The Man Who Walked Between the Towers (CALDECOTT MEDAL BOOK)

by Mordicai Gerstein

Hardcover, 2003

Status

Available

Call number

791.34092

Collection

Publication

Roaring Brook Press (2003), Edition: 1st, 44 pages

Description

A lyrical evocation of Philippe Petit's 1974 tightrope walk between the World Trade Center towers.

Media reviews

Barnes and Noble Author Biography
Biography Mordicai Gerstein was already a talented children’s book illustrator when he decided to start writing children’s books of his own. Since then, he has released dozens of titles and has won nearly as many awards for his stories of childhood innocence, spiritual exploration, and
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imagination gone wild. His biographical story of tightrope walker Philippe Petit won the 2004 Caldecott Medal, making The Man Who Walked Between the Towers the most distinguished American picture book for children in 2004.
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1 more
The Washinton Post
Gerstein's ink and oil paintings of that "joyful morning" aren't for anyone with a fear of heights; the perspectives are dizzying enough to make the strongest stomach lurch. — Elizabeth Ward

User reviews

LibraryThing member gmlee
Story of the man who walked a tight rope between the north and south towers of the World Trade Centers. Good history lesson on both the defiant acts of Phillipe Petit and the history of the World Trade Center. Could be read as a remembrance book, better for a older audience.
LibraryThing member isaacfellows
This book is profound. The use of perspective is dizzying. For explorations of perspective in drawing, this work would make a great reference; and for library patrons exploring drawing technique (whatever their age) I'd recommend this book.
LibraryThing member al04
The plot is based off of a true story of a man named Philippe Petite who had this everlasting dream that he accomplished. The non-fiction book gives the reader a postive insight of great things that have happen to the twin towers before they were destroyed.
The setting that the story plot takes
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place is essential into understanding the dynamic of the book. The author is the illustrator and thus does a great job of describing New York City. The feeling of being so high and the tense atmosphere is also very well described.
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LibraryThing member Janeece
This caldecott award winner is about a daring man who pushes his limits. He has the desire to walk between these two skyscrapers. The question ringing in the readers ears is if he will make it.

I thought this book was very touching,because it showed the bravery of this young man. It made me think
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that the heart of this man was one that would accomplish his goals.

One of my classroom extensions is going to be having each student think of something that they dream about and having them do an illstration about it. The second one is going to be to have a mini lesson about skyscrpers, because growing up on a small townm some might not be fimilar with this concept.
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LibraryThing member daffyduck24
This is a story of Philippe Petit, who found excitement in dangerous and adventurous feats. He saw the twin towers and knew that he had to conquer walking the tight rope between the two buildings. Philippe and friends went into the towers during the night and set up the tight rope.When the sun rose
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he successfully walked the tight rope between the two towers. After he was done the police arrested him and sentenced him to perform for children.

This story touches me because it is real and it happened before the tragedy of 9/11. It makes me realize that I can do anything I set my mind on.

In the classroom you can put a rope on the floor and have children try to walk on it and balance like they are walking the tight rope. You can also have the children draw pictures of the towers and Phillipe walking between them.
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LibraryThing member victoriahaumesser
This book talks about a man who wanted to walk in between the tallest two towers in New York. He was a street performer. He liked to walk and dance on ropes he tied in between two trees.
The plot of this book keeps the reader's interest. The illustrations in the book are colorful and show each
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detail of the book. The pages fold out to show the entire area of the rope for him to walk from one building to the other. This book deals with accuracy showing how the twin towers were there, but are now gone. This character showed to be believible by showing he did this trick in other places, than just in betweem the towes. The point of view of the author is in the first person. This book hip a place in my heart. I remember when the towers fell due to the terrorist attack affected me greatly. This books shows how things can change through time. The terrorist attack changed how all americans believed that the United States was untouchable. The story shows the fun of walking betweem the towers on a tightrope , as well as how fun it looks to do tricks that Phillippe Petit did in 1974.
Extension Ideas: Bring in a jugler to perform for the children. Address the issue of terrorism, and how it affects all americans today after the 9/11 attack.have the childrem what they know about terrorism.
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LibraryThing member conuly
Honestly, if the title alone doesn't catch your attention, nothing will.

This book walks a fine line (no pun) between serious and fun, and just manages to hit the right notes every time. I firmly recommend it.
LibraryThing member LindseyBallard
This book is about a young man named Philippe Petit that loved to do daring and dangerous stunts like juggling fiery torches and even walking tight rope! He was in New York and decided he wanted to walk a wire between the Twin Towers. He knew he could never get away with it, so he decided to
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disguise himself as a construction worker and sneak his way up to the top of the building! As soon as everything was in place he began his stunt! When he was walking the wire people where staring up at him from down below and couldn't believe their eyes. Of course the police got word of this young man's stunt and went to put a stop to it, but they couldn't! Nobody was brave enough to step out onto the wire and seize this man, so he continued to walk until he felt ready to come down! Once he did, he was brought to court where the judge sentenced him to perform in the park for the children of the city. And so he did, and that's the story of Philippe!

This book was very interesting and almost hard to believe. It has a great connection to the Twin Towers, and would be a great book to lead into a lesson about 9/11.

This would be a great book to tie into a lesson about 9/11. I'm figuring the student's are going to be too young to remember about this day in history so you could read a couple more books to them about it, or divide them into groups and have them discuss among themselves. Because this is a very sensitive issue, I wouldn't press too much on it at this age.
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LibraryThing member rpetty
This is a story of a man that enjoyed performing acrobatic tricks. He was in New York at the time the Twin Towers during the final stages of construction. He devised a plan so that he could walk between the towers doing a balancing act. His punishment for doing this was to perform in the cities
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parks for children. This was not a punishment for him because this was what he enjoyed doing.

This story is one that everyone can relate to because the Twin Towers that he walked between are no longer there. I do not need to go into detail because this tragic events of yester years are something that we all need to remember and have been effected by.

This would be a great history lesson in the classroom. The children will be too young to remember that day in history; they more than likely were not even born yet. I would send a note home before talking about this in the classroom. I would leave the details of the event up to the parents to discuss with their child. I would offer the parents literature to help with the details if they chose to talk to their child about 9/11.
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LibraryThing member quicksilvertears
The illustrations make this book come alive. Philippe Petit had a wild spirit that drove him to do amazing acts. The paintings sweep they eye toward Philippe where ever he is on the page. The sky has a dreamy peaceful quality to it but the lines in the drawing give the paintings stability like the
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tightrope does for Philippe. The color used in this book give the book it's energy. I enjoyed reading about Philippe's connection to the Twin Towers in New York City.
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LibraryThing member megjwal
The Man Who Walked Between the Towers by Mordicai Gerstein

This Caldecott Winner is a wonderful story about a man who tried the amazing feat of walking on a wire between the twin towers. He and a friend sneaked up enough wire to do it by dressing up as construction workers. It took the men all night
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to secure the rope. Finally, in the morning light Phillipe started walking on the wire. He walked back and forth for almost an hour. He was placed under arrest and sentenced to perform for children in the park. The end of the book says t the towers are now gone, but there is still a wonderful memory about Phillipe Petit walking between them.

This story was very touching to me because I remember being a sophomore in high school when the towers fell. I like the way the story tells about a happy memory of a man walking between them and then shortly tells about the towers being gone.

I would use this story with a class to discuss with an upper elementary class what happened on 9-11. Many of the students in schools today would not have even been born or would have been very young when it happened. This story would be a good way to introduce this important day in America’s history. I would discuss with the students what they know about 9-11 and tell them the details they did not know.
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LibraryThing member rpultusk
This is a beautiful book about Phillipe Petit and his famous tightrope walk between the World Trade Center towers. It details how he and his friends dressed as construction workers and snuck into the buildings after dark in order to secure the cable between the towers.

The language is quite lyrical
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and the story reads like a poem. The illustrations appear to be oil paintings and/or pastels and the placement of the text between the pictures works to blend the text and the illustrations together into a single narrative. There is only one character, Philip Pettit, who is depicted as a playful, daring aerialist.

Published after the attacks on the WTC and constructed with the attacks in mind, the author eloquently weaves their absence into the end of the story without focusing on the attack or over-sentimentalizing their absence.

Highly recommended for high school, middle school, and elementary school libraries.
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LibraryThing member ht107821
This book is about a man namedPhillipe Petit and his bravery and famous walk in between the once world trade centers. The book discusses all the many diasters that he has to overcome in order to be able to walk across the trade towers, such as it being illegal and him dressing as a construction
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worker and hiding out until night fall to place and lay out his ropes to walk on.

This book has so many great pastel painting and a well rounded story to get involved into some great discussions with young readers. The writing is made out to be read as a poem in some way as well.

I like the fact at the very end of the story the author gave a brief story line of the world trade centers not being there anymore. It did not take away from the story early on it just lead into it later. Some children may have never ever heard of the trade center towers and the incident this is a great book with a very touching last few lines which again can lead into discussion.

Extention ideas taking the children into a secluded area such as a gym or maybe a multipurpose room and having a beam laid out so they can experience one on one with the story and the bravery the man in the story had.
Also, math is a great extention idea as in the height of the towers that he climed and getting the children to understand the mathmatical process in a better fun way.
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LibraryThing member lauraejensen
This is the larger than life, and almost unbelievable story about a man who disguised himself so that he could walk and perform on a tight rope between the twin towers. This is a great story about history, adventure, architecture, and the artist Petit. Also useful as a memorial to the twin towers,
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though that is a highly sensitive topic. A whimsical, lyrical, poetic book that will excite children.
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LibraryThing member CaseyRae2008
This book is about a street performer who loved to walk and dance on a rope tied between two trees,then he saw the twin towers and thought what a great place to stretch a cable across to walk and dance on. He knew he would not be able to ask the owner of the towers or the police because they would
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think he was crazy and would say he would fall for sure. So he acted like a construction worker and so did three more of his buddies they went up to the top of the towers and waited for night fall to stretch the cable across. Then by dawn the job was done and Phillipe the street performer was dancing and walking free as a bird a quarter of a mile up in the sky. The whole city thought what a crazy man he finally came back to the tire where he was arrested and took in to see the judge which had the performer preform in the park for the children.

I thought of 9-11 instantly after hearing twin towers.

You could use this book to introduce the twin towers to little kids and then tell them about 9-11 and also talk about how this was a true story.
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LibraryThing member RobertaRogers
This story is about a man from Paris who walks on wire. One day he looked up at the towers and thought that would be a great place to walk. He knew the police would tell him no, so some of his friends and himself dressed like construction workers and draped the wire accross the towers. When the sun
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came up he walked, danced, ran, and knelt in a salute for aemostan hour. When he finally was stisfied, he walked off and was taken to jail. He had to perform for the kids in the park for his punishment.

I did not get touched by this book. It was informational but walking on wire did not catch my attention.

I am not sure what to do with this book to be honest.
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LibraryThing member katitefft
The Man Who Walked Between the Towers is a wonderful information book about a single event in the life of Philippe Petit. This one event was when Petit walked on a tight rope tied between the twin towers in 1974. This book might be considered a biography of Philippe Petit. However, the reader is
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not given any additional information about his life to make it a good biographical source. This story is lighthearted and entertaining, while also emotional considering the twin towers are no longer standing. Despite that fact, this not so well-known story of Philippe Petit remains a memorable part of New York City's history.
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LibraryThing member missrader
This book documents Philippe Petit's life and his adventure walking on a tightrope between the World Trace Center towers in 1974.
LibraryThing member StephSchmahl
This book is about a French aerialist named, Philippe Petit who walked a tightrope in 1974 between the World Trade Centers. He was already a famous entertainer in the parks with his tightrope tricks, but got a crazy idea one day to walk a tightrope between the towers. He walked and danced almost an
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hour between the two!

This book was very entertaining and almost hard to believe! I enjoyed it because it was something else to remeber about these amazing bulidings and another reason to never forget about them.

I would use this book in the classroom for the students to research different history that went on at these towers, also ask them to describe ways they would enjoy entertaining people with their special talents.
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LibraryThing member MontglaneChess
This award-winning children's book about a aerialist named Philippe Petit who walked between the (then) newly constructed World Trade Towers. Was arrested for trespassing and sentenced to perform for children in the park. The illustrations are well done and particularly poignant in the face of the
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events of Sept. 11 that destroyed this landmark.
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LibraryThing member jodyjlittle
Philippe, a young street performer, who juggles, rides a unicycle and walks across tightropes, watches with interest, the building of the two towers in New York City. One day he decides that he would love to string a wire from the top of one tower to the next to walk across. Disguised as a
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construction worker and with the help of several friends, they haul a reel of cable up to the top of one tower. All night they work to string the wire from one tower to the next and finally when they finish, Philippe begins to cross. A young woman getting off the subway is the first person to notice Philippe. Soon the police notice him as well, and they inform him he is under arrest. Philippe, however, takes his time crossing the towers. He lunges, and dances and rests on the wire. He feels free. When he finally crosses, he is arrested, but is only punished with community service performing for children.
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LibraryThing member pmacsmith
This was a wonderful book that I had kept hearing about and finally came across it at our local library. With the twin towers so visible in the media, it was good to have a story that contained a totlally different perspective. With this reading, I hadn't realized the towers had not been around all
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that long.
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LibraryThing member eastahlhut
I absolutely love this book. I have used it as a read aloud twice now and both times the children have adored it. It is a true story about a man who walks on a tightrope between the two towers. It is a very inspirational story. It shows children that if its something they truely believe in, they
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should do whatever it takes to do it. I also used this as a book to connect our Science topic of the week balancing.
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LibraryThing member madelinelbaker
This book is a good example of Biography because this book tells about the story of a man named Philippe who walked on a wire between the twin towers. This story also tells a little bit about the twin towers and how they are not there anymore.
LibraryThing member bwetmore05
This book is based on the true story of Philippee Petit, who tightrope walked between the twin towers in New York City. The students will love the suspense and excitement of this book.

Language

Original language

English

Original publication date

2003

Physical description

44 p.; 8.34 inches

ISBN

0761317910 / 9780761317913

Barcode

T0002686
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