The Great Bridge Scandal

In 1965, the bridge world was rocked by an accusation of cheating at the world championships in Buenos Aires. The pair involved were Britain's Terence Reese and Boris Schapiro, two of the world's best players. Now, almost fifty years later, the true inside story can be told - the investigation, the accusation, and the very different results of the World Bridge Federation and British Bridge League inquiries.

In 1965, the bridge world was rocked by an accusation of cheating at the world championships in Buenos Aires. The pair involved were Britain's Terence Reese and Boris Schapiro, two of the world's best players. Now, almost fifty years later, the true inside story can be told - the investigation, the accusation, and the very different results of the World Bridge Federation and British Bridge League inquiries.

The Pulitzer Prize and National Book Award-winning author of Truman evaluates the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge as the greatest engineering triumph of its time, citing the pivotal contributions of chief engineer Washington Roebling and the technical problems and political corruption that challenged the project.

Get the Summary of David McCullough's The Great Bridge in 20 minutes. Please note: This is a summary & not the original book. "The Great Bridge" by David McCullough chronicles the construction of the Brooklyn Bridge, a monumental feat of engineering led by John Augustus Roebling and his son Washington. The book delves into the technical challenges, such as the innovative use of caissons and the dangers of caisson disease, as well as the political and financial scandals that surrounded the project, including the involvement of "Boss" Tweed and the Tammany Hall ring...

First published in 1972, The Great Bridge is the classic account of one of the greatest engineering feats of all time. Winning acclaim for its comprehensive look at the building of the Brooklyn Bridge, this book helped cement David McCullough's reputation as America's preeminent social historian. Now, The Great Bridge is reissued as a Simon & Schuster Classic Edition with a new introduction by the author. This monumental book brings back for American readers the heroic vision of the America we once had. It is the enthralling story of one of the greatest events in our nation's history during the Age of Optimism -- a period when Americans were convinced in their hearts that all great things were possible. In the years around 1870, when the project was first undertaken, the concept of building a great bridge to span the East River between the great cities of Manhattan and Brooklyn required a vision and determination comparable to that which went into the building of the pyramids. Throughout the fourteen years of its construction, the odds against the successful completion of the bridge seemed staggering. Bodies were crushed and broken, lives lost, political empires fell, and surges of public emotion constantly threatened the project. But this is not merely the saga of an engineering miracle: it is a sweeping narrative of the social climate of the time and of the heroes and rascals who had a hand in either constructing or obstructing the great enterprise. Amid the flood of praise for the book when it was originally published, Newsday said succinctly "This is the definitive book on the event. Do not wait for a better try: there won't be any."

This collection of oddities shows how Contract Bridge has played its part in embezzlement, murder, suicide, kidnapping, imprisonment and battle. The stories feature similar hands to those of bridge – the complete misfit, the two-way slam and men against women – while others, like ‘Thirteen Spades’ and ‘The Raspberry Jam Conundrum’, are closer to fantasy. Adaptations of the game, such as Nullo Bridge and Egdirb, are also included. Every hand in this book is a winner. Unless, of course, you were the player who was dealt thirteen hearts but bid diamonds by mistake.