I submitted my review of this book to Teach Secondary magazine, an educational magazine in the UK. The first review below is what the magazine published. The second one is what I actually wrote! In substantive terms there is little difference between the two, but you may find it interesting to see what the editor altered.

The review on Teach Secondary

Many of us will often fail to notice the most visible examples of the engineering and infrastructure that surrounds us, let alone ponder its inner workings. This book sets out to give assorted planners, architects, engineers and technicians their due, with its examinations of electricity distribution, communication platforms, roads, bridges and more besides.

It does so not by merely describing what goes on behind the scenes, but why the systems in question were designed as they were. What challenges were involved, and how did various designs address them?

It’s highly readable and illustrated with plenty of diagrams, making the material accessible to non-engineers, and would seem to meet part of the [England National Curriculum’s] Key Stage 3 Design & Technology programme of study.

Some portions of text are more applicable to the US than the UK, and the price is rather steep, but it would serve very well as a reference book for classrooms and the school library.

Reviewed by Terry Freedman

My original review

In my experience most editors like to tweak submissions, either to conform better to the publication’s house style or, as I think is the case here, to adjust the word count slightly because of space considerations. As a writer, you might like to see my original review, and compare and contrast. Here it is:

It’s unlikely that many of us even notice the engineering all around us, let alone ponder its inner workings. This book covers the main aspects of the modern environment: electricity, communications, roads, bridges and more. It does so not by merely describing what goes on behind the scenes, but why the system in question was designed in such a way. That is: what challenges were involved, and how does this design meet them?

It’s highly readable, and illustrated with diagrams, thereby making the subject accessible to non-engineers. It would seem to meet part of the Key Stage 3 Design & Technology Programme of Study.

There are, as you might expect, a few parts of the text that are applicable to the USA rather than the UK, and the price is rather steep. However, it would serve very well as a reference book for the teacher and in the school library.