Old Ironsides: Americans Build a Fighting Ship - Hardcover

Weitzman, David

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0395746787 ISBN 13: 9780395746783

Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, 1997

Synopsis

Made from the wood of more than 1,000 trees, she weighs 1,576 tons and carries 44 guns. She's the largest, fastest fighting ship of her class - the Constitution. The beginnings of a fledgling country's navy took shape in the graceful lines of this frigate, whose strength under fire earned her the nickname "Old Ironsides." Follow young John Aylwin as he watches and helps in the construction of one of the most remarkable sailing ships ever built, from the selection of oaks for the masts to the casting of her three-ton cannon to the sewing of more than two acres of sail. The story of the birth of the Constitution is accompanied by drawings that are stunning in their elegance and detail, a fitting tribute to a majestic vessel.

About this title

About the Author

David Weitzman is the author and illustrator of OLD IRONSIDES, POURING IRON, SUPERPOWER, and his latest, THE PHARAOH'S BOAT. He lives in the mountains of northern California.

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-6. Though listed as fiction, there is no conventional plot to this description of events in which a young boy in post-Revolutionary War Boston watches and assists in the building of America's first great war ship, Constitution. After three years, the work is completed, and John Aylwin earns a place as assistant to the master shipbuilder and later serves as sailing master. This story is the framework for the extensive details and elegant pen-and-ink drawings, that show the design of the almost 200-foot long frigate, the search for the perfect trees for the hull, the making of sails, and the casting of the 60 cannons that would make Constitution one of the finest war ships. The carefully researched account describes how the vessel was built and how its designer, Joshua Humphreys, made innovations to create a frigate stronger, better armed, and swifter than the ships of other navies. An epilogue explains the role of Constitution in the War of 1812. So strong was the ship, so impervious the hull to British cannon fire, that the label "Old Ironsides" would become its popular name. From the frigate under full sail on the cover, to the endpapers with the cutaway view of the hull, to the clean, precise drawings of every stage of shipbuilding, Weitzman's illustrations draw the eye and invite close inspection. Old Ironsides should find readers among young people interested in ships, in how things are made, or in American history.?Shirley Wilton, Ocean County College, Toms River, NJ
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

About this edition

• Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
• Publication date: 1997
• ISBN 10: 0395746787
• ISBN 13: 9780395746783
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 32