Michael Hearst is a composer, multi-instrumentalist, and writer. He is the author of the other Uncommon Compendiums, Unusual Creatures and Extraordinary People. He lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Curious about constructions? Inside this book, you'll come face-to-face with 50 incredible structures, including: a fire-breathing octopus sculpture; the skateboard ramp you'd need to jump the Great Wall of China; a whole community of tree houses in Costa Rica; and a lifesize X-Wing Starfighter built of Legos. These and many more fascinating accounts of constructions both fantastically useful and gloriously unnecessary await inquisitive readers, aspiring engineers, and anyone who ever looked at a skyscraper and thought, "Yeah, but what if it had a roller coaster on top?"