Book Review: The Man Who Walked Between the Towers
What Parents Should Know
While awe-inspiring, Philippe Petit's tightrope adventure a
quarter of a mile in the air was extremely dangerous. Because
of the ensuing events of September 11, 2001, his 1974 caper has
taken on mythic proportions, but a discussion of the risks that
accompany tightrope walking will follow naturally from reading
this story to young children. Also, Gerstein's illustrations
are so successful at giving the reader a sense of perspective
from the incredible height of the Twin Towers, that some
readers may experience a feeling of vertigo from looking at
them.
Common Sense Media Review
Like the World Trade Center towers themselves -- the tallest
buildings in New York City and the site of the worst act of
aggression on American soil -- this is a story of extremes. The
artwork is extraordinary, as is the design of the book. The
events of the story involve an act of the utmost danger and
foolhardiness, yet one's sense of relief at the aerialist's
success is tremendous as well. And, of course, anything related
to the Twin Towers after 9/11 is fraught with a huge range of
emotions.
While the text is strong and appealing, the poetry of the story is in the illustrations that are so clear, glorious, and powerful that this could almost be a wordless book. Rendered in oil and ink, Gerstein's use of perspective and panorama in the illustrations is remarkable. In frames of varying sizes from small to two huge fold-out pages, he offers a bird's eye view of city, sea, and sky, and a depiction of depth and height that is (literally) dizzying. While unsettling in many ways, the story and images in this impressive book pay homage to a place that looms large in our national psyche. Created by a talented and experienced author/artist of more than two dozen books for children, it is a book that will be remembered by readers for many years to come.
From the book:
Once there were two towers side by side.
They were each a quarter of a mile high;
one thousand three hundred and forty feet.
The tallest buildings in New York City.
A young man saw them rise into the sky.
He was a street performer. He rode a unicycle.
He juggled balls and fiery torches.
But most of all he loved to walk and dance
on a rope tied between two trees.
He looked not at the towers but at the space between
them
and thought, what a wonderful place to stretch a rope;
a wire on which to walk.
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