| | Higher: A Historic Race to the Sky and the Making of a City. Neal Bascomb.
Higher tells the story of
the architects, clients, financiers and contractors involved
in the construction of the Manhattan Company Building, the
Chrysler Building and the Empire State Building, as each
building tried to be the world's tallest. The majority of
the book focuses on the architects of the former two, respectively
Craig Severance and William Van Alen. Once partners in a
successful architecture firm, the two UN-amicably split
shortly before taking on these illustrious commissions,
adding fire to the flame in the competition for the tallest.
Each architect tried to outdo the other (Chrysler's 185'
spire by Van Alen is a perfect example) over two years,
only to be outdone by ex-Governor Al Smith and his Empire
State Building. Part narrative and part history, the best
sections of the book are the well-researched biographies
of the major players and the details of different aspects
of the construction. In the end, Bascomb asserts that the
buildings are products of the spirit of the time - the Roaring
20's - as well as evidence of what brought that decade to
a crashing finale. But beyond that each building has become
a beloved part of the city (especially the Chrysler and
Empire State) and symbols of the desire to build higher
than before.
. . or . . 
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