Statue of Liberty: A Tale of Two Countries

by Elizabeth Mann, Alan Witschonke (Illustrator)

Overview

The true story of America's most beloved symbol — a tale of art and idealism.

With her right hand she lifts a torch, the light of liberty. In her left hand she holds a book whose cover reads "JULY IV MDCCLXXVI," the date of the signing of the United States' Declaration of Independence. Under her left foot is a broken chain, a symbol of the end of slavery.

The Statue of Liberty pays homage to what is best about the United States, yet it originated in France. Living under the repressive rule of a self-proclaimed emperor, sculptors Édouard de Laboulaye and Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi wanted to show their countrymen that tyranny is not inevitable and that there is a place in the world where all citizens have "unalienable rights" that no government can take from them.

After two decades of planning, cajoling, fundraising, designing and building, these artists brought their dream of "Liberty" across the ocean. Now, 125 years after she was placed on her pedestal in New York Harbor, she continues to inspire people all over the world.

So does her story.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781931414432
Publisher:	Mikaya Press
Publication date:	04/14/2011
Series:	Wonders of the World Book
Pages:	48
Sales rank:	1,087,098
Product dimensions:	10.20(w) x 10.10(h) x 0.60(d)
Age Range:	9 - 13 Years

About the Author

Elizabeth Mann is the author of 12 other titles in the Wonders of the World series, which was cited by Booklist as a 10-best non-fiction series.

Alan Witschonke has illustrated six of books in the Wonders of the World series.

Editorial Reviews

This fascinating book outlines the dream of Edouard Laboulaye and Frederic Auguste Bartholdi to honor their American friends.... The book is well researched and details the efforts that went into building the statue and bringing her to New York Harbor. Sketches and photographs beautifully illustrate the process of creating Lady Liberty. Reading this book moved me to tears as I thought of all that Laboulaye and Bartholdi went through to express their love for the American people. Recommended.

Library Media Connection - Ann M. G. Gray

The Statue of Liberty's history comes alive in this Wonders of the World series title. Following an overview of France and America's relationship, Mann introduces readers to Édouard Laboulaye, who conceived the idea in 1865 to honor the countries' friendship and America's commitment to liberty and democracy, and sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi, who made Laboulaye's dream a reality. Throughout, Liberty's journey...is well conveyed through descriptively detailed text, abundant period photos, and Witschonke's intricate color illustrations.... A time line, glossary, statue measurements, index, and selected bibliography are appended.

Booklist - Shelle Rosenfeld

Gr 4–6—Published to commemorate the 125th anniversary of Lady Liberty's unveiling in 1886, this book follows both Edouard Laboulaye, the president of the French Anti-Slavery Society, who provided the inspiration, and Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, a sculptor who specialized in enormous statues. Bartholdi was inspired by Laboulaye's idea that the French should present a gift of friendship and a celebration of liberty to the United States for its 100th anniversary of independence. From the concept, through the funding problems, the size issues, and to the transportation across the Atlantic, the construction of the platform and the unveiling of the Statue of Liberty, Mann writes a fascinating chronicle, well enhanced by archival photographs and the illustrations. Witschonke's full-color drawings echo the art and feel of the period, and the associated descriptions enhance the text. The newspaper reproductions offer a glimpse at the reactions to the Statue of Liberty and an open window into its journey from France to Bedloe's Island. Mann has created a historically accurate, brilliant book about a symbol of American freedom.—Lia Carruthers, Roxbury Public Library, Succasunna, NJ

School Library Journal

A solid new entry in Mann's exemplary tour of the modern world's architectural wonders (The Taj Mahal, 2008, etc.).

Even sticking to the basic facts, as the author does, the story of how Lady Liberty was conceived, constructed and bestowed makes a compelling tale. Pointing to the disparate long-term outcomes of the American and French revolutions to explain why the U.S. system of government became so admired in France, Mann takes the statue from Edouard Laboulaye's pie-in-the-sky proposal at a dinner party in 1865 to the massive opening ceremonies in 1886. Along the way, she highlights the techniques that sculptor Bartholdi used to scale up his ambitious model successfully and the long struggle against public indifference and skepticism on both sides of the Atlantic to fund both the monument itself and its base. Witschonke supplements an array of period photos and prints with full-page or larger painted reconstructions of Bartholdi's studio and workshop, of the statue's piecemeal creation and finally of the Lady herself, properly copper colored as she initially was, presiding over New York's crowded harbor. As she still does.

It's not exactly an untold tale, but this new telling is worth the read. (measurements, bibliography, "The New Colossus")(Nonfiction. 10-13)

Kirkus Reviews