Brunel by Dan Cruickshank
In his lifetime, Isambard Kingdom Brunel towered over his profession. Today, he remains the most famous engineer in history, the epitome of the volcanic creative forces which brought about the Industrial Revolution - and brought modern society into being. Short-tempered, with a cutting wit and an almost unparalleled capacity for work - his vast achievements were the progeny of a restless, charismatic, forceful personality, of a refusal to accept second best, from people or from things. Brunel's extraordinary talents were drawn out by some remarkable opportunities - above all his appointment as engineer to the new Great Western Railway at the age of 26 - but it was his nature to take nothing for granted, and to look at every project, whether it was the longest railway yet planned, or the largest ship ever imagined, from first principles. A hard taskmaster to those who served him, he ultimately sacrificed his own life to his work in his tragically early death at the age of 53. His legacy, though, is all around us, in the railways and bridges that he personally designed, and in his wider influence. This fascinating new book draws on Brunel's own diaries, letters and sketchbooks to understand his life, times, and work. Many contemporary photographs, paintings, sketches and drawings have been tracked down, to illustrate his great achievements, and convey the many-sided creative genius of Brunel - the Man who Built the World.
'The illustrations in this book are quite outstanding.. the book's design and reproduction quality make it an invaluable document of record.' BUILDING DESIGN 'suitably monumental... the supreme strength of this book is its beatuy and visual scholarship... after reading this wonderful work all should concur that Brunel can lay claim to the title of Britain's greatest engineer' -- Tristram Hunt HISTORY TODAY 'Packed both with interesting facts and rare illustrations... Brindle has produced an excellent book that is not only accessible but is genuinely riveting stuff, and I'd highly recommend it' RAIL 'excellent... Steven Brindle's book is immensley readable... contains a fantastic collection of images... It is a book to be read straight through, and then to dip into again and again.' THE VICTORIAN 'This is truly the finest biography of his life published to date: with accessible and informative text illuminated by a wide variety of images' FAMILY HISTORY MONTHLY
Dan Cruickshank is a regular presenter on the BBC best known for his popular series THE BEST BUILDINGS OF BRITAIN and AROUND THE WORLD IN EIGHTY TREASURES. Steven Brindle is regarded as one of the world's leading authorities on Brunel and is famed for discovering and saving Brunel's 'lost' iron bridge at Paddington. Steven Brindle is a celebrated author and historian. He is regarded as one of the world's leading authorities on Brunel and is famed for discovering and saving Brunel's 'lost' iron bridge at Paddington. His previous books include the critically acclaimed PADDINGTON STATION: ITS HISTORY AND ARCHITECTURE
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780297844082 |
| ISBN 10 | 0297844083 |
| Title | Brunel |
| Author | Dan Cruickshank |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Hardback |
| Publisher | Orion Publishing Co |
| Year published | 2005-08-25 |
| Number of pages | 288 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |