The Great Bridge: The Epic Story of the Building of the Brooklyn Bridge Hardcover – Deluxe Edition Author: David McCullough | Language: English | ISBN:
1451683235 | Format: PDF, EPUB
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In the 19th century, the Brooklyn Bridge was viewed as the greatest engineering feat of mankind. The Roeblings--father and son--toiled for decades, fighting competitors, corrupt politicians, and the laws of nature to fabricate a bridge which, after 100 years, still provides one of the major avenues of access to one of the world's busiest cities--as compared to many bridges built at the same time which collapsed within decades or even years. It is refreshing to read such a magnificent story of real architecture and engineering in an era where these words refer to tiny bits and bytes that inspire awe only in their abstract consequences, and not in their tangible physical magnificence.
--This text refers to the
Paperback
edition.
From Publishers Weekly
This outstanding audio adaptation brings to life the Herculean struggles behind the creation of one of this country's most recognizable and enduring landmarks. Herrmann's rich, expressive voice perfectly complements McCullough's stately language, and the combination of their talents—coupled with the impressiveness of the engineering marvel that is the Brooklyn Bridge—makes this a compulsive listen. Subtle changes in Herrmann's tone clearly set off quotations without interrupting the flow, and though this audiobook is abridged, the deleted segments are briefly summarized by an unobtrusive second narrator so that listeners never feel as if they're missing part of the story. While there are some descriptions of the 13-year construction process that would have benefited from illustrations, the production as a whole is superb. Listeners cannot help being moved by the grandeur of the structure and by the spectacular risks taken by the men who worked on it, particularly chief engineer Washington Roebling, who remained the driving force behind the bridge despite being crippled by the bends and bedridden for many years. Drama of every kind can be found here: political scandals, intense rivalries, extreme loyalty, a charming love story, heroism, spectacular near-disasters, death, illness and war. Once called the eighth wonder of the world, the Brooklyn Bridge still inspires artists and photographers, tourists and natives alike, and it is the only stone-towered, steel-cabled bridge in the world. In this excellent production, listeners will be inspired anew.
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--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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- Hardcover: 608 pages
- Publisher: Simon & Schuster; Anniversary Edition edition (May 15, 2012)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 9781451683233
- ISBN-13: 978-1451683233
- ASIN: 1451683235
- Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.7 x 1.9 inches
- Shipping Weight: 2.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
It is hard for me to be objective about this book. First off, I am a great admirer of David McCullough's histories. Second, I have published two novels which are set in New York during the mid-19th Century. But what probably makes it hardest for me to be objective is that I have walked over that bridge for my own personal pleasure so many times over the decades that I consider it an old friend. It's my bridge.
Having said all that, I can say that Mr. McCullough has written a history that is not only about a bridge and its builders, which are fascinating subjects in their own right, but it is also about what New Yorkers were thinking back then. This was still a horizontal world; the era of early skyscrapers was a few decades away. Because of this and the rapid growth in population after the Civil War, Manhattan was mostrously choked by block after block of four- and five-story tenements, warehouses and factories. The need for a reliable means to get to the vast open spaces of Brooklyn was urgent. Ironically, however, it wasn't the horizontal--the length of the bridge--which stunned the witnesses to the construction. Instead they marvelled at the height of the towers and the height of the roadway over the East River.
Not as ironic, however, were the people who didn't marvel at the bridge's beauty and the strength of its construction. They were too busy licking their lips, wringing their hands and wondering how much of the bridge's budget would make its way into their wallets. The elements of corruption, then as now, always lurked near a great public work in New York. McCullough covers this tainted side just as carefully as he reports on the glory of the growth of the bridge. Heroes (the Roeblings) and villains (Tweed & Co.
My grandfather spent his whole life in Brooklyn and he loved the place. His apartment walls were lined with etchings of the city's buildings and landmarks by the now largely forgotten artist Joseph Pennell. Several times he took us to walk across the Brooklyn Bridge, which we often drove over when we went to visit them from New Jersey. So I, like David McCullough, and Ken Burns who made a nice film about it, and many New Yorkers, have always loved the Bridge. In a city which long ago came to be dominated by modernistic skyscrapers, the Bridge is such an obvious throwback, with its stonework, web of steel cables, and gothic arches, it just looks like it has a tale to tell.
In this outstanding book, McCullough tells that tale--of how the bridge came to be built (from 1869 to 1883) and of the extraordinary difficulties, both man-made and natural, that had to be overcome. The story starts with the post-Civil War social milieu that gave rise to the project and the recognition on the part of the powers that be in Brooklyn that they had to be physically joined to Manhattan to keep pace in the emerging industrial world. The design for the project and the initial phases of building are largely the product of one unusual man, John Rebelling. In particular, the structure, much longer than any prior suspension bridge and required to bear significantly greater weight, was made possible by the steel cabling which Roebling himself had perfected. By contrast, the greatest challenges he faced mostly stemmed from corruption; recall that this was Tammany Hall era New York.
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