Enjoyed learning more about the Golden Gate Bridge. The illustrations were nice, too. ( )

Having greatly enjoyed Dave Eggers' subsequent non-fiction picture-book about another American icon - Her Right Foot, which addresses the subject of the Statue of Liberty - I picked up This Bridge Will Not Be Gray with some anticipation. I believe it was Eggers' debut as a children's author. Using a humorous, conversational style, the narrator here relates the story of how San Francisco's Golden Gate Bridge came to be built, and how it came to be the unusual orange color it is. No bridge before it had ever been that color, but through the efforts of Irving Morrow, the architect involved in the project, as well as his many citizen supporters, the Golden Gate Bridge gained (or rather, retained) its distinctive hue...

I found This Bridge Will Not Be Gray to be an engaging work of history, one which highlights both the beauty and the uniqueness of this iconic San Francisco structure, while also exploring the (ideal) role of the citizenry in contributing to these kinds of massive projects. I particularly appreciated the inclusion of a number of letters written to and in support of Irving Morrow, at the rear of the book, although I would also have liked to have seen a list of further sources. The artwork from Tucker Nichols, done in what looks like paper collage, is interesting and attention-grabbing, with a constructed sensibility that feels right in a book about building a bridge. Recommended to Dave Eggers fans, and to anyone looking for children's books about the Golden Gate Bridge. ( )

I loved this - I do wish that their was some more details about the Golden Gate bridge at the end of the book. But otherwise, wonderful! ( )