How Emily Saved the Bridge
The Story of Emily Warren Roebling and the Building of the Brooklyn Bridge
The amazing story of Emily Warren Roebling, the woman who stepped in to oversee the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge, which was completed in 1883.
Emily was not an engineer, but she was educated in math and science. She married Washington Roebling, the chief engineer of the famous bridge. When Washington became ill from decompression sickness, Emily stepped in, doing everything from keeping the books, to carrying messages for her husband, to monitoring the construction of the bridge. She was the first person to cross the Brooklyn Bridge when it opened.
Emily, who went on to study law among many other accomplishments, is an inspiration to all, as demonstrated through Frieda Wishinsky’s informative and engaging text and Natalie Nelson’s distinctive collage illustrations. Speech bubbles revealing imagined dialogue add a playful note to this historical account, which includes fascinating facts about the Brooklyn Bridge and a further reading list.
Key Text Features
further reading
speech bubbles
Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.1
Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.3
Describe in depth a character, setting, or event in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., a character's thoughts, words, or actions).
The amazing story of Emily Warren Roebling, the woman who stepped in to oversee the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge, which was completed in 1883.
Emily was not an engineer, but she was educated in math and science. She married Washington Roebling, the chief engineer of the famous bridge. When Washington became ill from decompression sickness, Emily stepped in, doing everything from keeping the books, to carrying messages for her husband, to monitoring the construction of the bridge. She was the first person to cross the Brooklyn Bridge when it opened.
Emily, who went on to study law among many other accomplishments, is an inspiration to all, as demonstrated through Frieda Wishinsky’s informative and engaging text and Natalie Nelson’s distinctive collage illustrations. Speech bubbles revealing imagined dialogue add a playful note to this historical account, which includes fascinating facts about the Brooklyn Bridge and a further reading list.
Key Text Features
further reading
speech bubbles
Correlates to the Common Core State Standards in English Language Arts:
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.1
Ask and answer such questions as who, what, where, when, why, and how to demonstrate understanding of key details in a text.
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.3
Describe in depth a character, setting, or event in a story or drama, drawing on specific details in the text (e.g., a character's thoughts, words, or actions).
| Published By | Groundwood Books Ltd — May 1, 2019 |
| Specifications | 32 pages | 8.875 in x 10.75 in |
| Keywords | unsung heroine; women in engineering; modernization; STEM; mid-19th century; Emily Warren Roebling; decompression disease; civil engineering; perseverance; courage; commitment; dedication; Common Core aligned; CC Literature Key Ideas and Details; grade 2; grade 4; Booklist starred review; narrative nonfiction; further reading; speech bubbles; Brooklyn Bridge; true story; |
| Written By |
FRIEDA WISHINSKY is the award-winning author of more than eighty books — including picture books, novels and nonfiction — which have been translated into many languages. Each One Special, illustrated by Werner Zimmerman, was nominated for a Governor General’s Literary Award, and Please, Louise! illustrated by Marie-Louise Gay, won the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award. More recently, Frieda has written the novel A Flower is a Friend, illustrated by Karen Patkau, and How to Become an Accidental Entrepreneur with Elizabeth MacLeod. Frieda grew up in Manhattan and has always loved crossing the Brooklyn Bridge. She now lives in Toronto, Ontario. |
| Illustrated by |
NATALIE NELSON is an illustrator and author of many books for children. Her most recent titles include Dog's First Baby and Cat's First Baby, published by Quirk Books, and Holiday!, published by Groundwood Books. Her illustrations have appeared in the New York Times, the Washington Post and numerous other editorial publications. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia with her husband and two young children. |
| Written By |
|
FRIEDA WISHINSKY is the award-winning author of more than eighty books — including picture books, novels and nonfiction — which have been translated into many languages. Each One Special, illustrated by Werner Zimmerman, was nominated for a Governor General’s Literary Award, and Please, Louise! illustrated by Marie-Louise Gay, won the Marilyn Baillie Picture Book Award. More recently, Frieda has written the novel A Flower is a Friend, illustrated by Karen Patkau, and How to Become an Accidental Entrepreneur with Elizabeth MacLeod. Frieda grew up in Manhattan and has always loved crossing the Brooklyn Bridge. She now lives in Toronto, Ontario. |
| Illustrated by |
|
NATALIE NELSON is an illustrator and author of many books for children. Her most recent titles include Dog's First Baby and Cat's First Baby, published by Quirk Books, and Holiday!, published by Groundwood Books. Her illustrations have appeared in the New York Times, the Washington Post and numerous other editorial publications. She lives in Atlanta, Georgia with her husband and two young children. |
| Audience | ages 7 to 10 / grades 2 to 5 |
| Reading Levels |
Lexile 930L
Fountas & Pinnel Text Level R Guided Reading R |
| Key Text Features | further reading; speech bubbles |
| Common Core |
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.2.1
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.RL.4.3 |
“Wishinsky’s quippy dialogue and well-researched storytelling capture the passion and intelligence of the extraordinary Emily . . . Nelson’s whimsical cut-paper collages, an interplay of bright blocks of color and black-and-white photography, capture a rapidly growing city in the flux of modernization. . . . Another win for the ladies of STEM.” —Booklist
“A strong and honest homage to a remarkable woman.” —Kirkus Reviews
“The playful illustrations by Nelson help make the long-ago 1880s feel candy-colored vivid. And the use of dialog in speech balloons lightens the story, making it fun and accessible. Wishinsky hits all the right historical notes with careful accuracy while still molding the story to have direction and focus.” —New York Journal of Books