World Trade Center: The Giants That Defied the Sky

by Peter Skinner, Mike Wallace (Preface by)

On September 11, 2001 in front of the incredulous eyes of the world, the Twin Towers of New York collapsed burying thousands of innocent people below the rubble as well as the sense of civilized life in a great city. That day, the unimaginable become reality.

The World Trade Center, designed and built as a dream, seemed an engineering risk but soon become the heart of a business, commercial and financial center without comparison. With a height of roughly 1,360 feet, the Twin Towers were the most visible symbols of the World Trade Center; they skimmed the sky like modern Gothic cathedrals, the shining image of New York's pride and creative energy.

This volume commemorates that extraordinary work of engineering, not just with spectacular photographs that made it an unmistakable icon of power and wealth, but also through the illustrated history of its short but radiant existence, and with an entire chapter dedicated to an account of its tragic epilogue.

World Trade Center is also an emotional and regretful tribute to one of the most famous modern monuments in the world that was a symbol of peace and progress for twenty-five years.

Genres: History, Travel, Nonfiction

168 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2002

Reviews

[Cheryl]

Heavy coffee table book for adults. Gorgeous, in an intense sort of way. Created very shortly after the event. Plenty of text covering pre-history to future context, too, for those interested in that level of detail.

I wanted more pictures of the inside, or close-up, because it's bugging me how I can't figure out how the structure actually worked. The windows were 23 inches wide, making the exterior look solid from the outside at any distance... so, no conference rooms with picture windows....

Skimmed Jan 2021.

[Patrick · Rating 2 out of 5]

Tall coffee table book hastily put together in early 2002, one of the many books published to make money off the horrific events of September 11, 2001. That’s capitalism for you, I guess. The book clearly lacked a copy editor (lots of inaccurate and changing information) and is mostly a collection of photographs gathered from news stories and the public domain.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a painful reminder of the terrible events that occurred in American history on September 11th of 2001. It is a tribute to the World Trade Center, the famous twin towers that are no more. In addition to the memorable photographs of the towers shown throughout the book, both before after the disaster, this book also provides a bit of history on Manhattan before the twin towers were built, the design and architecture of the twin towers, the World Trade Center in movies and media, and the controversies surrounding the new heart of the finanical district - a good book, informative, heartbreaking.

[Sylvia · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed the high quality large format photos of these American icons. Book does a good job of presenting the sense of emptiness and loss, of perhaps over-reaching positivism and grandeur, even of disaster foretold (see the photo of artwork on page 76).

[Elisa · Rating 2 out of 5]

Good photographic material but the information is scarce while the author's sociopolitical opinions are a bit much. This is a picture book, after all.

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

(pre-Goodreads)

Enjoyed it.

Estimated date.

[Madalina Boca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Genial book !!! I read it for about 3 times!
Big like from me!

[Michael · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great pictures of the World Trade Center towers both before and after the attacks on 9/11.