Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad, by Martin W. Sandler
By soft file of the book Iron Rails, Iron Men, And The Race To Link The Nation: The Story Of The Transcontinental Railroad, By Martin W. Sandler to check out, you could not need to bring the thick prints all over you go. At any time you have eager to read Iron Rails, Iron Men, And The Race To Link The Nation: The Story Of The Transcontinental Railroad, By Martin W. Sandler, you could open your gadget to read this publication Iron Rails, Iron Men, And The Race To Link The Nation: The Story Of The Transcontinental Railroad, By Martin W. Sandler in soft documents system. So easy as well as quick! Reading the soft file book Iron Rails, Iron Men, And The Race To Link The Nation: The Story Of The Transcontinental Railroad, By Martin W. Sandler will provide you easy way to review. It could likewise be quicker because you could review your publication Iron Rails, Iron Men, And The Race To Link The Nation: The Story Of The Transcontinental Railroad, By Martin W. Sandler almost everywhere you desire. This on the internet Iron Rails, Iron Men, And The Race To Link The Nation: The Story Of The Transcontinental Railroad, By Martin W. Sandler can be a referred e-book that you can appreciate the remedy of life.
Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad, by Martin W. Sandler
Best Ebook Online Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad, by Martin W. Sandler
Experience the race of rails to link the country—and meet the men behind this incredible feat—in a riveting story about the building of the transcontinental railroad, brought to life with archival photos.In the 1850s, gold fever swept the West, but people had to walk, sail, or ride horses for months on end to seek their fortune. The question of faster, safer transportation was posed by national leaders. But with 1,800 miles of seemingly impenetrable mountains, searing deserts, and endless plains between the Missouri River and San Francisco, could a transcontinental railroad be built? It seemed impossible. Eventually, two railroad companies, the Central Pacific, which laid the tracks eastward, and the Union Pacific, which moved west, began the job. In one great race between iron men with iron wills, tens of thousands of workers blasted the longest tunnels that had ever been constructed, built the highest bridges that had ever been created, and finally linked the nation by two bands of steel, changing America forever.
Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad, by Martin W. Sandler - Amazon Sales Rank: #119188 in Books
- Brand: Sandler, Martin W.
- Published on: 2015-09-08
- Released on: 2015-09-08
- Original language: English
- Number of items: 1
- Dimensions: 9.33" h x .77" w x 10.94" l, 1.25 pounds
- Binding: Hardcover
- 224 pages
Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad, by Martin W. Sandler From School Library Journal Gr 7 Up—Sandler chronicles the development of the transcontinental railroad, from its genesis through its legacy, with an abundance of photographs and lively text. Alternating chapters describe the progress made by the two companies—the Central Pacific and the Union Pacific—and the author incorporates maps and images, appropriately placed along the way, to further convey the magnitude of the railroad. The pacing, particularly when the two teams meet, is spot-on and mimics the advances of a train. Sandler tempers this engineering feat with details about the corruption that surrounded it, the "Hell on Wheels" towns that appeared alongside the tracks, and the human and environmental toll it took, which enables readers to look critically at an historical event. Sidebars and primary sources, which highlight people and innovations and enrich the narrative, interrupt the story's flow in a few places. Even though Sandler expounds throughout on the sacrifices made by Chinese workers and the irreparable impact on Native Americans and their culture, the book is written from the perspective of those in power. VERDICT Sandler tells a good story, filled with complex characters, adventure, and heartache, and he meticulously documents his research efforts.—Hilary Writt, Sullivan University, Lexington, KY
Review With lively prose and striking photographs, Sandler tells the amazing story of engineering marvels, extraordinary courage, and sheer determination...A dramatic story related in dramatic fashion.—Kirkus ReviewsThe pacing, particularly when the two teams meet, is spot-on and mimics the advances of a train...Sandler tells a good story, filled with complex characters, adventure, and heartache, and he meticulously documents his research efforts.—School Library JournalA plethora of archival photographs highlight daring men and rugged landscapes in this well-researched and fascinating adventure in history.—BooklistAlternating chapters follow the railroad’s progress westward from Omaha with the Union Pacific Railroad and eastward from Sacramento with the Central Pacific Railroad, until the two lines meet in Promontory Summit, Utah...Well-positioned and comprehensive sidebar material adds fascinating detail about the people (investors, surveyors, engineers, laborers) and places involved in the project.—The Horn Book
About the Author Martin W. Sandler has written more than seventy books for children and adults, including The Impossible Rescue: The True Story of an Amazing Arctic Adventure, and has written and produced seven television series. He lives with his wife in Massachusetts.
Where to Download Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad, by Martin W. Sandler
Most helpful customer reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful. Well-Written, Spectacular Photographs By Stan Prager I read Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad, by Martin W. Sandler, as part of an early reviewer’s program. My edition is a large format (10 ½”w x 9”h) softcover Advance Reading Copy with low resolution period photographs that are nevertheless breathtaking. The hardcover official edition (released September 2015) makes it a tempting buy if only for the higher-res versions of these photos. This volume is directed towards a young adult audience, grades seven and up, yet the engaging, generally well-written narrative is hardly dumbed down.There have been many books chronicling the dramatic story of the building of the transcontinental railroad in the 1860’s, during the Civil War and its immediate aftermath. Most Americans have some familiarity with the race from the West Coast by the Central Pacific with its predominantly immigrant Chinese labor force, in fierce competition with the race from the Midwest by the Union Pacific and its predominantly immigrant Irish labor force, that culminates in the driving of the “golden spike” that represented a connection between the Atlantic and Pacific and an America – now reunited after a long bloody rebellion – that had in some respects conquered the continent. Most treatments focus upon the “heroic” aspects of the tale, and there certainly is much heroism and grit in evidence, but of course there are dark sides too that are often overlooked, especially in history books designed for a younger audience.To Sandler’s credit, without sacrificing the heroic drama of the narrative, the author manages to apply a completely modern historical approach that takes into account the negative consequences of the railroad for Native Americans, the unjust and ungrateful treatment of Chinese workers, the criminality of top executives in both competing companies, and the horrific violence that was endemic to the colorful “Hell on Wheels” towns that materialized suddenly as track-layers came along and then evaporated once they had moved on. Sandler’s style – much like the quality Time-Life series volumes found in many homes when I was growing up – is such that it is often difficult to detect that he is writing for younger readers rather than adults, and the difference is extremely subtle. For instance, conspicuous in its absence in passages describing the gamblers and murderers that populated the “Hell on Wheels” towns is any reference to the prostitutes who were fellow travelers. Naturally, in America it is always forbidden to discuss sex with children, but murder remains fully acceptable!Still, it is the wealth of superlative outsize black-and-white photographs of the era that dominate this book and enhance the narrative. Sandler tells us that photographers accompanied the engineers and made great efforts to chronicle what they knew was an initiative of epic proportions, and an impressive sample of such photos are included: of the rails, of the trains, of the people, of the spectacular scenery, of the immense obstacles. The text is also enhanced by cut-outs that profile prominent individuals, groups and events of significance, as well as maps, a timeline and an epilogue that follows key figures in the years beyond.One significant blemish to an otherwise creditworthy effort is a historical error of some consequence that occurs early in the work as the author narrates the backstory to the birth of the transcontinental railroad. “Despite the many different compromises that had been attempted,” Sandler relates, “the northern and southern regions of the nation had grown further apart over the fact that the slaveholders in the South refused to give up their slaves.” [p11] Now that sentence is not simply an over-simplification, it is absolutely wrong. The south may indeed have felt that its “peculiar institution” was threatened, but notwithstanding the rhetoric of the tiny abolitionist contingent in the north there was never any federal attempt to compel “slaveholders in the South … to give up their slaves.” Rather, the southern states that seceded to form the Confederacy did so because of their desire to expand slavery into the vast western territories, something that was resisted by “free-soilers” such as Lincoln’s Republican Party. This may seem like a quibble to some, but it decidedly is not. Such an error is not tolerable to a historian and makes me want to fact-check the rest of the narrative.That error aside, which I can only hope will be corrected in future editions, I very much enjoyed reading this book and especially admiring the accompanying photographs. As such, I would recommend Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation to readers young and old.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Educational, captivating and authentic By KidsReads In a time when the only cross-country transportation available was covered wagons, there came a seemingly impossible idea: a railroad connecting Nebraska to California. At first, Congress rejected the idea. But eight years later in 1853, at the outbreak of the California Gold Rush, Jefferson Davis (later known for his confederate leadership in the Civil War) proposed the idea again. After a revised plan and the "ok go" from President Lincoln, the ground was broken on January 8, 1863 to lay down the first steel tracks. But there was an interesting wrinkle to the President's approach: Lincoln hired two companies (which he paid by tracks laid per mile), one positioned in the West and the other in the East, to race to the center. That day the biggest match in the US was born, and both teams, the Central Pacific and the Union Pacific, were ready for it.Author Martin Sandler takes us on a journey through mountains, prairies and canyons and through the eyes of the dreamers that made the railroad possible in IRON RAILS, IRON MEN, AND THE RACE TO LINK THE NATION: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad. Although the construction of the railroad was a monumental moment in US history, Sandler highlights the dangers, telling us about American Indian attacks, heat-stroke, unexpected explosions and workers falling from cliffs. He paints a picture of the tens of thousands of workers that came together from across the US and the world to link our country together.Although I was engrossed in the story, I have doubts about whether a fifth-grader would be. The entire book was black and white and at times, the language was dense. However, I would enthusiastically recommend this book to a high school student because it has huge margins for taking notes as well as an immense bibliography, source notes and time line. This is a perfect book for a school history project or even as a text book, but I would raise the age group that it's marketed towards.If you have a history project that relates to this topic, this book will be irreplaceable. If you are a high school student interested in the transnational railroad, or really any railroad, this is the book to read. If you are a teacher looking for a gripping historical story to teach to your students, you will find this book to be educational, captivating and authentic.Reviewed by Maya Berman
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Excellent narrative about the railroad's construction By B. Capossere The laying of the Transcontinental Railroad, completed in 1869, is one the great engineering feats of the Nineteenth Century, and in Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation, Martin W. Sandler does an excellent job in conveying just how difficult the task was, and therefore how amazing its achievement.It was indeed a “race” and Martin shows us just how serious the two sides took that race, each vying to outdo the other as they moved ever inward from the West or East across nearly 2000 miles of deserts, mountains, and prairies, each with its own accordant obstacles: searing heat, massive storms, avalanches, bitter cold, plagues of grasshoppers, prairie fires. The ingenuity with which the two railroad companies dealt with the barriers and the sheer doggedness of will makes for compelling reading.Sandler shows us the full spectrum of its participants as well, from the well-heeled, well-connected financiers (many of whom were happy to slide over into ethically grey or not-so-grey-but-wholly-illegal-and/or-corrupt areas to increase their profits) to the field bosses, engineers, and inventors, down to the line workers—Chinese immigrants on one side and Irish immigrants on the other, with Mormon work crews becoming important as the two sides neared the end point. Nor does Sandler shy away from showing how shoddily they were treated—especially the Chinese—during the construction but especially afterward when their services were no longer needed.The portraits of the main players are sharply and vividly drawn so that that they come alive on the page. The story of the actual construction, meanwhile, after a brief history of how the project came about, is told in eminently readable prose, with smooth transitioning between the two storylines as Sandler alternates between the progress being made (or not) by each company. Here again, some of the images are vividly conveyed, such as the Chinese immigrants hanging down cliffs in woven baskets so as to set the explosive charges that would blast a path through the mountains; or the extra-long dining car with its huge length of table and the racks of rifles on the wall in case of Indian attackAlong the way, Sandler pauses for brief informative digressions, on William Cody, for instance, or detailing the invention and progression of the steam engine, the invention and danger of nitroglycerin, the introduction of skiing into America, or the “wickedness” of the “Hell on Wheels” towns that sprang up along the construction lines then (usually) disappeared once the workers moved on.Generously sprinkled throughout the text are a slew of wonderful photographs, bringing to life this incredible endeavor. One of the most poignantly powerful is of a Native American looking out on the Central Pacific tracks near Utah, a gorgeous view, a testament to engineering ingenuity, and as well a darkly sorrowful moment before the end of an entire people’s way of existence.Informative, compelling, arresting at times in its images both textual and photographic, well-balanced in terms of covering all classes of people involved in the railroad’s construction and in its impact for good and ill, Iron Rails, Iron Men is an excellent piece of non-fiction and highly recommended.
See all 9 customer reviews...
Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad, by Martin W. Sandler
Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad, by Martin W. Sandler PDF
Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad, by Martin W. Sandler iBooks
Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad, by Martin W. Sandler ePub
Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad, by Martin W. Sandler rtf
Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad, by Martin W. Sandler AZW
Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad, by Martin W. Sandler Kindle
Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad, by Martin W. Sandler
Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad, by Martin W. Sandler
Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad, by Martin W. Sandler
Iron Rails, Iron Men, and the Race to Link the Nation: The Story of the Transcontinental Railroad, by Martin W. Sandler
