No comments about The Project of Autonomy: Politics and Architecture Within and Against Capitalism.

No comments about Body, Memory, and Architecture (Yale Paperbound).

1 comments about The Garden at Highgrove.

1. Highgrove should be a model for others to follow. Excellent work Prince & team!

No comments about Award Winning Green Roof Designs.

1 comments about Paulo Mendes Da Rocha: Bauten Und Projekte/Works and Projects.

1. great book with accompanying words from the man himself. one of the most inspiritional architects in the world today, without question.

5 comments about The Sanctuary Garden: Creating a Place of Refuge in Your Yard or Garden.

1. While this book may not have glossy photos, it is none-the-less a dreamer's guide to gardening and solved my biggest garden problem: how to make visitors stop and abide awhile in my garden.
   
   On home garden tours, I often watch people fall prey to a mindset of "strolling on a mission" as they move from one composed vista to the next, mentally recording pretty combinations or successful "scenes." I was saddened recently to see a beautiful pergola draped in exotic jade vine (Strongylodon macrobotrys) with people flocking to see the flowers, but not one person felt genuinely invited to sit inside. In my mind, a garden fails if it does not: A.) stop you in your tracks and B.) invite you to sit awhile, quietly and comfortably.
   
   One of my goals is to open my garden to such a home tour and discover people lingering, feeling transcendently at peace and at home. This book helped me find a way to transform the garden experience from people saying "pretty" to people having conversations in outdoor salons.
   
   I share the other reviewer's experience. I am a visual person and gravitate towards books with landscape plans and photos. I have a library shelf full of garden design books; Feng Shui, modern, Balinese, etc. and binders of ideas from magazine clippings. Yet this book did more to shape the garden experience I want visitors to have than any other.
   
   Each garden "room" should function the same way as the vibrant passages the authors use to open each section in the book: creating layers of engagement that invite you to reflect.
   
   I found myself evaluating designs with more than just an eye for cleverness or cohesiveness. This book is an invitation to center yourself before setting out to create a peaceful space outdoors.



2. I bought this book from a different web retailer because of the online description; I did not see it in the store first. If I had, I wouldn't have bought it, because it is a philosophy book about gardening. I tend to buy gardening books that have lots of photos or diagrams of examples. This book has no photos and only a few drawings. It is all text. If you are a "show me" kind of person like I am, then don't buy this book.



3. I LOVE this book. It's about so MUCH more than just digging in the dirt! I especially love the watercolor illustrations. We have always called our own backyard a sanctuary. Now, we are incorporating some of the bountiful ideas found in this cornucopia of garden delights.



4. This is a wonderful book! It is very inspiring, and the ideas are easy to follow, understand, and adapt to your own space and needs. I loved the descriptions of their garden/sanctuary at their home, and am inspired to try to create some sacred space in my own life. Thank you for a truly fantastic book!



5. Almost a "garden as metaphor," book, you won't find concrete advide about how to plant, or what to do about pests, etc. You will find an inspired pathway to spirit via the garden. The authors write with a clear, poetic voice about earth, wind, water and sunlight as manifestations of the soul. As an avid gardener, this is one of my all time favorites! It would make a terrific gift for anyone interested in the natural/spiritual worlds.

3 comments about Villa Mairea Aid (Architecture in Detail).

1. Villa Mairea is a very specific home building in Finland. It could be described as an outstanding but descent statue of the golden National Romantic Era, when Alvar Aalto (much alike Frank Lloyd, e.g. in his Fallingwaterhouse) was relatively free hands to plan a house in the "best spirit" of the time.
   
   The house was possessed and occupied by the descendants of the relatively large Ahlström family, which is famous for various industrial activities in Finland. Few people (150 000?) had opportunity to visit the place when it was open for publicity from time to time several years ago, but as a surrogate for such an experience this books gives an excellent overview. The pictures and drawings of the home and its environment are very clear and professionally prepared, and what is most important, the proportionally short introduction to the cultural milieu or atmosphere of the time is covering enough for readers, who have been interested in architecture, but have not yet acknowledged the greatness of Alvar Aalto.



2. This book had great detail i recommend this for Architect students,Interior Design students !!!!!!



3. Weston appears to do a very fine job presenting us with the various perspectives of the Villa -- the large living room, entryways, linear wood use, and of course the extraordinary pool and sauna. The integration of text with pictures makes the book accessible to students just beginning to embark on a study of this great Finnish architect.

No comments about Ideas: Houses (Ideas).

4 comments about Patterns from the Golden Age of Rustic Design: Park and Recreation Structuires from the 1930's.

1. I thought this would be a book of instruction or patterns for creating rustic furniture. Not even close. It is a book about layouts and some architectural design for parks and campsites. I sold it to a man designing and building his own campground. He loved it.



2. As a professional designer and consultant to the resort development industry, I found this book very informative, with extensive photos and architectural illlustrations, plans and diagrams originating from the early 20th century. A valuable reference book for land planners, architects and developers looking to create "authentic" park and recreational structures for their communities, whether in the mountains or the prairie!
   
   Excellent Book.



3. This guide, originally printed in the 1930s, is an incredibly complete overview of the many structures created in state and national parks from across America. Every kind of structure, and I mean EVERY kind, is represented here with an amazing number of photographs and plans so that you can reproduce them on your own property.
   
   Whether you want to make a simple stone fire pit or a two-story timber-frame visitor's center, this is the book for you. Chapters include fences, signs, administration buildings, drinking fountains, comfort stations, fire lookout towers, trail steps, bridges, picnic shelters, fire pits, outdoor theaters, cabins, bath houses, and lots more. There's even chapters on furnishings and camp layouts.
   
   The book is written in the somewhat flowery tongue of the early 20-century style, but it's quite readable and in some cases truly amusing, especially when discussing the evils of vandalism. A particularly funny passage is found in the chapter about signs:
   
   "Barring an act of God, like a cyclone, or assault by that instrument of Satan, the initial carver, signs like these promise long life... In spite of all the evidence to the contrary, [the initial carver] is a physical, as well as mental, sluggard and is likely to think twice (we flatter him) before he will stand on his head or shinny up a post to accomplish his scandalous, vandalous ends. Twin to the jackknife pest is the souvenir hunter. Signs too appealingly picturesque and easy to get at and carry away fall prey to his pack rat instincts."



4. I always wondered how these incredibly beautiful wood and stone structures were built, everytime we went camping in some state or national park. Now I know!

   Where's my pick, hammer, axe, adze and saw? I can't wait to get started! This book has everything. I hope to be able to buy the rest of Albert H. Good's books on the subject. Fabulous.

1 comments about Alvaro Siza: Private Houses.

1. Alvaro Siza is a true architectural genius and this book does a wonderful job to illustrate his great many talents and vision. The poems placed throughout the book add a special flavor. As an architect, I also appreciated the detailed photos. A must book for architects and Siza's fans!