1 comments about The Houses of Greenwich Village.

1. I was raised in, and lived most of my adult life in, New York's Greenwich Village. I purchased this book thinking that I might see some of the many homes I knew, both famous and infamous, as well as the streets of that neighborhood. -- Well, if that's what you hope for, too, then move on.... This book looks like ANY recent copy of Architectural Digest, showing ANY rich & well-to-do home in ANY city or town. Nothing about this picture book looks like Greenwich Village. It's strickly a high-end type of generic furniture catalog. A real waste of cash.

1 comments about Welcome to My Studio: Adventures in Oil Painting.

1. A great reference book to be read and re-read. She gives quick instruction for the problem areas of painting with lots of illustrations. Easy to use.

3 comments about Doo Wop Motels: Architectural Treasures of the Wildwoods.

1. Hastings' book is a treasure of Wildwood, NJ, motel architectural treasures! Having worked in the Wildwoods in the late 50s, I and about 100 others from my hometown of Altoona, PA, have deep ties to those beach towns. We love the shore and this book brings back for us in most ample color many of the places - not just Doo Wop motels - of that era. Some are gone. Many are still there. The book is a real treat for us. If you have memories like ours, treat yourself and buy this book! Take it and use it, like a Peterson bird guide, in your search for these Wildwood gems.



2. If you were a kid in the 50's and 60's and spent your summer vacations in Wildwood Crest, NJ, you will love this book. It is chock full of pictures and stories of all the motels that lit up the summer nights with their creative and thematic neon signs. So, put on some Beach Boys or Four Tops music, and sit down with this delightful look back at one of the most colorful memories of your childhood or teen years. Thanks to Kirk Hastings for putting it together.



3. You don't have to know Wildwood to love this book, but when you finish it
   you'll want to go. Hastings does more than write about the history and
   architecture of this unique place, he brings its heart and soul alive. This
   wonderfully kitschy resort has a fanatically loyal following - people come back
   year after year for decades, staying in places built in the 50's and 60's
   with names like the Astronaut,the Kona Kai,the Bonanza, the Ebb Tide,
   the Singapore or the Tahiti. Just driving down the street was a lesson in
   pop culture. DOO WOP MOTELS is fun, informative and obviously written
   by someone who loves Wildwood. Unfortunately it's also one of the only
   places to see these architectual treasures, since many have been
   torn down in recent years in the name of "progress." The photographs of the
   motels are beautiful...you'll feel like you're there sipping a drink
   under a plastic palm, the "official" tree of the Wildwoods.

No comments about Site of Sound: of Architecture and the Ear.

2 comments about Castles of the Western World: With 240 Illustrations (Magnificent Castles).

1. I ordered this book as a surprise for my son's 15th birthday. I only wish that Castles of the Western World had been a "peek-inside book." The front cover aside, there are no color pictures (which is not a bad thing, but the photos displayed are quite dull). I am no professional photographer, but the subjects of black and white photos must be composed and presented artfully, but the pictures in this book are not. This book has all the appeal of an old textbook--without the requisite dust.



2. I love castles and these are just absolutely beautiful. They give you the feeling that you want to live in them - bar the drafty rooms, etc. Also, they make you wonder who might have lived in them and what kind of history the castles have. If I ever have the good fortune to travel to any of these places, I would most definitely look up these castles.

4 comments about The Story of Architecture.

1. This book's helped me a lot for my arch history class. It's a small book you can take on the go and the information is concise with great images. Great buy for anyone interested in learning about the history of architecture.



2. It's a good, quality book. Both skilled architects, those who doesn't know anything about technical architecture, art historians and even any history-buffs can enjoy this book.



3. This book is required reading for a class I am taking on Appreciation of Architecture. It is a great intro for those of us who want to learn more about the subject and it isn't overly scholastic or too dense. It is enough to give you a thirst for more knowledge, which is what a good overview book should.



4. If you are looking for a great photographical history of architecture in the modern world (15-20th centuries), this book is for you. More a page flipper than a page turner, yet absolutely worthwile if you choose to read the words as well.

1 comments about Rome.

1. Too many histories jump lightly and quickly from the grandeur of pagan Rome to the grandeur of Renaissance and Baroque Rome --ignoring the thousand year artistic and architectural history in between. This book fills in a long and fascinating gap in the history; and brings to our attention works of art that, if they are outshone by the splendours before and after, are not to be despised. The only problem with this book is the relative paucity of pictures and plans, and the absence of any in colour. If printing photographs or reproductions is expensive, why can't they provide a DVD to go with the book?

No comments about Renaissance Art and Architecture.

1 comments about History of Architectural Theory.

1. Though outdated in significant ways -- with the entire second half essentially eclipsed by Harry Mallgrave's stunningly comprehensive history of modern architectural theory (Cambridge, 2005) -- this is still worth owning and reading for the material from Vitruvius to Perrault.
   
   The enormous bibliography is, due to its cumbersome organization, rather daunting and not nearly as useful as it should be.
   
   Maddening as it is, it is still an essential volume for anyone even remotely interested in the rationale behind the stylistic appearances of our built environment.

1 comments about Urban Planning Today: A Harvard Design Magazine Reader (Harvard Design Magazine).

1. URBAN PLANNING TODAY is part magazine, part newsletter, and part book report on the latest problems and debates facing urban planning. Here various contributors provide articles on projects from different backgrounds and goals in urban and regional planning, juxtaposing development strategies and issues with criticism and legal notes. Any with an interest in successes, failures, and evolving perspectives will welcome this addition to a college-level collection strong in urban studies.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch