Inside Guides : Super Structures

Featuring specially commissioned 3-D models photographed layer by layer from the inside to reveal the inner workings, this book takes a look at the finest engineering feats of humans, from bridges and tunnels to skyscrapers and rollercoasters.

Grade 5-8. Reflecting the distinctive DK format, this series presents photographed cross-sections of three-dimensional models. Incredible Earth offers clear diagrams and cutaway drawings that explain the Earth's structure, wind and water patterns, earthquakes, volcanoes, geysers, glaciers, the arctic, the ocean floor, coral reefs, seaside cliffs, waterfalls and caves, flood plains, and deserts. Wilkinson explains the construction of Super Structures such as a skyscraper, a theater complex, the Chunnel, a 2808-foot bridge, a dam, a roller coaster, a super airport, a multilayer freeway, a nuclear reactor, and an ocean-based oil drilling rig. Mario Salvadori's The Art of Construction (Chicago Review, 1990), Ray Spangenburg and Diane Moser's "Connecting a Continent" series (Facts on File), and David Macaulay's Underground (Houghton, 1976) offer more in-depth information about construction techniques. Both of these new titles will be enjoyed by interested browsers and the diagrams will be useful for research.?Dorcas Hand, Annunciation Orthodox School, Houston
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Gr. 4^-6. Like previous books in the uneven Inside Guides series, this one uses captioned photos and cutaways to reveal what's hidden beneath the surface. Double-spread pictures, some of which are intended to be viewed from side to side, are chockablock with picture-keyed fact-bites and illustrations of models as well as of the real building. Spectacular cutaways are the order of the day, with a scattering of line drawings highlighting some of the less easily seen details. A nice variety of structures is included--from elevated railways and skyscrapers to undersea tunnels and oil rigs--with the text being a mix of the anecdotal, historical, and technological. The British orientation peeks through in several areas; there's no indication where Sizewell B nuclear reactor is located; and not all the pages are numbered, which interferes with using the index. Stephen Biesty's Cross Sections (1994) is more exhaustive, but there's little doubt this will keep browsers interested. Stephanie Zvirin