1 comments about Luxury Hotels The Americas (Luxury Hotels).

1. The Luxury book is a beautiful addition to any library, travel lover, or those who love luxury. It was wonderful looking through this book finding some of my favorite hotels in America outlined in spectacular photographs. It makes one want one want to pick up the telephone and call the airlines to make a visit to some of the properties. Being a merchant of the finest luxury home products, these properties go hand in hand. Go splurge and experience them.

No comments about The Creative City: A Toolkit for Urban Innovators.

5 comments about The New York Apartment Houses of Rosario Candela and James Carpenter.

1. An exquisite book! There are stories about each apartment house and how it came to be. I found the two architects, Candela and Carpenter, to be very interesting characters. The homes they designed are ahead of their time. The floor plans are fascinating. The book also shows, by the floor plans, how people lived and what their needs were. The authors even quote costs of building and tell of the people who lived there. If you like real estate you will find this fascinating.



2. Let me first say that I loved the period black and white photos of the buildings, I also appreciated the fact that all of the buildings mentioned came with requisite photos, that is a must in book of this sort. I really didn't know that much about these buildings nor the architects so this book gave me a real education, I came away more knowledged and very impressed. The attention to detail the architects employed in these buildings is amazing and the fact that so many are still extant is a tribute to the artistry and talent that went into designing and building them and obviously contempory wealthy apartment seekers appreciate these attributes or else we all know these buildings would have been pulled down long ago, just like so many of the Gilded Age mansions they replaced. This publishing house puts out such finely crafted books and this one does not disappoint, I highly recommend it.



3. Candela and Carpenter were two of New York's most noted architects of the inter-war era, specializing in luxury apartment buildings. Architectural historian Andrew Alpern has assembled a reference text of their buildings, organized in geographic sequence. In this book, a typical building has two pages dedicated to it. One page consists of a floor plan, and the facing page has a photo or rendering of the exterior, combined with a one-to-six sentence description. Also, there are several brief essays at the beginning of the book.

   I enjoyed this volume, which Alpern has directed at a very narrow segment of readers, but it's not for everyone. This is a volume for architectural enthusiasts who are intrigued by room arrangements. Others might be better served by a book broader in scope (including some by this same author).




4. Alpern has written several books about New York apartment buildings and this is his best. This time he focuses exclusively on the genius of two ground-breaking designers, James Carpenter and Rosario Candela. If you are not adept at reading floor plans (of which there are many), it might not be immediately obvious what defines the genius of these two architects. It is the innovation of their layouts and the graciousness of their spaces that made apartment house living so desireable, allowing for the migration from town house to apartment building. Regardless, everyone will still enjoy the exterior and interior views of these great New York buildings and get a sense of how the rich really live. Alpern raises our awareness of the apartment house type in the City to a higher level, just as others had focused on the greatness of NYC's commercial structures.
   Each building is described in detail and there is some chatty material about who lived where, who bought what, and maybe a little more of that would have added fun to the book. There is a chronology of all the buildings and I would have liked to have seen thumbnail pictures of the buildings next to the timeline, since the book is organized geographically. It is otherwise an excellent and elegant study of the complete apartment house works of these two great designers.



5. Alpern has collected a comprehensive array of images and information both past and present that illustrate the breadth of work by Carpenter and Candela. Their buildings still house the privileged members of New York's social set that these apartment houses were designed for. Netto's intro is overwrought, pretentious and obviously included to lend a certain cachet from a card carrying member of Park Ave society. The book is a good visual reference, yet somewhat anticlimactic in it's format.

3 comments about Carpentry & Construction.

1. The project I'm working on right now in the hundred year old house I bought is refinishing some hardwood floors. So first I turned to the index to see what they said about doing that task. It was there. The description was rather short, but exactly what I needed to know.
   
   I then turned to how to install a toilet, yup, it was there too. So was wiring, framing walls, building a stair way, roofing, venting gas appliances, and there's a section on solar heating systems. In short, I couldn't find anything about building a house that wasn't covered (except for finding the money to cover the cost). If you're going to build a house, or have one built, I can't recommend any book higher than this one.



2. This book is a great overview of construction - it covers building stages ranging from the foundation to framing to roof details to types of siding available. Some electrical basics discussed, tips and tricks to keep in mind -- overall a good, lucid, well-thought out book that can get you started with construction.



3. From tools to termites, this book is an excellent reference tool for the construction novice (the person who is a neophyte to the trade, yet yearns to build their own home). This is a fine jumping-off point to more trade-specific references. It has given me the confidence to build my own house, even though I can't swing a hammer without hitting my thumb. Detailed drawings and illustrations complement a text that works from the "ground floor" up (forgive the pun) to the finishing touches aimed at the asthetic level.

1 comments about Interior Design (4th Edition).

1. I purchased this book for my Interior Design Class. There is just a lot of great information . The History of Design, architure, decortive art, mordern history; noted designers, different eras of design, dating back to the 1700's. Just a fablous texbook reference tool.

3 comments about The Landscape Lighting Book.

1. The Landscape Lighting book, by Janet Moyer, provides both an academic and practical level of landscaping lighting knowledge. Another good book, if you can find it, is the Ortho's book of How to Design and Install Outdoor Lighting.
   
   In comparison, the Ortho book has more colorful pictures and offers a very colorful education - I'd say, more or less at a good high school level. If you want more of college level introduction to landscape lighting - perhaps, to start a business or to broaden your knowledge, The Landscape Lighting book is the book for you.



2. The second edition of Janet Lennox Moyer's THE LANDSCAPE LIGHTING BOOK is an absolute necessity for everybody who works in landscape lighting or who is seriously interested in creating their own garden lighting. Ms Moyer has greatly revised and expanded the color plates and Chapter 4, "The Design Process - Documenting and Installing Landscape Lighting" as well as writing an entirely new Chapter 5 "Follow-up Work - Record Documents and Project Maintenance." These changes and additions and the many other updates make the new edition well worth the purchase price.
   
   First published in 1992, THE LANDSCAPE LIGHTING BOOK has served as the single and indispensable reference for the landscape lighting industry. It has offered all new landscape lighting practitioners guidance and provided an emerging industry the foundation necessary on which to build solid practice. While there is a wealth of other books that offer how-to help and publish pretty pictures, none of them even attempt to define and explain professional practice for the landscape lighting industry with Ms Moyer's authority and confidence.
   
   THE LANDSCAPE LIGHTING BOOK is not an easy book to read but it is well worth the effort. Once you understand the theory behind the short cuts and rules-of-thumb that other how to books offer, you are free to create your own. With the freedom you gain when you understand and can apply those fundamental principals and concepts to your landscape lighting, you become like the cook who ignores the printed recipe and creates a masterpiece of culinary art.



3. Still the best book for the professional. Invaluable resource for architects, landscape architects and landscape lighting designers. Broad and deep with plenty of technical information. I purchased this book in 1992 and I bought it again today (an electrician friend "lost" my original copy). A second edition (if planned) should include better information about transformer regulation (the ability of a low voltage lighting transformer to maintain 12v under load) and voltage drop (the dreaded decrease in voltage through the main supply cable) which are presented as formulae rather than actual measurements. Great photographs mostly of large scale projects. This book should be in every outdoor lighting designer's library.
   
   There is a second edition (Wiley 2005) of the book revised and updated by the author to reflect changes and improvements in techniques and equipment. The second edition is easily recognized by the illustrated four color cover; the original had an illustrated dust cover (missing from the last run of the first edition) by the cover itself was plain black.
   
   I have both editions and consider them a bargain in terms of concentrated relevant information.

5 comments about Construction Principles, Materials, and Methods.

1. This book is an excellent resource for those entering the Architecture profession. It is exhaustive and has information I couldn't find easily elsewhere.



2. This book is a great desk reference for any materials needed in construction. I am a student and find myself going back to this book semester after semester. Great Book.



3. It is certainly THE BIBLE for construction. Boy, I sweated it! But, if you can get through it, it is certainly worth the efford.



4. As the other reviews stated this book is in depth. If you are a building professional than you should already know the fundementals and require a reference that is the basis of your field. This book is too exausting for school, but as soon as you move to the office you should use it as the starting point for your details, CD's and specs. I used this book to study for the ARE and it has also come in handy when questions arise on the construction site with contractors. I have always felt that, as Architects, we have enough books all about subjects that we hire consultants for ie. Structures, MEP but we are the ones who need to be the experts about our handicraft: Construction.



5. Certainly THE bible in the construction industry. The problem is the depth to which this book delves in discussing rather dry, mundane topics. I guess if someone needs to know just about anything in construction, it's here, but be forewarned that there is an IMMENSE amount of information that must be waded through in order to find a specific piece of information. Often used as a textbook in Constructing 101 since it is so exhaustive in its scope (we spent an entire semester on only 1 chapter!). Also makes good reading for insomniacs.

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.

5 comments about American Ruins.

1. IR photography was popular some 50 years ago and remains an interesting way to view landscapes. The MOST interesting facet of the book is the selection of ruins that, in many cases are little known outside their immediate area.



2. It was a book I wanted. I bought it at the high price. When I got it there is so much type written words where you would expect more pictures. Also the pictures are done in Black and White. Where the ruins blend in and you cannot really see them. Also many of the pictures look the same but say different ruins. So, less type and more color pictures or a better photographer.
   Not worth the money!!!!



3. The book was well put togetheer and had sites in it that I had not been to and knew very little about. The Photography was good and helped with the written explanations of each site.



4. Very good. Saw the book on CBS Sunday Morning. Excellent book and my father-in-law truly enjoyed it. He is difficult to buy gifts but this one was a true winner. Would recommend this book to anyone interested in our past and future. Only issue was 2 day deliver by FedEx was three days- no reason was given.



5. The book was not really what I expected, but the photographs were beautiful. The pictures are really why I am giving this book 4 stars.

3 comments about Content.

1. First of all, it is very disappointed. This book is basically just hard to read. It may seem interesting at first opening it because of the layout and how pictures are organized. Although some ideas are presented in a very creative way, but really, the ideas are presented without telling the reader where the idea going to expand or how can it go further. Basically got nothing out of it after reading this book. Maybe when he made fun of Martha Steward, it was quite interesting.. but so what... what does she have to do with architecture...err yea..



2. For those used to Koolhaas' fun and games, you will enjoy pouring over his latest catalog of ideas. It has the look and feel of a thick magazine moreso than a book, packed with an astonishing range of project, op-ed pieces and cuttings from the chaotic world we live in. But, for those new to Koolhaas, you may want to check out Delirious New York or S,M,L,XL first.

   This book has a sharper political content to it but the cover is little more than a hook. There are some good articles to pour over such as "Re-Learning from Las Vegas," in which Koolhaas interviews Robert Venturi and Denise Scott-Brown. The cover story seems to be "Violence against Architecture," in which Bill Millard offers "tales from the front lines of the war on the city." Koolhaas can't resist promoting himself, noting his Projects on the City, and re-exploring Lagos and Beijing. He also showcases the Seattle Public Library and some of the newest projects he has on the boards. There are his usual witty allusions such as "Miestakes" and "Big Vermeer," but for the most part this book seems to be a celebration of the urban chaos that has resulted in recent years, thanks in large part to globalization. Unfortunately, there isn't a very sharp focus. Most of the images are just eye candy and the articles don't have much weight to them. Still, you can't beat the price and there is plenty to look at.




3. The latest Koolhaas and the gang book (actually a paperback) is summed up in the Editor's letter on page sixteen, part of which reads "Content is a follow-up to 'SMLXL', an inventory of seven years of OMA's tireless labor. In many ways it is structured according to what its predecessor is not-dense, cheap, disposable".

   The 546 pages are a textual and visual pot-pourri of articles, mostly architecturally related with several general interest items thrown in, like the one about Martha Stewart and her views on eastern lifestyles, or 'Red Radio', the story of the Cold War fight for Africa's airwaves (no, really) and if you get frustrated trying to read some of the tiny type that inevitably gets used in this type of book you can look at a few ads that are scattered throughout the pages.

   I bought the book for its strong visual interest (it is mostly visual) and the seventy-six articles are presented in all sorts of graphic ways, from the nearly unreadable 'Junk Space' which stretches over ten pages of text in one continuous paragraph to the rather fascinating 'Yes/No' using a clever collage technique to explain the rise and fall of the global economy. The pace is unrelenting with colorful whiz-bang graphics and photos from pages one to 546.

   Perhaps the most interesting chapter is the penultimate one devoted to the work of OMA-AMO since the publication of 'SMLXL', unfortunately the huge amount of information is presented in nearly unreadable paragraphs over twenty-seven pages. To quote the Editor's Letter again "Content is, beyond all, a tribute to what are perhaps OMA-AMO's greatest virtues - its courage, its dogged, almost existential pursuit of discomfort, its commitment to engage the world by inviting itself to places where it has no authority, places where it doesn't 'belong'". I'll certainly drink to that!