The Invention of Air by Steven Johnson

A well-written book about Priestly, who "discovered" oxygen, founded the Unitarian church, and who was politically so radical he was driven out of England and almost prosecuted in America though he was close to both Adams and Jefferson. I myself was only interested in the oxygen, though some parts of his relationship to Franklin showed how much of a scientist Franklin was. I was also interested in his influence on Adams and Jefferson and their famous correspondence, which seems to have revolved around a rehashing of the Alien and Sedition Act and Priestly's views.