‘Behemoth’ by Joshua B. Freeman goes back in time to the glory days of manufacturing when they were the driving force in the emergence of the modern world, writes Jennifer Szalai for The New York Times.

However, the book is much more than just economic history. It follows the rise of the factory and how they merged with Enlightenment progress ideas.

“The notion that through human effort and rationality the world could be transformed toward greater abundance, well-being and moral order,” says Freeman in his book.

Freeman, a professor at Queens College and the Graduate Center of CUNY, points out that factories were not always supported by such lofty ideals. In fact, they took advantage of everyday commercial opportunities.

Factories continued to grow along with labor movement across the world. They became engines for economic advancement and were a source of national pride in both U.S. and then Soviet Union.

That is when factories became the behemoths from the book’s title, architecturally impressive buildings looming large over the countryside.

The book continues through time, following their slow decline and relocation to China and Vietnam. There factories still flourish, but have little in common with the impressive buildings of last century.

Read the entire review at The New York Times here.