discovers that a man's own life is truly his most difficult, and rewarding, invention."--BOOK JACKET.