To Engineer Is Human by Henry Petroski (1992, Paperback, Reprint)

One thing about a good book: it must make you think. This book does exactly that. It is, of course, a philosophical treatise that uniquely looks at factors other that "what goes right" that lead to innovative success. While the author uses historical examples to make his point, he does not castigate those who have met with failure. Instead, he gives respectful, due acknowledgement that sometmes a success we enjoy today may be the direct result of a failure by a very competent engineer or inventor of the past who was bold enough and willing enough to push the envelope of conventional thought far enought to find the edge. A good read!