The Incredible Story of Skyscrapers


Book Description

The fundamentals of skyscraper construction are presented in this compelling story about some of the world’s tallest buildings, including New York’s Empire State Building and the Petronas Twin Towers in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Blueprints, foundations, skeletons, tube frames, and curtain walls are just some of the architectural concepts described in this engaging book.




Skyscrapers


Book Description

Looks at the history of skyscrapers, describes fifty notable structures from around the world, and looks at the technology necessary to build such tall structures




Rise of the New York Skyscraper, 1865-1913


Book Description

The invention of the New York skyscraper is one of the most fascinating developments in the history of architecture. This authoritative book chronicles the history of New York's first skyscrapers, challenging conventional wisdom that it was in Chicago and not New York that the skyscraper was born. 206 illustrations.




Skyscraper


Book Description

Follows the process of constructing a fifty-two-story building on a busy city street with only a very narrow space to work in.




High Rise


Book Description

Sweat and genius of the men and women who possessed them. How did it happen? High Rise is the unprecedented account of how money, art, passion, politics, and machinery come together to put a building in the ground, and in the skyline of the world's most fascinating, complex, and impossible city. Jerry Adler, a veteran journalist, saw it all happen, and through him we come to know the astonishing cast of characters who conceived and built it: the most famous architects,




Skyscrapers


Book Description

Soaring high into the sky, giants of glass, metal, steel, and mortar revolutionized urban architecture in the twentieth century. From classics (the Empire State Building) to more recent constructions such as the Petronas Towers in Kuala Lampur, nearly fifty world-class skyscrapers--including the World Trade Center--are celebrated in a vertical volume that emulates its subject matter. Led by an expert on architecture and urban development, travel around the world from Hong Kong to Moscow, and dozens of destinations in between to pay tribute to such imposing structures as San Francisco's Transamerica Pyramid, Riyadh's Kingdom Center, Tokyo's Town Hall, Paris's Tour de Montparnasse, and Frankfurt's Messe Turm. Photographed in crisp color, these architectural icons are captured from every angle: distant shots establish stature within a skyline; breathtaking views from the ground skyward emphasize the awesome height; and artistic close-up shots reveal an elegant, abstract, geometric beauty. Take your place on the observation deck of the Sears Tower. Marvel at the Rialto Towers in Melbourne. Watch as death-defying workers navigate beams high above the city to construct these modern wonders. Imagine what skyscrapers of the future might be like. From the comfort of your armchair, you'll enjoy an unsupassed view.




Building the Skyline


Book Description

The Manhattan skyline is one of the great wonders of the modern world. But how and why did it form? Much has been written about the city's architecture and its general history, but little work has explored the economic forces that created the skyline. In Building the Skyline, Jason Barr chronicles the economic history of the Manhattan skyline. In the process, he debunks some widely held misconceptions about the city's history. Starting with Manhattan's natural and geological history, Barr moves on to how these formations influenced early land use and the development of neighborhoods, including the dense tenement neighborhoods of Five Points and the Lower East Side, and how these early decisions eventually impacted the location of skyscrapers built during the Skyscraper Revolution at the end of the 19th century. Barr then explores the economic history of skyscrapers and the skyline, investigating the reasons for their heights, frequencies, locations, and shapes. He discusses why skyscrapers emerged downtown and why they appeared three miles to the north in midtown-but not in between the two areas. Contrary to popular belief, this was not due to the depths of Manhattan's bedrock, nor the presence of Grand Central Station. Rather, midtown's emergence was a response to the economic and demographic forces that were taking place north of 14th Street after the Civil War. Building the Skyline also presents the first rigorous investigation of the causes of the building boom during the Roaring Twenties. Contrary to conventional wisdom, the boom was largely a rational response to the economic growth of the nation and city. The last chapter investigates the value of Manhattan Island and the relationship between skyscrapers and land prices. Finally, an Epilogue offers policy recommendations for a resilient and robust future skyline.




Terror and Wonder


Book Description

Collects the best of Kamin's writings for the Chicago Tribune from the past decade.




The City's Son


Book Description

"An impeccably dark parable, endlessly inventive and utterly compelling" --M R Carey, author of The Girl with all the Gifts Beth's world is falling apart. Then she discovers a hidden London, full of marvels, magic . . . and menace. Perfect for fans of Neil Gaiman's Neverwhere. Hidden under the surface of everyday London is a city where wild train spirits stampede over the tracks and glass-skinned dancers with glowing veins light the streets. When a devastating betrayal drives her from her home, Beth stumbles into the secret city, where she finds Filius Viae, London's ragged crown prince, just when he needs someone the most. For an ancient enemy has returned to the darkness under St Paul's Cathedral, bent on reigniting a centuries-old war. Desperate to find a way to save the city they both love, they find themselves in a desperate race through this bizarre urban wonderland, but when Beth's best friend is captured, she must choose between this wondrous existence and the life she left behind. The City's Son is the first book of The Skyscraper Throne trilogy: a story about family, friends and monsters, and how you can't always tell which is which.




Higher


Book Description

The Roaring Twenties in New York was a time of exuberant ambition, free-flowing optimism, an explosion of artistic expression in the age of Prohibition. New York was the city that embodied the spirit and strength of a newly powerful America. In 1924, in the vibrant heart of Manhattan, a fierce rivalry was born. Two architects, William Van Alen and Craig Severance (former friends and successful partners, but now bitter adversaries), set out to imprint their individual marks on the greatest canvas in the world--the rapidly evolving skyline of New York City. Each man desired to build the city’s tallest building, or ‘skyscraper.’ Each would stop at nothing to outdo his rival. Van Alen was a creative genius who envisioned a bold, contemporary building that would move beyond the tired architecture of the previous century. By a stroke of good fortune he found a larger-than-life patron in automobile magnate Walter Chrysler, and they set out to build the legendary Chrysler building. Severance, by comparison, was a brilliant businessman, and he tapped his circle of downtown, old-money investors to begin construction on the Manhattan Company Building at 40 Wall Street. From ground-breaking to bricklaying, Van Alen and Severance fought a cunning duel of wills. Each man was forced to revamp his architectural design in an attempt to push higher, to overcome his rival in mid-construction, as the structures rose, floor by floor, in record time. Yet just as the battle was underway, a third party entered the arena and announced plans to build an even larger building. This project would be overseen by one of Chrysler’s principal rivals--a representative of the General Motors group--and the building ultimately became known as The Empire State Building. Infused with narrative thrills and perfectly rendered historical and engineering detail, Higher brings to life a sensational episode in American history. Author Neal Bascomb interweaves characters such as Al Smith and Governor Franklin Delano Roosevelt, leading up to an astonishing climax that illustrates one of the most ingenious (and secret) architectural achievements of all time.