Review by Booklist Review
Gr. 3^-6. Called the eighth wonder of the world, the Brooklyn Bridge was 16 years in the making, the first large-scale use of steel, and at one time the tallest structure in North America. Curlee serves up these facts to introduce the twin stories of the bridge and the family that took it from idea to reality. When the designer, John August Roebling, died shortly after the first surveying trip, the project was passed to his son, Washington. After repeated trips into the caissons caused Washington to be confined to his bed, his wife, Emily became his deputy and helped shepherd the engineering marvel to completion. The illustrations, acrylic paintings reproduced from photographs, are simple and dramatic. Budding engineers will especially enjoy all the extra information: a list of the bridge's specifications and several labeled diagrams and cross sections, including one showing men hard at work inside a caisson, deep below the waterline. --Randy Meyer
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Like his previous Rushmore and Liberty, Curlee's latest picture book celebrates a monumental feat of engineering and craftsmanship, and makes clear the human contributions behind it. Completed in 1883, the Brooklyn Bridge's "stone towers were the most massive structures on the continent, its span was by far the longest in the world." Curlee pays tribute to the remarkable people who built this massive structure as well as the tremendous sacrifices they made. Many of those who worked on the bridge incurred injuries, illnesses and even death over the 16 years from its initial design to completion, not least of which was Chief Engineer John Roebling, who died of complications from an accident while working on the bridge, and his son, Washington, who finished his father's work even as he suffered great physical pain. Washington's wife, Emily, played a crucial role in helping her husband carry out the landmark's completion. The sweeping cityscape oil paintings of the bridge during sunset fireworks and glowing in the moonlight illustrate its majesty and pageantry. Maps, paintings and diagrams clearly delineate the location, mechanics and challenges described in the prose. Appendix illustrations offer detailed diagrams of suspension and support, specifications and a timeline. Readers fascinated with how things work may well regard bridges with greater respect, and aspiring engineers will gain a strong sense of the all-encompassing process of designing and erecting a suspension bridge. Ages 8-12. (May) (c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
(c) Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved
Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 3-6-A wonderful picture book that tells the history behind the bridge and its construction, complete with the engineering facts and the human-interest anecdotes as well. Using full-color illustrations and diagrams, Curlee explains why the bridge was needed, why the engineering behind it was so important and innovative, and what the bridge has meant to those living in New York. The book's most important features include careful diagrams and descriptions showing how construction was conceived and executed. A map shows the bridge's location and a cross-section drawing delineates the caissons, supply shafts, air locks, etc. The narrative opens with New York City after the Civil War, explains the financing and final decision to build the bridge, and describes the roles of John A. Roebling and, later, his son, Washington, as Chief Engineer. A list of the bridge's specifications and a time line are appended. While not as complex as Elizabeth Mann's The Brooklyn Bridge (Mikaya, 1996), this title will appeal to audiences looking for report information and to those looking for an exciting story.-Susan Lissim, Dwight School, New York City (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Horn Book Review
(Intermediate) The Brooklyn Bridge receives handsome tribute here as a great accomplishment of engineering and human labor. Lynn Curlee's full-page paintings provide impressive views of the underwater excavation of foundations, the construction of the anchoring towers, and the suspension of cables. Cross sections diagram the inner structure of the caissons and the path of the huge cable that is threaded through each anchorage. While the essay text explains the technical aspects of construction, it also recounts the costly efforts of the Roebling family and the laborers. The story of how Emily Roebling supervised the bridge building in the wake of her father-in-law's death and her husband's broken health is an inextricable part of the history of this famous structure. Curlee tells of the awful work of digging inside the caissons and the loss of life to some of the workers; he also conveys the excitement engendered by the construction. At one point the workers' wooden footbridge became a tourist attraction: ""this was a new, exhilarating experience for thousands of men, women, and children who gamely tested their nerve against the great height with only a few planks and wire ropes for support."" Concluding cross sections of the completed bridge are followed by an informative list of statistics, a timeline, and a brief bibliography. (c) Copyright 2010. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted. All rights reserved.
(c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Review by Kirkus Book Review
A goldmine of information in this lucid and elegant recounting of the building of the Brooklyn Bridge, with equally resplendent paintings. The story itself is deeply dramatic and set in relief by the authors straightforward account. John A. Roebling, a German immigrant, studied and practiced building suspension bridges his whole life and convinced the government that this was the way to connect Brooklyn to New York. But while he was surveying the river site, a ferry smashed his foot, and he died of lockjaw, leaving his 32-year-old son Washington to run the massive project. Curlee does an excellent job not only of describing how the bridge was engineered and built, but of reminding his audience how different things were in 1870. In fascinating detail he describes how foundations had to be dug out by hand; that no one knew how to prevent the bends by moving slowly rather than directly out of a compressed air environment; and that much of what Roebling planned had first to be invented. Himself a victim of the bends, for the last 11 years of the project Roebling was a housebound invalid, and his wife, Emily, acted as his voice and assistant. On May 24, 1883, US President Chester A. Arthur led a huge celebration to open the bridge, whose beauty and majesty, no less than its perfect strength, has seen it through more than a century of traffic from carriages to cars. Heavily based on David McCulloughs The Great Bridge, one of four items in the bibliography, this awe-inspiring study provides an excellent resource for young people. (specifications, timeline, bibliography) (Nonfiction. 8-12)
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
