Lost City

June 2, 2003
With lush and detailed watercolors, Lewin guides readers high into the almost otherworldly mountains of Peru. In retracing the steps of Hiram Bingham, who in 1911 searched for the lost city of Vilcapampa and discovered the 500-year-old Incan ruins of Machu Picchu, he balances a compelling visual chronicle with sure storytelling. The narrative alternates between Bingham's treacherous trail into the dense, snake-infested jungle and the premonitions of a Quechua boy who has dreamed of "a tall stranger carrying a small black box" (the box is Bingham's camera). The professor's quest begins 60 miles south in Cusco, where a gorgeous, sun-dappled ancient wall may excite readers' interest in archeology: "Right here was the most beautiful stonework he had ever seen—huge stones cut so perfectly that not even a razor blade could be slipped between them. The Inca had no iron tools to carve them, no wheel or draft animals to move them.... How had the Inca built them!" A sense of intrigue permeates another scene in a dark cantina, where Bingham confers with locals, their faces unseen. Wearing an Indiana Jones–style fedora, Bingham hunches over intently, his face half-shadowed in the bright sun. A perilous trek and a fortuitous meeting with the boy in the jungle lead Bingham to the ruins, the significance of which are explained in a helpful afterword. A rewarding journey. Ages 5-9.

June 1, 2003
Gr 4-7-In 1911, Hiram Bingham and a team of archaeologists went in search of Vilcapampa, the legendary lost city of the Inca. In this picture-book account of that expedition, Lewin relates Bingham's journey from Cusco to the jungles of Peru and from there, led by a local child, to mountaintop ruins. The site wasn't Vilcapampa, but rather an isolated, impenetrable ancient city of temples, dwellings, plazas, and terraces connected by steep staircases. Distinguished double-page watercolor paintings capture the grandeur of the location, the monumental solidity of the Inca stonework, and the surrounding jungle. The final pages continue the story with information on the work involved in preparing the ruins for excavation and some initial findings and include a useful pronunciation guide to Spanish and Quechua words. Follow this title with Elizabeth Mann's Machu Picchu (Mikaya, 2000) for background on the people who built this city, and to learn what later excavations yielded.-Daryl Grabarek, School Library Journal

Copyright 2003 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

July 1, 2003
Gr. 2-4, younger for reading aloud. In 1911, a Yale professor in search of a lost Inca city was led to the site of Machu Picchu by local Indians. In this lavishly illustrated picture book, Lewin traces Professor Bingham's steps through the tangled mountain jungle to his exciting discovery. The language is graceful and uncomplicated, weaving in bits of background history along the way, and Lewin builds suspense at just the right pace: "They came to a grand stone staircase. Where could this lead? What else was here?" But it's the artwork that will really attract attention. Full-page watercolor spreads of the stunning vistas and thick forests contrast with dark, intimate views of Bingham inside homes and walking along walled city streets, searching for leads. A map of Peru and suggested further reading lists would have been welcome additions, but Lewin includes comprehensive notes that explain the excavation of Machu Picchu, as well as the primary sources he consulted. An exciting, eye-catching story for early elementary social studies units.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2003, American Library Association.)