One of McCullough’s early books, this is the amazing story of the planning and building of what would become, at the time, the world’s longest suspension bridge. It’s a tale of tremendous optimism and accomplishment as well as a story of greed, political rivalry and corruption.
McCullough devotes a good portion of the book to the engineer behind the project. But he sets his accomplish into a broader, historical context. It is the tale of two cities — New York (Manhattan) and Brooklyn — their growth, development and increasing inter-dependence. The engineering obstacles were enormous. The construction obstacles more so – bodies were crushed and broken; danger was the constant companion of the construction workers.
It’s a fantastic story. Give it a good read, then, take a walk over the Brooklyn Bridge.