(Originally published 1972, paperback edition 562 pages)
Mr. McCullough's "The Great Bridge" celebrates its 40th anniversary this year.
The story is not only about the construction of The Brooklyn Bridge but also
about the Roeblings who designed and guided their creation to its completion.
With the exception of Boss Tweed and his cohorts, most of the people who inhabit
the book were not familiar to me. It took 14 years (1869-1883) for the bridge to
be built. An estimated twenty people died in the process.
The reader will learn
about the brilliant, caustic creator, John Roebling (if he wasn't autistic I'll
eat his friggin' bridge) and how his highly-intelligent, workaholic son,
Washington, took on the responsibility of bringing the bridge into being. The
story not only explains how they built it, but also gives a wonderful flavor of
the times. The politics, corruption, greed, power struggles and ambition are all
here. I was continually taken aback by the trials and tribulations involved in
putting this baby together.
This is great history. What makes Mr. McCullough's
books so good is his boyish enthusiasm for discovering and recreating the past.
Every page is chockful of interesting material. I've read three of the author's
later works; "Truman," "John Adams," and "Brave Companions." They are all
excellent. "The Great Bridge" makes it four for four. You can't go wrong with
this one.
(Meyers - A few years ago, I started writing, under the pseudonym Franklin the Mouse, short reviews at Amazon's web site. This is my most recent review #291)
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