The zip-fastener was invented by Whitcomb Judson, a frustrated man with a penchant for complexity. It didn't work and wasn't wanted. This book tells the fascinating story of how a useless technological novelty worked its way into daily life and took its place as one of the defining artefacts of the 20th century. The cast of characters might well have come from a novel: the brilliant engineer who took 20 years to make the zip-fastener work; the small-town lawyer whose blind faith in Judson's invention sustained him for 40 lean years; the flamboyant Paris designer who made zip-fasteners the height of fashion; and the Japanese entrepreneur whose dedication to simple ideas made him the Zipper King of the world.