The Great Wall of China

Gr 3-5-Blending specific information with dramatic storytelling, these accounts of some of the world's most ambitious construction projects all capture a sense of their awesome scale. The volumes recount massive obstacles, hazards, worker abuses, and environmental stresses. Other issues are also covered. ("The number of people who died building the Great Wall may have exceeded 1 million.") Authors highlight the ingenious, often unique, engineering that made each project possible. Enhanced by sidebars, color photos or period images, and helpful resource lists, these titles all make riveting reading. (c) Copyright 2013. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Because The Great Wall of China took nearly two thousand years to construct, Nardo aptly focuses on its shifting historical context, including changes in its purpose over time. Conversely, the Burj Khalifa and the Qinghai-Tibet Railway are both contemporary structures designed to break records and bring modernity to remote areas of Asia. Diagrams, maps, and photos amplify the comprehensive accounts. Reading list, websites. Glos., ind. [Review covers these Great Idea: Engineering titles: Qinghai-Tibet Railway, Burj Khalifa, and The Great Wall of China.] (c) Copyright 2014. The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.