《书目》(Booklist)书评

Gr. 3-6. Kent takes one of the best-known symbols of America, the Brooklyn Bridge, and chronicles its tumultuous 14-year construction over the East River, culminating in its dedication in 1883. Full credit is given to the brilliant engineering genius of John A. Roebling, under whom the project commenced, and his son, Washington, who carried out the work for the world's longest suspension bridge after his father's accidental death. Kent details the bizarre and hazardous underwater working conditions as the caissons for the towers were sunk to bedrock level; he also notes the crowd-pleasing appeal of the stringing of the bridge cables by "fearless riggers swaying high in the breeze." It is to the author's credit that he makes an account of a construction project read like daring adventure; a profusion of historical photos of the work in progress enhances the immediacy of the text. A curriculum resource from the Cornerstones of Freedom series that spans its regional significance to a wider appeal. --Phillis Wilson