“Despite countless publications on New York Harbor’s Statue of Liberty, no previous study has detailed its complex history. Yasmin Sabina Khan ably fills this gap with a lucid account connecting France’s widespread grief over Abraham Lincoln’s 1865 assassination with that country’s own struggles to establish a lasting democracy. An important book for general audiences” . . . more
—Publishers Weekly
“Yasmin Sabina Khan presents the compelling story of the 151-foot colossus that dominates Liberty Island in New York City. While the general story of the statue’s creation is well known, the details of its construction are not” . . . more
—Heidi A. Strobel, H – France Review
“The early chapters on Edouard-Rene Lefebvre de Laboulaye, the French scholar credited with first proposing the idea for a monument to liberty, draw on a wide range of sources – from speech excerpts and campaign posters to private correspondence and citations from Wordsworth and Hugo. These chapters convey Laboulaye’s enthusiasm and admiration for the American republic and portray him as an ideological successor to Tocqueville” . . . more
—Wendy Nolan Joyce, Nineteenth Century French Studies
“Khan’s annotated book tells of its imaging and building in the context of its time. Her definitions of architectural and engineering methods will please the lay reader.”
—Frederick J. Augustyn Jr., Library of Congress, Library Journal
“Khan eloquently describes how the concept turned into reality over a span of twenty years. Along the way, she provides many fascinating vignettes and portraits of several of the key political and artistic personalities who contributed to the project. This is a beautifully written tribute to a great monument and to those who made its creation possible.”
—Jay Freeman, Booklist
“Khan’s narrative also highlights the tremendous amount of labor and ingenuity required to construct a 151-foot high sculpture in copper based on Bartholdi’s less than four-foot high terra cotta model. In this regard, the accompanying photographs are invaluable” . . . more
—Patricia Vettel-Becker, American Studies
Yasmin Sabina Khan 