Eiffel Tower (Building History) [Hardcover]

Meg Greene (Author)

Book Description

Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up | Series: Building History

The world's most ambitious design and engineering projects of the past century gained almost instant international notoriety. Each required bold innovation, a unique vision, and many dedicated and courageous teams to make the plans a reality. These landmarks stand today, not only as symbols of their time and place, but also as a testament to the limitless ingenuity of the human spirit.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Gr 6-9-In this discussion of Paris's landmark, Greene reviews the life of its creator-Gustave Eiffel-and the history behind its construction. The text is thorough and adequately written. Unfortunately, the presentation is visually disappointing. Despite the claims in the series foreword, there are no "useful maps" or "numerous diagrams" (and both would be extremely helpful). The black-and-white photos are unappealing, and measurements fluctuate between meters and feet. The quotes footnoted are frequently mangled from their original sources, and Greene misspells the name of the author of one of her major references (it's Henri Loyrette, not Loyette).

Ann W. Moore, Schenectady County Public Library, NY

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Hardcover: 95 pages
• Publisher: Lucent; 1 edition (September 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1560068264
• ISBN-13: 978-1560068266
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 12.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,199,365 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars You know the ending, but you're still hoping the team will finish the Eiffel Tower in time!, May 10, 2008

By 

Anthony Stratton "Both decorative and functio... (Chaska, Minnesota) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Eiffel Tower (Building History) (Hardcover)

Here is a history question. Do you know Monsieur Eiffel's first name?

His name was Alexandre-Gustave Eiffel, and he used Gustave for his first name.

Chapter 1 begins with the end of the Franco-Prussian War of 1870 to 1871 and a violent and bloody revolt against the French government by a group called the Communards. During the 1880s, France was becoming prosperous under the leadership of President Thiers. The 100th anniversary of the French Revolution was coming in 1889.

What to do? Huge exhibitions were popular in the last half of the 1800's, following the fashion of the first industrial exhibition in London in 1851. That one was the idea of Prince Albert, husband of Queen Victoria. The French decided to focus more on industrial developments than on the anniversary, since people in other countries might not be so enthusiastic about that piece of history. The idea for a tower 300 meters high (a thousand feet) came from Edouard Lockroy; he was the chairman of the Exposition Committee. The book then follows some of the more outrageous entries. One proposal was for a tower in the shape of a giant water sprinkler.

Then the reader follows Gustave's early life. Gustave was actually a poor student and found school boring. He studied chemistry and would have spent his life as a chemist producing vinegar, if it hadn't been for a strange twist. Read the book to find out what happened.

Instead, Gustave designed bridges, viaducts and railway stations. He also designed the steel structure that holds up the Statue of Liberty! His specialty was studying how wind affects flat surfaces. He invented a webbed design for his bridges that let the wind blow through, very clever!

And of course, there's the intriguing story of the rush to build the Eiffel Tower in time for the Paris Universal Exposition, which opened on May 6, 1889. The workers began on January 26, 1887. It would be the world's tallest structure with an unproven design. No pressure there, men. Gustave would face a host of technical difficulties and a group of French citizens who were against building the tower.

Meg also described how the Eiffel Tower was used during World War I and II. There's a picture of Adolf Hitler and a group of his officers in front of the Eiffel Tower. A few French men had disabled the elevators just before the Germans arrived. Upon hearing that he would have to climb the stairs to reach the first platform, Adolf refused and settled for having his picture taken in front of the Eiffel Tower. What a woose.

There are also several nifty sidebar stories related to bridges, Gustave and various stunts performed on the Eiffel Tower. There's one about the Garonne River Bridge. A worker fell from the scaffolding into the river. Gustave took off his shoes and vest, jumped into the river and saved the man! The guys loved him for that one.

It would have been nice to see a few more pictures of the bridges and viaducts Gustave designed. And there's just a brief, though well written, description of his marriage to Marie Gaudelet. But those are minor points. All in all, this is an intriguing book. Most of us know about the Eiffel Tower, but very few people know the story behind how it came to be built or the man who designed it.

A parent could read bits of this book to his or her children. Then ask the children to find France on a globe. I've heard several times that half of all high school students can't even find the United States on a globe. For parents who do share books such as this one with their children, they're helping their children develop a love of reading and learning that will serve them well.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Tour Eiffel, March 27, 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: Eiffel Tower (Building History) (Hardcover)

Don't let this book's low cost decieve you, this was a great help to me when I had to do a research paper over the tour. VERY INFORMATIVE!!!