Colossus: Hoover Dam and the Making of the American Century (Michael Hiltzik, Free Press, 2010, 512 pages)

No doubt the definitive account of the building of Hoover Dam, one of the great engineering marvels in the U.S.  But I found Hiltzik's account much too long and involved for my taste.  Skip the first third of the book and focus on the chapters covering construction.