Customer Reviews

Brooklyn Bridge

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"It's magnificent site, monumental twin towers, breathtaking span, cutting-edge technology, and sheer beauty make Brooklyn Bridge the grandest, and perhaps the most important, structure built in America during the nineteenth century. To people at the time, it seemed almost miraculous. They called it the Eighth Wonder of the World." Lynn Curlee brings this sixteen year triumph of engineering and architectural design to life in his fascinating story of how the Brooklyn Bridge grew from an idea into a reality. His straightforward and engaging text is rich in history, drama, interesting fun facts, and anecdotes, and complemented by marvelously bold and creative illustrations. Youngsters will enjoy poring over the detailed and innovative diagrams, watching as the bridge is constructed right before their eyes. With additional information, statistics, a timeline and short bibliography included at the end, Brooklyn Bridge is non-fiction at its very best, and a captivating history lesson kids 9-12 shouldn't miss.

Don't be fooled by the size and shape of this book, or by the illustrations -- this is a "picture book" for ages 9-12, and even for adults. In fact, the text seems almost as if it's written for adults, particularly the long sentences and the sentence structure. The sentences are fully understandable, though, and they tell a magnificent story of the building of the Brooklyn Bridge. I particularly enjoyed the information on how the caissons were built and how they functioned, and the danger within. And I also loved the information on how the cables were strung. While the author does talk about the laborers (mostly Irish) who actually built the bridge, it is only in passing. I would have liked to see their story in more detail.

A book about the engineering, innovations, and construction of the Brooklyn Bridge, plus the personalities involved. Truly an excellent book. Well written and beautifully illustrated. This book explains technical information clearly and reasonably; even young children can understand it. Third graders can read it independently.

The elevation and cross section illustrations are perfect. Perfect.