Our Blog

What does our 2017 Community Read selection, The Way Things Work Now, have in common with our Main Fountain Garden? Both are works of art and engineering that engage the imagination. Both were created by masters of their fields—David Macaulay is an award-winning author whose words and drawings help us imagine how technology works, while Pierre S. du Pont was a visionary business leader whose love of fountains placed that technology on spectacular display. It’s one thing to stand in awe of such technological wonders—and quite another thing to wonder, and to seek to understand. That’s what David Macaulay and this year’s Community Read do so well—they make us wonder not only about things that inspire awe, but also about things we might otherwise take for granted.

Have you ever wondered how your smartphone works? How about a telescope? Or helium pants? This year, the Longwood Gardens Community Read invites you to explore the wonders of science, technology, and engineering that shape our world. Pick up this year’s titles—The Way Things Work Now by David Macaulay, and Rosie Revere, Engineer by Andrea Beaty—to find fun and fascinating answers to these questions, and the inspiration to ask many more.