The Chunnel:: The Amazing Story of the Undersea Crossing of the English Channel

by Drew Fetherston

Book Overview

Packed with memorable characters, accounts of precarious financial wheeling-and-dealing, and a wealth of beautiful illustrations and photos, this book recounts the epic story of the building of the... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0812921984
• ISBN13: 9780812921984
• Release Date: October 1997
• Publisher: Crown Publishing Group (NY)
• Length: 404 Pages
• Weight: 1.64 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.4" x 9.4"

Customer Reviews

Incredible feats of business and engineering

When great men set out to do great things few people ever understand the logistical or financial wranglings that have to occur for that great thing to ever exist. What I like about this book is that it delves into the herculean task (engineering and sheer muscle power) involved in digging under the channel as well as the political and financial tasks that were no less daunting. We need to understand that part of history as well. While often less "interesting" than the battle, the logistical efforts involved behind the scenes of any great engagement are often the least understood but truly the most important.

5 star

I like this book I give it a 5 star rating because i like this book alot to I think you will like thes book becase I liked it and I like alot of books

A great story of an amazing financial and engineering feat.

This book is of great interest to an audience which the author almost certainly did not have in mind when he gathered his material -- people working in the global aid industry. Aid workers across the developing world are often called upon to design and implement infrastructure projects. These projects often -- indeed, usually -- run into all sorts of difficulties. The myriad of problems that Fetherston so vividly describes -- technical, financial, bureaucratic, political -- are all problems which aid workers find themselves continually caught up with. This fascinating case study of an amazing engineering and financial endeavour -- of both its successes and its problems -- should be read by those working to implement infrastructure projects in developing countries. Amongst other things, it will give them heart. It shows that problems which prove so frustrating in developing countries are found in abundance in rich countries as well. The essential lessons are simple enough: things are often more complicated than they seem. And the implementation of any major project is fraught with the most startling difficulties of all kinds.