No comments about Princely Rajasthan: Rajput Palaces and Mansions.

2 comments about Living In New England.

1. What a wonderful book! Both the prose and photos are terrific. The authors have truly captured the essence of New England and country life. As a new owner of one of the 25 profiled homes, I can honestly say (o.k., I am a little biased) that this is a book worth buying. SRS



2. I was browsing among the impoverished English-language section in a local bookstore and this immediately caught my eye with both title and jacket photo. I grew up and went to college in New England and it will always be called home-thus the nostalgia. This lovely and evocative book combines photography that you can drink in (and be transported by) with a very readable text...I find very often in "coffee-table" photo books the accompanying text is either boring or excessively esoteric. This is neither. Dos Santos' impeccable technical skill is obvious, although there is a slight bias toward a stereotypical New England simple-and-spartan ethic as far as subject choice goes. Overlook it and give this book a once-through. You won't regret it.

No comments about 25 Apartments and Lofts Under 1000 Square Feet.

1 comments about Cool Shops Tokyo (Cool Shops).

1. Happy with this purchase! It's a great book if you like interior decorating and minimalist style. ^^

No comments about Small Brick Houses of the Twenties (Dover Books on Architecture).

4 comments about How to Build an Igloo: And Other Snow Shelters.

1. First of all my 5 and 6 year old started looking at this book and it was hard to get it back from them as they were so charmed by the pictures. They have been playing in the snow and hounding me to help ever since.
   
   Second of All I lived in Nunavut for 9 years and took lessons in igloo building from Inuit elders. I also worked with elders and teachers to create a unit on igloo building for students and teachers. I learned to make a half presentable igloo in this process! I can say with a modicum of expertise that many books on the subject are complete flops but not this one.
   
   This book is the real deal. The pictures are great and the text is as well. A fantastic and charming tutorial for playing in the snow. First rate.



2. How are blocks of ice cut and fitted to create an igloo, how can one assess snow possibilities to build one, and what are other shelter options for snowy areas? Norbert Yankielun's How to Build an Igloo and Other Snow Shelters covers all the basics, offering step-by-step insights on how to construct - and inhabit - an igloo or other snow shelter. Any collection located in an area that gets winter snow will relish this fun, appealing title!
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch



3. my son got this as a gift and enjoyed the variety of snow shelter info.



4. What a truly delightful book describing both the science and the frivolity of snow structures. Dr. Why's excellent detail and evident excitement about the subject lend a depth to a subject all those exposed to the colder climes will enjoy. Make those NOT in a snow-filled area jealous... Great book for all ages and abilities!

4 comments about Time-Saver Standards for Building Types.

1. rich in graphics and details, perfect companion when you need quick answers, specially if you get a used book at a fantastic price like these, it is worth it!!



2. dear sir/madam

   am in need of a book call newfet Architectural data so plsss help me find it plss

   from terry




3. This is a book that sometimes resembles Neufert's, but it has a lot of additional information you might need that will make easier the process of designing various types of buildings. It gives you notions, ideas, proportions, measures and everything you need to know when starting a project. A must-have to any architect (specially with these incredible low-priced used ones. I got mine for 13 bucks and it's absolutely like new).



4. Amozon.com says that they save you money on books but this book cost a cool 150 smackers even if a customer has purchased many books from them -- the book is valuable and used like a dictionary for reference -- why can't we get a resonable price for it -- Amozon.com send out thank you and promises to do their best to keep the price lowest but why do they continue to bate and switch.

2 comments about Raphael Soriano.

1. Of all the important pioneers of modern architecture in southern California, Soriano was one of the most inventive and idealistic, but least successful. If he hadn't won the attention of Julius Shulman--as a photographer and client--he would probably be forgotten, so few are the surviving traces of his modest mid-century output. When he died, in 1988, poor and embittered, few took note. This self-inflicted failure (Soriano alienated Entenza, Eichler and several other key clients) challenged Wolfgang Wagener, an architect who practices here and in Germany, to reevaluate his achievement and develop a complete list of buildings and projects. (Michael Webb is the book reviewer for LA Architect magazine.)



2. This is a thorough, comprehensive monograph on a talented, yet often forgotten modernist. The book competently chronicles Soriano's career and major projects. However it achieves much more: There is an excellent introductory essay (The Postwar Dream Takes Hold) on the post WWII housing boom and specifically on the typology of the modern California House. This background introduces the reader to the spirit of the era in which Soriano established his practice.

   The second essay, entitle Pioneering Steel Houses 1935-1970 focuses on Soriano's career and his strong convictions of the steel frame used as a vehicle to meet the demand of the housing boom. The photos, mostly by noted photographer Julius Shulman are crisp and clear. While it would be nice to see recent photos of Sauriano's structures, the author is clear to point out that most of Soriano's buildings have sadly been demolished or altered beyond recognition.

   The two essays are followed by a very thorough catalogue with commentary of all Soriano's projects. The book also contains a map of Soriano's projects in Los Angeles, a Chronology of the Architect's life, and finally the typescript of Soriano's unfinished autobiography (all of about 5 typewritten pages).

   I highly recommend this book for the student of mid-century modernism.

2 comments about Building for Life: Designing and Understanding the Human-Nature Connection.

1. I had hoped that Kellert would explore all the different ways that Biophilia might interact with the environmental design process with a view to uncovering new possibilities both in the built AND conceptual stages. Unfortunately the book just slowly scoops an uninspired selection of well-trodden sustainable practices into the Biophilia fold. I'm afraid I feel that the book is written too much in the cautious, repetitive & tautological style of Academic Sociology and is unable to take any vigorous conceptual jumps into new territory. The point of such leaps is to make connections with reasonably well-founded research in another field with a view to invigorating understanding (and design) on both sides of the jump. Kellert's association with Edward O. Wilson had led me to expect such daring, which drives every wonderful page of the latter's masterful "Consilience". Hildebrand's "origins of architectural pleasure" does at least bravely gather together many fields of study to create a new benchmark for linking basic epigenetic rules of human nature with architecture. I am hoping for a book that looks around for ways that architecture may explore the positive (rather than remedial) use of human nature in design. Maybe Kellert can write volume two in a more consistently pioneering form.



2. I truly enjoyed this book. One thing that frustrates me about new environmental standards for buildings, like LEED, is the fact that designers and builders are not taking more cues from natural systems when they are planning the actual construction of these buildings.
   
   Kellert's book shows how to take green building to a new level--how we as designers and builders can bring nature into the design process, using simple things like natural lighting, finish details insired by flora and fauna. You don't have to be an architect or designer or planner to read this book, either; it's really straightforward and readable, and I found it genuinely inspiring.
   
   I only wish that more people considered how we can respect nature through our constructed environment, instead of only being concerned about how to protect open space or save endagered species or things like that.
   
   If you read one book about architecture this year, read this!

1 comments about Facility Design and Management Handbook.

1. A very comprehensive manual (31 chapters, over 500 pages) for any level of facilty management professional. Each chapter is written by practicing professionals and "expert" consultants. Given that the field of FM covers so many areas, it is useful to have many different perspectives from professionals in the field formed into one big book. Chapters are grouped into phases of FM disciplines, i.e, planning, design, management, technology. There are high level topics such as Strategic Facility Planning, Sustainable Design, Portfolio Management and Business Transformation. Also very detailed, nuts & bolts for topics such as Financial Management for FM's, Energy Management, System Implementation for CMMS (Maintenance systems, Benchmarking, Condition Assessment, and case studies for CAFM technology. Brief chapter summaries are provided to assist reader with content coverage. There are lots of graphics/figures which help readability of this thick book, as well as a CD with websites and templates for RFP's, standards and process related functions.