Where Is Mount Rushmore?

by True Kelley, Who HQ, John Hinderliter (Illustrator)

Overview

It was world-famous sculptor Gutzon Borglum's dream to carve sixty-foot-high likenesses of four presidents on a granite cliff in South Dakota. Does that sound like a wacky idea? Many at the time thought so. Borglum faced a lot of opposition and problems at every turn; the blasting and carving carried out through the years of the Great Depression when funding for anything was hard to come by. Yet Mount Rushmore now draws almost three million visitors to the Black Hills every year. This is an entertaining chronicle of one man's magnificent obsession, which even today sparks controversy.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780448483566
Publisher:	Penguin Young Readers Group
Publication date:	02/05/2015
Series:	Where Is?
Pages:	112
Sales rank:	156,947
Product dimensions:	5.30(w) x 7.60(h) x 0.30(d)
Lexile:	800L (what's this?)
Age Range:	8 - 12 Years

About the Author

True Kelley is the author-illustrator of Who Was Pablo Picasso? and the author of Who Is Dolly Parton?, Who Was Abigail Adams?, and Who Was Roald Dahl?

Read an Excerpt

Where Is Mount Rushmore?

 
(Continues…)

---

Excerpted from "Where Is Mount Rushmore?"
by .
Copyright © 2015 True Kelley.
Excerpted by permission of Penguin Young Readers Group.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

---

Editorial Reviews

03/01/2015
Gr 3–6—This addition to the series explains the origins of Mount Rushmore. Kelley provides a history of the region, including its importance to the Sioux, who called it Paha Sapa, their sacred lands. Settlers moved into the area in the 1870s looking for gold, and eventually the U.S. government forced the Sioux to give up their land. By the 1920s, the state of South Dakota was looking for ways to attract tourists and decided a huge sculpture in the Black Hills was the key. Renowned sculptor Gutzon Borglum was hired to carve the faces of four presidents: a huge—and costly—engineering feat that was not without controversy. Kelley addresses these topics through 10 enlightening but concise chapters with more than 100 illustrations, as well as informative sidebars. VERDICT A strong addition to history collections for its inclusion of Native American history and the author's willingness to address the controversial legacy of this landmark.—Patricia Ann Owens, formerly with Illinois Eastern Community College, Mt. Carmel

School Library Journal