The subject of Wagner's engaging new biography…is known for his engineering legacy, but he was also a talented wordsmith. Roebling's unpublished memoir, letters and carefully preserved notebooks complement Wagner's detailed portrait of a sensitive and tormented man who survived well into his 80s via two lifelines: a clever mind and a saintly wife…Washington's dry wit and even tone give life and personality to Wagner's already enjoyable prose. The book is also peppered with cheerfully informative footnotes. Perhaps best of all are the quotations from Washington's letters (including crossed-out lines), which offer unfiltered insight into the mind of a long-dead luminary of American innovation.

“A masterful psychological study about duty and drive.” —The Economist, "Books of the Year 2017"

“Compelling and elegant . . . [an] exploration of the life of Washington Roebling, the engineer whose energy and ideas got the Brooklyn Bridge built . . . the story not just of two engineers, father and son, but also of a son who survived treatment that, as he wrote in a private memoir at the end of the 19th century, could have led to his death . . . [a] powerful book.” —The Guardian

“Ms. Wagner's writing is graceful, even evocative, conveying a mellow admiration of Washington Roebling that suits the man.” —Wall Street Journal

“A masterful work of research, revelation and gripping narrative. It brings to pulsating life 19th-century New York and New Jersey and manages to be moving, too.” —New Statesman, "Books of the Year"

“The impressive career of [Washington Roebling] is well told in Erica Wagner's captivating new book.” —New York Post

“[An] engaging new biography . . . [a] detailed portrait of a sensitive and tormented man.” —New York Times Book Review

“In this engrossing biography. . . Wagner writes detailed, lucid descriptions of the technological advances that made the bridge possible. . . . Wagner grounds her fine study of the human side of industrial progress in patient devotion to science and craft.” —Publishers Weekly

“With contemporary notes, clippings, and letters, too, [Chief Engineer] makes a fascinating tale . . . A sturdy, illuminating biography.” —Kirkus Reviews

“A well-judged and well-written portrait.” —Booklist

“As we learn from Chief Engineer, Erica Wagner's highly original biography of Washington Roebling, the little-remembered and rather strange man who built it, the feat of raising such a bridge took over a dozen years of his life--and nearly killed him . . . Chief Engineer also sheds light on matters beyond engineering . . . Where she unquestionably succeeds is in bringing to life, and very probably bringing to the public's attention for the first time in generations, the name--and rather peculiar life--of a man who deserves his place on the top tier of the pantheon of engineers. ****” —The Sunday Telegraph

“Chief Engineer was made possible by the discovery of an unpublished memoir at Rutgers University and Wagner has mined it well. She tells the story with the thoroughness of Roebling's calculations: the book is as robust in structure and fine in detail as the bridge itself and, like its subject, unlikely to be bettered. It is immaculately researched, meticulously written but exciting and evocative too.” —Spectator

“In her bravura book about its creation . . . The magnificent book by Wagner, an NS contributing writer, focuses on the two men responsible for building the edifice: John A Roebling and his patriotically named son Washington.” —New Statesman

“Powerful.” —The Observer

“Warm, meticulous . . . Chief Engineer makes a solid case for Washington as a great American hero.” —Ada Calhoun, Times Literary Supplement

“Erica Wagner honours Washington with a fine, sympathetic biography.” —Literary Review

“The Brooklyn Bridge is one of the greatest engineering marvels of all time, as well as a great work of public art. Its chief engineer is equally compelling and Erica Wagner brings him and his complicated world to life.” —Ken Burns, filmmaker, "Brooklyn Bridge" and "The Civil War"

“In this keenly observed and deeply felt biography, Erica Wagner brings Washington Roebling to life, examining both the rigorous mathematics and the complex psychology involved in envisioning one of mankind's greatest built monuments. The narrative is intensely absorbing, the prose tremendously clear, and the characters genuinely unforgettable. This is history of the first order.” —Andrew Solomon, author of THE NOONDAY DEMON and FAR FROM THE TREE

“Erica Wagner's account of Washington Roebling, the man who built America's most famous bridge, is a classic, as lovingly and meticulously constructed as the bridge itself. It is a triumph of a book.” —Simon Winchester, author of PACIFIC and WHEN THE EARTH SHAKES

“Erica Wagner has given us a captivating and highly readable portrait of Washington Roebling, chief engineer of the Brooklyn Bridge. Her book should put to rest once and for all in the general reader's mind any confusion between the relative contributions of Washington and those of his father, John, to that monumental engineering project.” —Henry Petroski, Aleksandar S. Vesic Professor of Civil Engineering and Professor of History, Duke University; author of ENGINEERS OF DREAMS

2017 Amazon.com Best Books of the Year, Long-listed
2017 The Economist Magazine Books of the Year, Long-listed