No comments about Skyscrapers Of The Midwest.

2 comments about La Maison de Verre.

1. I just received the book and had no time to read the text. The NY Times article in the summer covered the history of the house up until its current restoration. The photographs look a little as if they were from the "modern" era. Perfect perspective correction, focus on the details, rendering the home's atmosphere remarkably well. I especially like the color balance of the images. I disagree with the previous reviewer about the pictures. I can not imagine any different way to introduce this spectacular building. The black and white Polaroids (?) are a bit distracting. They may serve as spacers.
   
   The "modern" is an important stage of the Western culture and deserves our attention.
   
   Akos Szilvasi (Cambridge, Massachusetts)



2. This book simultaneously (and half-heartedly) documents the owner, the architect, and the building. The text is boring, the pictures are less than spectacular, and there is an extremely limited set of drawings placed in the back of the book as an after thought.
   Overall I am extremely dissapointed with my purchase, and if you are an architect or student of architecture chances are you will be too.

3 comments about Hotel: An American History.

1. While this comprehensive history of the American hotel surely will become required reading for students in hospitality programs, it is not the sort of history of hotel management and technology that one might expect of a text book in this field. Rather, this seems to be the "American Studies" genre, primarily concerned with viewing the hotel as a phenomenon in a larger cultural context of the place and times.
   
   While more attention to management practices and technology might have enriched the book, it serves a sufficient purpose as cultural history. The author clearly has done much homework, searching local newspapers across the nation for anacdotes about hotels. Naturally, what was reported was not behind-the-scenes hotel operation, but what would interest the public--the "front of the house" events.
   
   All of us who have favorite historic hotels and their histories will regret that much has been missed, but considering the vast scope of his subject, the author has done a superb job.



2. Lucky me. A friend gave me this wonderful book about the rise of hotels and the hospitality industry in the United States. What an eye-opener. The author, an academic, has done massive, serious research and has come to some extremely interesting conclusions. Who would have dreamed what an important part of our social history hotels are, or what they have meant to us economically (including the rise of the railroads). As someone who has traveled extensively, I can attest that some hotels are more welcoming than others, some have better beds or better food, but being a guest in a hotel is almost always a treat. This book helped me relive childhood trips to Miami Beach, eating a glorious room service dinner during a blizzard Richmond, Va., and hightailing it to a Motel 6 in Carlsbad,California. It taught me about a valuable part of our history I had never thought about. And the pictures are fascinating. I'm giving Hotel: An American History to my traveling cousin for Christmas.



3. I'll never hear the snoring, coughing, wheezing, televisioning, or humping in the hotel suite next to mine without thinking of this history of the American Hotel.We have come a long way since the time when overnight accomodations included sharing a bed with a stranger (unintentionally). The slamming of doors, the ker-chunk of the ice machine down the hall, and the rowdy late nights of party-goers become understandable (if not tolerable) after reading this rich and detailed history of the American hotel. Indeed, it explains why "American Hotel" is redundant.

1 comments about XS: Small Structures, Green Architecture.

1. Note carefully the words in the title of this book, 'Small Structures.' In spite of the copy on the back of the book, this is not a book concentrating on small houses. This a book on all kinds of small structures. They may be viewing platforms, a bridge, a pigeon loft, a monument, an emergency shelter made out of an ocean shipping container, a camera obscura, a work of art, or indeed there are a few houses here.
   
   What this book is really trying to do is push the state of the architectural art just as far as it can be pushed. Here are structures that are ecologically responsible, wildly creative and showcase the advanced thinking that the premier architectural firms can do when removed from the restrictions of building yet another McMansion.
   
   As you look at these structures, some give you ideas that you'd really like to try in your next building, some of the others just look weird and don't fit into anything that seems reasonable.
   
   All in all, I found it a stay up late and look at every picture just to see what they might think of next kind of book.

5 comments about Chicago Then and Now (Then & Now).

1. Great pictures on every page of this wonderful book. Only Chicagoans will appreciate it however. The photos are large and grand, and the author has tried hard to recreate the original angle mostly. That's my only complaint. Lovely book.



2. I have purchased this book for my departing aupair's for the past several years. While they certainly take pictures themselves they would never have a collection of photographs this large and they also get to see a bit of the history of Chicago. There are a lot of good pictures that will certainly spark many happy memories. For this purpose I would recommend it.



3. I enjoyed this book. Some of the pictures do not compare well because they were taken at different angles or from a different side of the street. Nevertheless, this is a great book. I found lots of stuff to compare. Native Chicagoans, who take an interest in the city, will like it. I purchased it for my brother for Christmas...liked it so much I purchased one for myself.



4. I have several of these "then and now" books, and I would say this is the weakest of the bunch. I dearly love Chicago, and some of the old photographs were very interesting, but the book has a few problems. First, the photographic perspectives are rarely in synch, so it is difficult to compare the two pictures directly; either the angle is off to the side, or it's at a different distance. This seems rather to defeat the purpose of a "then and now" theme, which is to facilitate comparison. Secondly, a great many of the buildings and scenes are virtually identical to what they were, so one wonders why they were included. Finally, a map should have been included.

   On the positive side, many of Chicago's key spots are targeted, such as the Water Tower, the stockyards and Hull House, and the paragraphs that accompany each picture do convey a lot of interesting information.

   If you are interested in Chicago or urban history you will undoubtedly still enjoy this volume, but lower your expectations a bit before the book arrives so you won't be disappointed.




5. An interesting look at Chicago as it appeared in the past, compared to now. More than just a picture book, it also gives some historical perspective for each location. If you're a Chicagoan, this is a must have. There are two problems that keep this from getting a top ranking. First, the focus of a "then and now" book should be to compare and contrast, so we can see how much has changed. There's several locations shown here that haven't really changed, and you wonder why they were included. Also, the "then" and "now" pictures should be shot from roughly the same location, showing the same perspective. That's not always the case here, and you may have to spend some time figuring out how to get things lined up. Still, it's a good way to see how the city used to look, and a rare look at some of the now-missing architectural treasures.

5 comments about 1001 Buildings You Must See Before You Die: The World's Architectural Masterpieces (Quintessence Books).

1. I was one of the contributing authors to this book. The reviews so far are spot on. Even though I worked on this book I find it difficult to find even my own entries as the index is inadequate. I also wrote the Elrod entry - and yes, the photo is wrong - and I would have known that if I'd seen page proofs. But on a positive note, I believe this book is definitely worth buying (I don't get royalties!) if only because I know it contains entries (like mine) that are not rewrites of existing viewpoints, but original, fresh perspectives. The next book in the series is "1001 Houses" and I've been asked to be the General Editor. I intend to take these comments on board and ensure a good index and good geographic spread for 1001 Houses. The publishers have indicated they want a website to go with the book, and that will also be a priority for me, assuming they ok costs. So buy this book as its assets outweigh its faults, and keep an eye out for 1001 Houses! http://www.dennajones.com



2. 1001 Buildings is a resource that you need. That said, it has some drawbacks. It has a strong English focus; perhaps London emphasis is better as a describer. Many English buildings. Almost all the written parts which are signed were by experts from London. Thought it missed some very important Western Hemisphere and Asian buildings, although it did have a lot for Cuba. Seemed to miss a number of outstanding American architects. Do not assume you will find a picture of each site as there are numerous pages with only written text. Variety of types of buildings (churches, factories, temples, and public use structures) was excellent. Indexing was poor, but the arrangement by year brought an interesting awareness of buildings in different parts of the world built at the same time.



3. We purchased this book in preparation for a world wide tour. It is quite extensive and has been helpful. Unfortunately there are quite a few page number errors in the index making looking up specific buildings a challenge. The book is arranged by periods and style, so if traveling, you need to use the index and look by country. The index does have building list by country. This country list does not always specify what cities the building is in and this is where I find the page number errors. So when planning a trip it is much more difficult than need be to locate what building you may want to see in the city you are going to. I was disappointed that there is not a picture for every building. Although the book has these user issues, it is a nice reference and my son is excited that he has already seen 10% of the buildings and plans to get to 25% before returning.



4. I love this book but I am giving it one star because I am so infuriated by the lack of a useful index. There is no index that lists which cities the buildings are in -- they are only arranged by country. Why? Many of us would like to visit buildings that are near us or in cities that we travel to. This bizarre lack of information in the index makes that virtually impossible.
   
   This is perhaps the most foolish indexing decision I have ever seen in my entire life, perhaps the most foolish indexing decision in the history of the written word.
   
   Also: why don't they give addresses of the buildings anywhere?
   
   Please correct this in the next edition. Maybe create a website where we can look this stuff up.
   
   Clearly, a lot of time was spent on this book. It's unfortunate that strange indexing decisions have rendered it almost useless.



5. Some of the buildings do not have corresponding photos with the descriptions but that can be understandable because the book runs almost 1000 pages.
   But I did find two errors:
   First Error - Page 523 has Case Study House No.22 but the photo is of Case Study House No.21 both are by Pierre Koneig and they are both in the Los Angeles area.
   Second error - Page 565 has Elrod House but the photo is of the Sheats/Goldstein House which is in Beverly Hills will the Elrod House is in Palm Springs. The Elrod House is famous for its location in the film Diamonds Are Forever and its circular in design.
   Overall the book is a very good reference book with a photo and a short description of the building.

2 comments about The Rustic Home.

1. I liked this book (I actually bought it for my mother, and she absolutely loves it). I prefer one of Kyloe's other books--Cabins and Camps, but this one was pretty good. If you're not a multi-gazillionaire, you can't think of actually building any of the homes in this book, but it might give you some good ideas. For myself, as I said, I found more ideas I liked in Cabins and Camps.



2. Yet another gorgous rustic book written and photographed by no other than the expert of all things rustic- Ralph Kylloe.
   I own all his books and RAN as fast as my legs would carry me to pick up his latest new book-"The Rustic Home". It is another great addition to my ever growing collection of his finest books ever. If you love anything rustic and decorate in this theme, or even if you don't, but love to flip thru the gorgous pages and dream of living in each and every one of these fantastic homes with a good hot cup of coffee in hand, then again this one is for you. I cannot tell you how often I pick up one of his beautiful books and gaze and dream of owning a home such is found on these pages. I gain new ideas and insight each time i re-open them up! Drives my husband crazy with all the remodel ideas I keep coming up with to create hopefully something similiar to what is found on the pages of all of Kylloes books, only in a smaller scale. I did find a few of the homes in this book outright "funky" if for a better word- like "Montana Lalu", "The Cape" and "The Rookery" ones that maybe I personally would have not included, but that is only my opinion. I do understand where Kylloe is coming from in including these to show that rustic varies depending on each and everyones different interpretation. To me these homes left me somewhat cold- compared to the others with their captivating rustic appeals reminesant to lodges and cozy cabins -some even towering giants so large its hard to fathom even cleaning homes of this size and scale, but none the less absolutely breath-taking!!!
   Thumbs up Kylloe- I would be happy to own just one! But for now we will keep plugging away painstakingly ever changing our home into one of these greats and hopefully some day maybe ours can be featured in one of your magnifient books as well!!

5 comments about Oscar Niemeyer: Houses.

1. This has to be one of the worst books I have ever bought. I was expecting inspirational works - what I got was some trashy looking houses.
   Maybe they are better when seeing them live, but this book does not inspire me to go seek them out. Out of the numerous houses/flat in the book I could say that only 2 or so were inspirational - the rest trash.



2. Detailed images to show Niemeyer's thoughts on living. Choronological spectrum of his works and constant re interpretation of his own architecture.



3. I saw some of his work in real, but the pictures of those that I didn't see are awesome! Houses designed by a communist, for the capitalists... But we don't care



4. This is a marvelous edition of a particular unknown facet of Oscar Niemeyer (Houses). He is a Brazilian architect that built an international reputation because of public spaces solutions. This book offers a detailed timeline view of private houses projected by him.



5. Niemeyer's houses are like modern art deco, they exude elegance and elan. This book does a fine job of captureing what makes his work so special, through the crisp images and interesting text. I was familiar with Niemeyer's public work, which frankly I not a huge fan of, but not his house designs, which I must say I appreciate much more than his civic work, I mean Brasilia is a mess, an urban "1984" nightmare, but his houses are much more serene and elegant. Nice book, highly recommended to anyone with a love for architecture.

5 comments about Theoretical Anxiety and Design Strategies in the Work of Eight Contemporary Architects.

1. In this deceptively thick volume, Moneo presents a compilation of lectures he gave during the early 90's while at Harvard's GSD. Digging into his archives, he reassembles slides and text specific to the work of eight individuals that Moneo believes to be among the most influential contemporary architects of the late 20th century.
   
   Don't let the title intimidate you. Moneo is simply referring to the mechanisms, operational strategies, formal devices and procedures that architects utilize in their design process and their unwillingness to reveal those systematic theories of design. Rather, he believes that the current architectural discourse assumes a more reflective or critical posture rather than revolving around the process of design.
   
   Moneo manages to reveal to varying extents the working process of each architect by analyzing a body of work over the course of their career, identifying key changes in strategies. As an architect, learning the working process of such significant architectural figures is quite useful, allowing one to locate themselves (or others) within the greater architectural sphere. Here, connections begin to reveal themselves and linkages to architects past and present become evident.
   
   The project images are often a bit too small to be incredibly useful especially since Moneo often refers to specific features within the drawings and photos to explain his thoughts. However, this remains an excellent and recommended read.



2. In architecture, everyone at one point fantasizes about becoming a well known architect. Rafael Moneo challenges the current leaders method of praticing. He investigates each architect individually, delivering insight to their logic in practicing. Moneo constantly refers back to each architect he discusses and compares the diversity of architecture logic in practice. Although I believe he was attempting to expose the potential failures or faults in most successful architects, whom we usually appraciate but hardly challenge.



3. I purchased this book because I was interested in only
   two architects. One was Siza and the other H+Dm. Going over again
   Stirling/ Venturi/ Rossi was just too much and I wasn't interested in the rest of three architects. But thanks to Moneo's great writing, I was able to read all of the architects with great interest and enthusiasm. Reading Siza was like reading a poetry. Moneo constructs that mood by comparing Siza with a Poet Pesoa. Due to their contemporaneity, analysis on H+Dm is still on going. But Moneo explains well on the foundation of H+dM's work. Like the comparison of Siza to Pesoa, it is interesting to read H+Dm's relationship/influence with conceptual artists such as Joseph Beuys. In terms of Venturi and Rossi, unlike crash courses in architectural history, Moneo delves into more on their individual projects than on the theoretical manifestos of their books. I gained most reading Koolhaas and Eisenman. I never liked their writings (one being too sarcastically light and the other being too narcissistically heavy) and I hated their buildings. Moneo actually helps overcome these misreading. Overall, the book really stimulates thinking in that every line in architecture has a meaning. Moreover, it helps to see the landscape of contemporary architecture. As the title suggests, the book really is a theoretical anxieties. And like all anxieties do, I guarantee that this book will stir the stagnation of your spirit; as it did mine.



4. There are Architects who write eloquently about Architecture, but whose built works disappoint, then there are those whose buildings inspire and yet seem unable to communicate clearly about their ideas, but Rafael Moneo is the rare architect who appears in easy command of both realms. A colleague who studied under him said that Moneo could look at a project and tell exactly how it was designed, and this book seems to substantiate this ability to understand both method and reason behind the work of some of the most important Architects of the last third or the 20th century. Moneo's prose is informal, yet studied, and this book serves as a once in a lifetime conversation with a master Architect.
   His ideas seem better defined when dealing with James Stirling and Aldo Rossi, and more speculative when dealing with relative newcomers like Koolhaas, and Herzhogg+DeMeuron, but the book is always insightful. Moneo comes across as someone who loves his profession and who, despite earning international renown, approaches the work of his colleagues with the same fascination of a brilliant student. This fascination is contagious, and the book is a worthy addition to the library of anyone who loves contemporary architecture.



5. This collection of essays on contemporary architects reminds me of why I love great contemporary architecture, and why I will continue to work as an architect. The text demonstrates the wonderful diversity of the times we live in and the recent history which has formed these times. Read these essays and you will recognize the lineage of form and theory which has led to any building built or published today, from any suburban house to the Freedom Tower.
   
   A reflection on 50 years of history, this book could only have come together now. Moneo's observations of his peers are dead on and written with the clarity of a historical text while still managing to to provide the insight of a work of architectural criticism. This is the book I wish I had as a student in the 1980's but know that in the throes of theoretical debate at the time that the history was too fresh for hindsight. As a direct result of the debate around "modernism", more than at any other time in history we are able to recognize how theory affects our design strategies. In collecting these transcripts of lectures and essays on these architects Moneo codifies what we know we knew about how we got here, but had not yet put all together.
   
   I only wish I could have been there to hear his lectures. At times the text seems to stradle the grammatical form of essay and transcript of a discussion on a particular slide. But perhaps it is that sometimes awkward format which energizes and saves the book from becoming "text"book. To actually see slides and drawings rather than the somewhat small and at times poor black and white images that dot the text would be of great benefit. As a result this is probably not a book for the casual reader of architecture not familiar with the work of these architects and who does not have the time to look for better images. Mr. Moneo has in this book nthe raw material for what could be a very powerful multimedia publication, either CD or web based.
   
   I recommend that every student of architecture today read this book. It offers the critical tools to recognize where from what you do comes and in doing so opens the possibilities of where you can take your work.

5 comments about 10 X 10 _ 2 100 Architects 10 Critics.

1. The publishers did a fine job on the quality of this book. Although 10x10 was not at all what I was looking for others may find it useful. I found that it had extremely contemporary design throughout, current and old. Its focus was more on the very soul and defenition of contemporary that is shown in form. I am not a designer or architecht, but am sure that type of person would get more from the book than I did. Basically I was looking for a collection of ideas that could some how be implemented into other forms, but I was not successful. All I could see was page after page of a revolving theme that I now know does not appeal to me in its purest form..



2. Im an architecture student at the University of Florida and this book, including 10x10 are a must have. Simple as that. Full of pictures and small captions describing projects. Great for a student in design courses.



3. As a web designer, going through this book of beauifully designed homes and buildings give me layout and design ideas. Full color with large pictures and descriptions, I would reccomend this book for starting architects.



4. I am currently a design student - and this is an indispensible resource for recent and fairly obscure architecture. Has full rich photos and a wealth of information inside. Great selection of buildings as well. The photos can be used for ideas on detailing to spacial organization. I highly recommend this to anyone who needs to get a fresh breath of air and clean out the cobwebs. Everytime I close it I am ready to design.



5. I was thrilled when I received this book. Being an architect myself, I appreciated the excellent photos and disussion of the featured persons in my profession. A wonderful book that will be a worthwhile read for anyone with an admiration or even mild curiosity in the subject. Highly recommend.