No comments about Shrinking Cities: Volume 2.

2 comments about Building the Empire State.

1. This is actually three stories in one. First, the discovery of a personal notebook documenting the construction of the ESB by an involved, but unknown author. Meticuously typed, with photographs, the manuscript was obviously a labor of love. Second, the written manuscript provides details of the construction which are engrossing, and the notebook's photos show the processes of constuction - not what was done but how they did it. Finally, the first 40+ pages provide a great summary of the ESB's history for the uninitiated. One of the most intriguing aspects of this book are the full-page photocopies of the notebook's actual pages, which only add to the historical sense and mystique of the manuscript. A great gift for the "construction-type" in your life, which is how I got mine...after numerous hints.



2. Based on actual records the construction company kept during the building process, this book gives an insight of how such an astonishing effort was completed. The whole process of buying the spot, finding an architect(!), tearing down the existing building, design, and building the Empire State took only 22 months. It's an outstanding example of how the management of a very complex project can be done and a must read for everyone in the software industry ;-). Fun to browse through yourself, a sure hit as a gift to anyone interested or working in architecture, construction or project management.

No comments about From Cameroon to Paris: Mousgoum Architecture In and Out of Africa.

3 comments about Underworld: Sites of Concealment.

1. This review is intended to compensate for deficiencies in Amazon's usually excellent descriptions of books.
   
   This book is the catalog of a traveling exposition of art photographs, taken entirely within Germany, and centered on underground places from historical times to the late 20th century. The bulk of the book, and its main value, lie in the reproductions of 83 color photographs. These are technically superb in selection of subject, artistic composition, and photographic execution. The images focus entirely on structure and underground spaces: nowhere appears a human being. Every image is reproduced in large format, using a top-quality printing process.
   
   The book has two main text chapters, both bilingual in having both the original German, and an English rendering in translation.
   
   Preceding the presentation of the images is an artistic exposition of human responses to underground places and their cultural significance. The underlying material is thoughtful and sensitive, but the English translation seems mechanical and less than fluent.
   
   Following the presentation of the images is an image-by-image commentary on the history and significance of each subject. Here the English text is fluent and delightfully informative.



2. I've paged thru this book hundreds of times for inspiration, and research. I consider this book a valueable asset to any library. It's a fantastic reference source that covers such a wide variety of images. The photos are magnificent.



3. As a concept designer in the entertainment industry, I found this book to be a wonderful resource for all the underground hideaways that you rarely see. I highly recommend this book!

2 comments about New Supermarket Design.

1. A good book, phothos in store are very nice, but is a mix of conventional and innovative supermarkets, the information is so precise...
   If you want to have a good time looking nice designs is perfect, but is not for architecture-looking.



2. The photographs present an adequate survey of what has been done and help the reader form a feeling of the stores. However, approaching the design issues from the customer's viewpoint could have provided an analysis in addition to the survey of the projects covered. Provision of measurements ( width of aisles, height of interior space, carpark space, size of departments, etc) would have provided better insights for professionals. Basic information on technology used, such as labelling, check out systems etc. could have been useful too.

1 comments about Charles Randall's Designer Sketchfile: Draperies, Valances, Fabric Shades & Bedding (Book & CD-ROM).

1. If you are a veteran window designer, nothing new here. Some historical designs you can find in any period book and I was suprised to even see some design from books of Joan Willis. I was very disappointed considering the magnitude of his other books.

1 comments about Hugh Newell Jacobsen, Architect.

1. This book chronicles the work of Hugh Newell Jacobson until 1988. This brilliant American architect is in my opinion very underrated, as this seems to be the only book dedicated exclusively to his work.

   The many plans and photographs clearly illustrate the key elements of his design philosophy. Among these are his use of simple, often symmetric plan forms, steep angled roofs and pergolas that are expressed as roof windows whenever they occur in the interior. His mastery of lighting design and the consistency of his detailing is evident in many photographs.

   The book is well printed on high quality paper. Unfortunately some of the pictures seem to be scans of photographs from earlier publications, and when these occur as full page photos they are not sharp.

   One wonders why this book has not been updated with this 2003 edition. Quite a number of the projects are indicated as due for completion in 1988, yet I have seen photographs of several of them in their completed state in other publications. It is furthermore a pity that the projects are not dated; one has to go to the Chronology at the back of the book to find the dates. It would also have been nice if the pictures at the Chronology where printed with the projects' main texts as some of these pictures are vital to the understanding of some of the projects.

   These criticisms aside, this book is highly recommended, especially at the reduced price.

1 comments about Designing Places for People: A Handbook on Human Behavior for Architects, Designers, and Facility Managers.

1. Not to go on too much, but I really learned a lot about how people interact with a building, how to think in a creative and yet totally practical way about how to design public spaces - it even affected the way I shopped for my last home. Get this book.

3 comments about Home Planners Complete Book of Landscape Plans: 50+ Garden Designs to Transform Your Yard.

1. This book is great for garden ideas. Plenty of interesting designs shown in graphic form, plus an artist's illustration. Lists of plant material have to be ordered. Some may find this a shortcoming. In our case, it's great as most of those lists contain plant material that is inappropriate for our region.



2. While this book does not have comprehensive information on each plan, it still provides some interesting ideas. Additional information such as comprehensive blueprints as well as plant and material lists customized to your region is available for purchase, but I found this useful without having to order the additional material. The different plans provide a wealth of ideas and act as a catalyst in designing your own landscape. You won't get substantial information on the plant life itself, in fact in most cases you don't get anything but a picture, but this allows you to substitute a more appropriate item suited to your tastes and region. This is by no means a "how-to design a landscape" book, but if you are looking for some ideas and basic landscape plans then this book delivers.



3. I bought this book expecting the 50+ garden design plans they promised. Well, they had 50+ garden designs, all right. You got six for free and you had to pay at least $10.00 apiece for the remaining plans. It is essentially a catalog of plans and you buy the ones you want.

   Not worth the money!!!!

2 comments about Morphosis/Diamond Ranch High School (Source Books in Architecture).

1. "Diamond Ranch High School: Source Book in Architecture" is perhaps one of the best books to have if you want to know the process of which great projects come to be.
   
   Divided into three sections, the first section is a documented transcript of Thom Mayne of Morphosis, critic Jeffrey Kipnis, and lecturer Todd Gannon during the Baumer Lecture Series at The Ohio State University. Mr. Kipnis and Mr. Gannon provide some of the best questions to Mr. Mayne - questions that many of us would actually want to ask Mr. Mayne. Likewise, Mr. Mayne's responses are eloquent and insightful. His honesty removes the aura created by his computer renderings and makes you realize that this is simply an individual who loves what he does.
   
   The second section of the book documents the drawings that Morphosis developed for the Diamond Ranch High School. Let's face it - we are usually presented with either a project proposal or a professional finished photograph and drawings are typically excluded from any typical documentation.
   
   The third section contains photos of the project under construction to the final construction photos.
   
   From the Mayne's discussion, to the drawings, and to the photographs, you gain a valuable insight into the true design and development of 'Diamond Ranch High School' that other publications simply gloss over.
   
   This series of books are simply one of the best in contemporary architectural writing and documentation today.



2. As an architect, I have followed Thom Mayne's work for a long period of time. I have collected most of his books and have always admired their production quality and most importantly, the depth of the work produced by this firm. They have been and will remain at the forefront of the architectural profession. Despite reading and studying Mayne's work and philosophies in other books, I have always been left unsatisfied, not knowing exactly how the firm works and how a project comes together within their office. The interview with Jeffery Kipnis and Todd Gannon at the front of the book enters into this territory, although I would have liked it to be much longer. The rest of the book is much like other Morphosis' books; full of beautiful sketches, computer renderings and drawings. Images walk the reader from schematic design through completion.