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The Great Fire by Jim Murphy

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Jim Murphy's Newbery Honor Book available for the first time in paperback. The Great Fire of 1871 was one of most colossal disasters in American history. Overnight, the flourshing city of Chicago was transformed into a smoldering wasteland. The damage was so profound that few people believed the city could ever rise again.By weaving personal accounts of actual survivors together with the carefully researched history of Chicago and the disaster, Jim Murphy constructs a riveting narrative that recreates the event with drama and immediacy. And finally, he reveals how, even in a time of deepest dispair, the human spirit triumphed, as the people of Chicago found the courage and strength to build their city once again. Editorial Reviews A Newbery Honor BookThe Great Fire will automatically draw readers with its fiery cover and illustrations of disaster, but the text will keep them reading. - Booklist[Murphy] puts the incident in perspective, giving it stunning immediacy for contemporary readers. - Kirkus Reviews - From the Publisher For more than a century, poor Mrs. O'Leary and her cow have shouldered the blame for Chicago's infamous Great Fire of 1871. Now Murphy (The Boys' War; Across America on an Emigrant Train) lays bare the facts concerning one of the biggest disasters in American history, in the process exculpating the maligned bovine and her owner. Murphy demonstrates that the fire could have been contained: he unfolds a tale of botched communication, class discrimination (the fire began in a working-class section of the city and only later spread to the wealthier areas) and plain old bad luck. Strategically quoting the written accounts of witnesses-who include a 12-year-old girl and a newspaper editor-Murphy both charts the 31-hour spread of the fire and conveys the atmosphere in the streets. This volume, beautifully printed in sepia tones, contains historic photos, engravings and newspaper clippings on nearly every page. Especially helpful are maps placed at intervals throughout the book that represent the progress of the fire. Engrossing. Ages 8-12. (Apr.) - Publishers Weekly - Publisher's Weekly Gr 5-12-Jim Murphy's primary source-based account (Scholastic, 1995) of the October 1871 conflagration that virtually wiped Chicago from the map is fully voiced by Taylor Mali. Weaving together technical details with firefighters', journalists', and ordinary citizens' accounts of their personal physical and emotional traumas as they unfolded across the 24 hours of the fire, this version of the long-mythologized event carefully repairs earlier historians' class- and gender-biased reports. Modern listeners will not be surprised to hear that some men fled and some women hauled traditionally man-sized loads in the face of the flames, but they will be fascinated by how very modern some of the responses to the disaster seem: the mayor of Chicago, for instance, called for help-and received it-from fire departments as far away as Cincinnati and Pittsburgh. Murphy carefully explains how specific mistakes led to the fire becoming so quickly out of control, as well as how political precepts of the era worked to keep these facts from public view. This is excellent social history as well as suspenseful storytelling. The diversity and multitude of personal accounts is presented in both text and voice so that there is no sense of frustration in the changes of viewpoints, but rather a better appreciation of the event as a dynamic experience from which we still have much to learn.-Francisca Goldsmith, Berkeley Public Library, CA Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information. - School Library Journal The burning of Chicago in 1871 is one of the great legends of American history. Like its counterpart in seventeenth-century London, it has become imbued with invention. Murphy removes the tale of Mrs. O'Leary's cow, giving us more substantial fare. Hearing about the inception of the blaze, the conditions that fostered it, the incompetence allowing its spread and the plight of individuals is far more stimulating than an overturned lantern. History isn't glamorous, but it can be exciting. Unfortunately, Murphy's text sometimes suffers from a dryness that McDonough is unable to counteract. Still, he reads smoothly, letting his audience enjoy the true episodes behind the great myth. S.B.S. AudioFile 2000, Portland, Maine - AUG/SEP 00 - AudioFile
Publication Details

Title: The Great Fire

Author(s):

  • Jim Murphy

Illustrator:

Binding: Paperback

Published by: Scholastic, Inc.: , 2006

Edition:

ISBN: 9780439203074 | 0439203074

144 pages. 8.00(w) x 10.00(h) x 0.30(d)

  • ENG- English
Book Condition: Good

Cover worn
3815i

Pickup currently unavailable at Book Express Warehouse

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Foxing is an age-related process of deterioration that causes spots and browning on old books. The causes of foxing are not well understood, but high humidity may contribute to to foxing. 
Foxing - Wikipedia
What is tanning?
Age tanning, or browning, occurs over time on the pages of books. This process can show up on just the edges of pages, when this occurs it is sometimes referred to as "edge tanning." This kind of deterioration is commonly seen in books printed before the advent of acid-free paper in the 1980s.
r/BookCollecting - Is this mold or normal aging for a well used book?
 
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To date it was a first edition first printing copy of JRR Tolkien’s The Two Towers. It was in very poor condition but still was worth over NZ$1000.
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  • Trade Name: Book Express Ltd
  • Phone Number: (+64) 22 852 6879
  • Email: sales@bookexpress.co.nz
  • Address: 35 Nathan Terrace, Shannon, 4821, New Zealand.
  • GST Number: 103320957 - We are registered for GST in New Zealand
  • NZBN: 9429031911290

       

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