Reviews: Eye-Catching, Informative Tower Books by Judith Dupré

One WTC publication joins bestselling, impressive Skyscrapers.

One World Trade Center

Another high-rise book by New York Times bestselling author Judith Dupré has been released, this time on One World Trade Center (WTC). The new offering is One World Trade Center: Biography of the Building. The large 9-1/4- X 13-1/8-in. format and 286 pages detail as much of the edifice as possible, beginning with Ground Zero and outlining such meticulous aspects as the neighborhood and hospitality services.

Full of relevant text, schematics and stunning full-color photographs, the book provides readers with a behind-the-scenes story of One WTC, which represents one of the most complex collaborations in history. Staggering statistics and more than 70 interviews with the people most intimately involved are provided. As it is the only book authorized by the Port Authority of New York & New Jersey, it is the product of unprecedented access to the building site, suppliers and archives. It is a story of 14 years of conflict and controversy with a happy ending.

A time-lapse montage shows the evolution of the 16-acre site and chronologies tracking design, construction and financial milestones with historic photographs. It also features an extensive tour of the entire WTC site, including in-depth chapters on Two, Three, Four, and Seven WTC; the National September 11 Memorial & Museum; Liberty Park; St. Nicholas National Shrine; and the soaring Transportation Hub.

Skyscrapers

First published in 2008, with the latest edition published in 2013, Skyscrapers is the bestselling book in the world on that topic. It features in-depth exploration of more than 60 buildings, including One WTC, Burj Dubai, Shanghai World Financial Center, the Petronas Towers, Tribune Tower, the Lipstick Building, the Phare Tower and Trump International Hotel & Tower. Ten new buildings were added in the revision, among them The Shard in London (2012, Renzo Piano); the International Commerce Centre in Hong Kong (2010, Kohn Pedersen Fox); Shanghai Tower (2014, Gensler Architects); and Jeddah Tower in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia (Adrian Smith), which is to be the tallest building in the world when completed in 2020.

Informative spreads on each building are arranged chronologically by date of construction on the massive 9-1/3- X 18-1/2-in. canvas in 176 pages. Each includes photos of the featured building from various angles, building plans, diagrams, and the building’s historical background and technological information.

Skyscrapers also offers additional information on such topics as the ancient roots of skyscrapers and visionary cities of the future, as well as detailed interviews with Adrian Smith and Philip Johnson, and many profiles of the most important leaders in the conception and construction of these giant works of art. New topics include the era of the megatall building, the building of a skyscraper and the explosive growth of skyscrapers in Dubai and China.

www.elevatorbooks.com is now offering the “Dupré Tall Building Set,” bundling both publications along with a free 2017 Skyscrapers calendar.