{"product_id":"9781620400524","title":"Chief Engineer : Washington Roebling, The Man Who Built the Brooklyn Bridge","description":"\u003cstrong\u003eChief Engineer\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor(s): Erica Wagner\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cb\u003e“A welcome tribute to the persistence, precision and humanity of Washington Roebling and a love-song for the mighty New York bridge he built.” - \u003ci\u003eThe Wall Street Journal\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e \u003ci\u003eChief Engineer \u003c\/i\u003eis the first full biography of a crucial figure in the American story--Washington Roebling, builder of the Brooklyn Bridge. One of America's most iconic and recognizable structures, the Brooklyn Bridge is as much a part of New York as the Statue of Liberty or the Empire State Building. Yet its distinguished builder is too often forgotten\u003cb\u003e--\u003c\/b\u003eand his life is of interest far beyond his chosen field. It is the story of immigrants, the frontier, the Civil War, the making of the modern world, and a man whose life modeled courage in the face of extreme adversity.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003ci\u003eChief Engineer\u003c\/i\u003e is enriched by Roebling's own eloquent voice, unveiled in his recently discovered memoir, previously thought lost to history. The memoir reveals that his father, John\u003cb\u003e-\u003c\/b\u003ea renowned engineer who came to America after humble beginnings in Germany\u003cb\u003e-\u003c\/b\u003ewas a tyrannical presence in Roebling's life. It also documents Roebling's time as a young man in the Union Army, where he built bridges to carry soldiers across rivers and fought in pivotal battles from Antietam to Gettysburg. He then married the remarkable Emily Warren Roebling, who played a crucial role in the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge, Roebling's grandest achievement\u003cb\u003e-\u003c\/b\u003ebut by no means the only one.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eElegantly written with a compelling narrative sweep, \u003ci\u003eChief Engineer\u003c\/i\u003e introduces Washington Roebling and his era to a new generation of readers.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eReview(s):\u003cbr\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A masterful psychological study about duty and drive.” —\u003ci\u003eThe Economist, \"Books of the Year 2017\"\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Compelling and elegant . . . [an] exploration of the life of Washington Roebling, the engineer whose energy and ideas got the Brooklyn Bridge built . . . the story not just of two engineers, father and son, but also of a son who survived treatment that, as he wrote in a private memoir at the end of the 19th century, could have led to his death . . . [a] powerful book.” —\u003ci\u003eThe Guardian\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Ms. Wagner's writing is graceful, even evocative, conveying a mellow admiration of Washington Roebling that suits the man.” —\u003ci\u003eWall Street Journal\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A masterful work of research, revelation and gripping narrative. It brings to pulsating life 19th-century New York and New Jersey and manages to be moving, too.” —\u003ci\u003eNew Statesman, \"Books of the Year\"\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“The impressive career of [Washington Roebling] is well told in Erica Wagner's captivating new book.” —\u003ci\u003eNew York Post\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“[An] engaging new biography . . . [a] detailed portrait of a sensitive and tormented man.” —\u003ci\u003eNew York Times Book Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“In this engrossing biography. . . Wagner writes detailed, lucid descriptions of the technological advances that made the bridge possible. . . . Wagner grounds her fine study of the human side of industrial progress in patient devotion to science and craft.” —\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“With contemporary notes, clippings, and letters, too, [Chief Engineer] makes a fascinating tale . . . A sturdy, illuminating biography.” —\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“A well-judged and well-written portrait.” —\u003ci\u003eBooklist\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“As we learn from \u003ci\u003eChief Engineer\u003c\/i\u003e, Erica Wagner's highly original biography of Washington Roebling, the little-remembered and rather strange man who built it, the feat of raising such a bridge took over a dozen years of his life--and nearly killed him . . . \u003ci\u003eChief Engineer\u003c\/i\u003e also sheds light on matters beyond engineering . . . Where she unquestionably succeeds is in bringing to life, and very probably bringing to the public's attention for the first time in generations, the name--and rather peculiar life--of a man who deserves his place on the top tier of the pantheon of engineers. ****” —\u003ci\u003eThe Sunday Telegraph\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“\u003ci\u003eChief Engineer\u003c\/i\u003e was made possible by the discovery of an unpublished memoir at Rutgers University and Wagner has mined it well. She tells the story with the thoroughness of Roebling's calculations: the book is as robust in structure and fine in detail as the bridge itself and, like its subject, \u003cb\u003eunlikely to be bettered. \u003c\/b\u003eIt is \u003cb\u003eimmaculately researched, meticulously written but exciting and evocative too\u003c\/b\u003e.” —\u003ci\u003eSpectator\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“In her \u003cb\u003ebravura book\u003c\/b\u003e about its creation . . . The \u003cb\u003emagnificent\u003c\/b\u003e book by Wagner, an NS contributing writer, focuses on the two men responsible for building the edifice: John A Roebling and his patriotically named son Washington.” —\u003ci\u003eNew Statesman\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Powerful.” —\u003ci\u003eThe Observer\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Warm, meticulous . . . \u003ci\u003eChief Engineer \u003c\/i\u003emakes a solid case for Washington as a great American hero.” —\u003ci\u003eTimes Literary Supplement\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Erica Wagner honours Washington with a fine, sympathetic biography.” —\u003ci\u003eLiterary Review\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eLong-listed Amazon.com Best Books of the Year (2017), Long-listed The Economist Magazine Books of the Year (2017)\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eISBN:  9781620400524\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e ","brand":"Bloomsbury Publishing","offers":[{"title":"Paperback \/ softback","offer_id":40654210564302,"sku":"9781620400524","price":18.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0600\/7029\/7806\/products\/getimage_18d737b5-06bb-4332-ac42-f552ee0bd725.jpg?v=1639362021","url":"https:\/\/pickwickbookshop.com\/products\/9781620400524","provider":"Pickwick Bookshop","version":"1.0","type":"link"}