I found in "How Science Saved the Eiffel Tower" a beautiful illustrated non-fiction children's book that tells the story of the Eiffel Tower.

As the population reacted negatively, Gustave Eiffel was able to use the science to help saving the tower from being torn down. I enjoyed how the mix between Gustave's biography and his work and his struggle to bild the tower was presented. Also the french words made the book more interesting and authentic.
The illustrations are beautiful. As Paris and the Eiffel Tower ware always great attractions, I can imagine, that the book will have a great impact to the children, especially because there are many facts that are still unknown.

Thank you Netgalley and Capstone for the ARC of this! That's a great book for children that I will happily recommend.

The story tells how Gustave Eiffel planned and erected the tower which now bears his name, how the artists, writers and general population reacted negatively, how the authorities decided to bring it down after a certain period of time, and how Eiffel made repeated attempts to thwart and spoil their plans by one idea after another, each time failing to convince them. His ideas included conducting meteorological observations from the summit of the tower and comparing them to those made at the base, conducting tests and simulations for the ongoing flight experiments, providing military base to experiment with wireless technology. Behind all these ideas, the primary motivation was to prove the merit of the tower and to show the various ways in which it could be useful for scientific research. Note that, nowhere did he attempt at raising nationalist fervour or pride through his creation, instead restricted and resorted to scientific research as the primary motivation.

The illustrations are wonderful, accurate and detailed while the colours used are sober. Except a few pages, the illustrations do not interfere with the text, which makes reading a pleasant experience. A tiny glossary of French terms used in the book, a list of additional facts about the Eiffel Tower and a timeline of Eiffel’s life complement the text.

There are a few typographical errors such as ‘practiced’ on page 25. Also, on the last page under the title ‘Timeline’, there is an entry “1909: Eiffel built a wind tunnel at the foot of the tunnel.” I am not sure how the book would look like in its final paper format, but going by the version I received for review, the font size appeared too small. Just a font size higher would not only add charm and appeal to the appearance but also make it more comfortable to the eyes.

A beautifully illustrated book that tells the story behind the building of the Eiffel Tower and then how Gustave Eiffel used science to help save it from being torn down. This was very interesting to read and great for children!

I really enjoyed this book! I loved the detailed illustrations and French words sprinkled throughout the text. As a librarian, I am always looking for non-fiction books to add to our collection. Students are fascinated with Paris and the Eiffel Tower, so I could see them loving this book as it details the construction of the tower (many facts that I did not know about!). I also liked that I could pair this with a STEM activity. For example, build a tower that is ____ feet tall. Can with withstand some wind? etc.

Science for the win! Readers will love the narrative approach to this nonfiction title. The science was intriguing and could spark additional reading quests. For example, learning there were weather experiments and weather readings taken was interesting. However, learning that this information was more useful and helpful than other data recorded at the time showed the value of the tower. We want our young readers to fight for their interests and passions in life and that is precisely what Eiffel did. I loved the combination of biography as it connected to the fight to keep the Eiffel Tower in Paris. This will be added to my elementary school library.

This is a great book for children to learn about a famous monument and get them interested in science. Having studied the Eiffel Tower for my architecture courses, I thought I’d know everything in this book but I was pleasantly surprised at all the new things I learned. The illustrations were also very lovely. I liked how a few French words were included here and there (with a glossary at the end) and also the timeline of Gustave Eiffel’s life.
Many thanks to Netgalley for the ARC of this book!

Thanks to Netgalley and Capstone for the ARC of this!

This was an interesting look at history and science for the 5-8 year old crowd. My kids enjoyed it, especially the illustrations. I liked that there were a few French words peppered in.

This is the true story of the building and preserving of the iconic landmark in France in picture book format. This book shows the challenges faced by the architect to build and prevent destruction of the Eiffel tower, meant to be a temporary installation. The theme of Science and really STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) is woven throughout this story. Sub-themes include weather, architecture, flight/physics, wind tunnels, measurement, radio communications and more. This book fits well into the recently expanding genre of children's biography and historical fiction picture books.

As a grade 3 teacher I could definitely see myself purchasing a copy of this book for my classroom library. I would recommend it for families, teachers and librarians serving children in the 5-12 age range. Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the opportunity to read and review this fabulous book!

Emma Bland Smith has gotten us used to her high-quality storytelling of true stories and facts. I'm excited and curious to see if this How Science Saved the Eiffel Tower becomes a collection that delivers such accurate information and historical visual elements in a simple and whimsical manner with stunning illustrations will become a collection. I would love to see the same format about other monuments or wonders from other countries and cultures. I recommend this to all educators and librarians.
I love that the Eiffel Tower is presented in such a scientific way.

This is a great text for upper elementary students to get to know one of the most well-known monuments in history! Beautiful illustrations and get resources including french terminology and a timeline of events.

What would Paris be without the Eiffel Tower? The Eiffel Tower was never meant to be a permanent fixture in Paris. It was built for the World Fair, but Eiffel took pride in his work and wanted to show how wonderful the tower was. Through science he showed the world just how great the tower could be. At the end of the book the reader will find interesting facts about the Eiffel Tower as well as a timeline of Eiffel's life.

Beautiful illustrations. Informative. Read it with my homeschooler and she also loved the same things. Would recommend. Thank you NetGalley for sharing this book with us!

What a phenomenal book! I had no idea the magnitude of science and discovery that came from the tower, or it’s creator. This book was very educational for young readers. Some of the verbiage and French were more difficult for some children to read or understand but the glossary of terms was quite helpful. The illustrations were well done as well!

Beautiful illustrations for a clever nonfiction book! Everyone knows of the Eiffel Tower and this tells its interesting story in an easygoing fashion.

"How Science Saved the Eiffel Tower" by Emma Bland Smith is a wonderful story about the Eiffel Tower, which was going to be torn down after the exhibition. A large group of artists and writers expressed their disapproval of the hideous tower, which was going to make Paris a laughing stock of the world, and they almost succeeded until science saved the famous tower. This is a wonderful read for students in upper elementary grades.

I didn’t know the story behind the Eiffel Tower and it was so interesting!

I’ve always assumed the Eiffel Tower was built as a symbol with plans to stay but to see that the usefulness of the tower was proven after the fact was surprising to me.

This is a wonderful story about history for children and I highly recommend for any child’s shelf.

Huge thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for the advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

This informative and well-written book explains how the generosity of Gustave Eiffel saved the Eiffel Tower from being torn down. The narrative is well supported by an interesting text and lively, colorful illustrations. The Eiffel Tower was lovingly built by Eiffel, and when it was scheduled for destruction he protected it by offering a series of free scientific options to keep the tower operating. He created an observatory and laboratory in the tower, created an aviation and aerodynamic laboratory, and set up a wireless radio center on the top of the tower. The Eiffel Tower was eventually embraced by the public and saved. At the same time, scientific endeavors were also nurtured. This is an interesting story about creativity and persistence.

How Science Saved the Eiffel Tower is a fun, interesting children’s book. Short, quick-paced and well illustrated, it gives a lot of information about the origin story of the famous French landmark and its « uncertain » fate at the time. I recommend it because it is a well-crafted book with pleasant graphics.

A visually pleasing book with substance!

Very nicely educational, this possibly tells the adult sharing it out something new, too. Over the lengthy timeline of this book we see that Gustave Eiffel had to self-fund the Tower that bears his name, how he made that back in just one of the twenty years of operation it was planned for – and how he was most dogged in getting full scientific use out of the thing to inspire its longevity. Aviation science, meteorology and even military use helped inspire a liking for the construction, when people had been most rude and annoyed about it when it was being erected. All this is conveyed in wonderfully light manner, and the illustrations really match the feel of the time, getting people and blueprints into the same frame at will. Not a clunking, heavy STEM book, but a history lesson with a moral in determination – and the ease with which it's all read earns it a strong four stars.

I really love reading books with my kids about how landmarks are designed and created - one of our favorites is about the Golden Gate Bridge. This has a similar joy to it of happy circumstances and hard work that produced one of the world's most well-known landmarks. The book shows how popular opinion long leaned toward destroying the tower after the world's fair, but Eiffel worked to make it a essential bastion of scientific research. Great illustrations and an interesting story for curious kids and adults alike.