For the World's Fair -- the Exposition Universelle -- in Paris in 1889, fair organizers wanted a monument. They held a contest for designs, and Gustave Eiffel won. His design was at first derided by all manner of critics, artists and the illustrious intelligentsia of the Paris elite. But he overcame all of these criticisms and many more practical obstacles to produce a defining monument to progress, beauty and simplicity, the Eiffel Tower.

"Eiffel's Tower," by Jill Jonnes, is the story of that triumph and of the lively world surrounding it. The fair meant many things to many people -- immediate profits for merchants, promoters and restaurateurs, and for artists the chance to be seen, and thereby eventually profit. Inventors showed their latest inventions, artists vied for the best and biggest display, culinary artists created diamond-encrusted masterpieces and the world's largest cask of wine was rolled to the fair from 90 miles away. All things French were on display at their best.

The cast of characters is large and luminous -- Gustave Eiffel, Thomas Edison, Paul Gauguin, Vincent van Gogh, the Prince of Wales, Buffalo Bill and Annie Oakley -- plus statesmen, inventors, actresses, poets and writers, diplomats, dignitaries, Indians and the Shah of Persia. One almost needs a score sheet to keep track. But the star of the show (or, in this case, the Exposition) is of course the Tower -- Tour en Fer de Trois Cents Metres. The Eiffel Tower figured in many people's ambitions, schemes and plans, however obscurely.

This panorama of life near the end of the 19th century is vivid, detailed and engrossing. It is more than a story of the fair, or the tower, or the personal stories of several artists, politicians or performers. It is really the story of the entire world on the cusp of the new. From the ingenious methods used to build the tower itself, to the new schools of art, to the inventions that amazed monarchs and street vendors alike, to the monarchs themselves -- everything was thrumming with change. This was the time when everything was happening so fast that people sometimes had trouble comprehending it all. The fair was there to help the people find their way. Devotees of history, architecture, engineering, art, literature and several other disciplines will find this a well-researched read that will transport them back to a time as complex and crazy as our own.

Linda White is a writer and editor in St. Paul.