Life & fun · alternatives · 2026

24 alternatives to The Wizard of Menlo Park

How Thomas Alva invented the modern world

Below are 24 products that do a similar job, ranked by how close each is in meaning and then by launch-day votes. The Wizard of Menlo Park launched in 2016; newer entries below may have overtaken it.

1
The Swerve: How the World Became Modern ▲55
The story of the greatest book discovery of all time
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
2
How We Got To Now▲64
Six innovations that made the modern world
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
3
Genghis Khan▲89
How Khan and the Mongols shaped the modern world
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
4
Cosmopolis▲66
The hidden agenda of modernity
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
5
Inventology▲72
How we dream up things that change the world
2016 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
6
The Information: A History, A Theory, A Flood▲67
Where the big ideas of the modern era came from
2016 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
7
Wonderland: How Play Made the Modern World▲61
How wonder drives tech innovation
2016 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
8
How to Fly a Horse: The Secret History of Creation, Invention, and Discovery▲62
To create is human.
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
9
Sapiens▲185
A brief history of humankind
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
10
Tesla: Inventor of the Electric Age▲123
Inventor and "celebrity scientist" that gave us electricity
2016 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
11
Homo Deus▲105
A Brief History of Tomorrow
2017 · ynharari.com · its alternatives →
12
The Great War and Modern Memory ▲77
Profound study on how WW1 created our ironic, modern world
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
13
Where Wizards Stay Up Late▲56
A History of the Origins of the Internet
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
14
Magic▲66
Explore the history of magic + magicians!
2016 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
15
The Geography of Genius▲61
A search for the World's most creative places
2016 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
16
The Invention of Nature: Alexander von Humboldt's New World▲62
German naturalist who created modern environmentalism
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
17
Playing at the World▲54
A history of simulating wars, people & fantastic adventures
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
18
The Powerhouse▲76
Inside the invention of a battery to save the world
2015 · qz.com · its alternatives →
19
Tuxedo Park : A Wall Street Tycoon and the Secret ▲73
Palace of science that changed the course of World War II
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
20
Kobold's Guide to Worldbuilding▲56
Essays on the creation of worlds, from geology to politics
2016 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
21
Walt Disney▲75
The triumph of the American imagination
2016 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
22
The Quest▲62
Energy, security, and the remaking of the modern world
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
23
Andy Grove▲76
The life and times of an American
2015 · amazon.com · its alternatives →
24
Time Travel: A History▲63
A meditation on exploring time, travel, and technology
2016 · amazon.com · its alternatives →

Also compare

Ranked by how close each launch is in meaning, then by votes. Prices were read from each product’s own site when checked and can change. Refine with your own description →