No comments about Tropical Style: Private Palm Beach.

2 comments about Frank Lloyd Wright.

1. This is a great book, not only as a reference for FLW's work, divided into sections of building type, containing hundreds of great photographs and drawings of his works (about 20 on Fallingwater alone), by which you can really get to know his work in detail. Because it's so visually rich, it is also a reference for constrution techniques and details (and, as you know, FLW is a very echletic architect). The text is very well written and covers everything related to each work, like clients' reviews, technical specifications, the story of the building, and so forth. I recommend it to anyone interested in architecture and FLW.



2. Oustanding commentary, well researched and insightful. The text here is mighty different from other commentaries on Wright, and feels much more substantive. Ony con: not enough images + some floorplans are reproduced too small to read clearly. - not a photo overview, a study on the man.

2 comments about Alvar Aalto, 1898-1976: Paradise for the Man in the Street (Taschen Basic Architecture).

1. When they call this book "basic," they mean it. There is nothing deep or philosophical contained within these pages. Instead, this is an overview of the main works that Aalto produced during his career. Projects range from his Savoy vases to entire buildings. This is a good starting point for anyone who is interested in learning more about Aalto's work and nice to have as a basic reference. For the price, this little book can't be beat!



2. I love Aalto's work, but this book was just dry.
   I give it 3.5 only because it's meant to be an inexpensive introduction to Aalto's work, and it is inexpensive..but the writing is just dry. You really get nothing from the articles about the buildings..but it is a nice intro to the architect's life and it does showcase a few of his best works...albeit in a dry manner..
   
   If you aren't really interested in his work, this is perfect for you.
   But if you want a decent look into some of his buildings and materials and philosophy, then your going to have to splurge a little
   
   B-

5 comments about Capital Losses: A Cultural History of Washington's Destroyed Buildings.

1. I was given a copy of this book for my birthday several years ago and spent hours pouring over its prose and its historical narratives. I never grow tired of this book.
   
   Credit for this work goes to its author who has accomplished the near to impossible - an engaging and personal history of Washington DC told through the destroyed architecture and the people behind the buildings and their creation. The illustrations are gorgeous, but its Goode's way with worlds that allows the reader to lose themselves in the history of the buildings profiled.
   
   I would imagine that this type of book in the wrong hands would become an academic tome, dry and technical. Goode brings the people of the District to life for the reader, and compels the reader to look for more.
   
   If the book fails, it is in the lack of a comprehensive map of the whole District of Columbia. If you are not familiar with the streets and layout of the city (itself genius) then the book can be confusing.
   
   Ideally, I would suggest this as a gift to anyone interested in history, city planning, government or historical architecture.



2. Lovely book with pictures that will stir memories in the hearts of all native Washingtonians and those who wish they were!



3. As you pour over all the wonderful black and white images and run you eyes over the artistry and talent it took to create most of these long gone structures you can help, but pause and take a deep breath. This book has scholarly, exhaustively researched text that enlighens and educates the reader. I agree with one articulate reviewer that stated that the author did not make allowances for market forces and changing times, but having said that, I do believe that most of these buildings could have been saved and used for other purposes, I mean the retrofited old buildings in NYC and Boston, why not Washington. The destruction of so many buildings is unconscionable, and when you see the buildings that replaced them all you do is stare. I was not around in the sixties so i didnt witness the worst of this senceless destruction, but i know that here in Houston, even today, great old buildings are never totally safe, it's no wonder Europeans don't get us, as an American i don't get us either. Highly recommended..the book and perservation.



4. Unique and engaging, "Capital Losses" is a scrapbook chronicle of Washington, DC-- not as the "nation's capital," but as a collection of neighborhoods, people, and activities.

   The book memorializes dozens of buildings lost to the wrecker's ball. Each edifice is featured in a one- to two-page chapter that includes splendid vintage photographs. The accompanying write-ups always discuss design elements, thanks to the authors' encyclopedic knowledge in this area. The story of each structure is then expanded into a discussion of the designers, builders, and notable inhabitants. "Capital Losses" is a survey of history, intrigue, gossip as well as architectural styles. That's what makes this book so fun.

   The authors' sympathy for historic preservation is to a fault. Narratives hardly attempt to recognize the social, economic, and technological forces that so often make demolition inexorable. For example, the advent of central air conditioning initiated the doom of many hotel and office structures that could not be economically retrofitted. In addition, the post-war demise of downtown commercial areas also accelerated the decay and eventual destruction of many classic structures.

   To be fair, an analysis of causal forces was not the intention of this volume. It pays homage to Washington's folksier history in an elegant manner. This is a wonderful coffee table book.




5. Now in an updated second edition, Capital Losses: A Cultural History Of Washington's Destroyed Buildings by Washington history expert James M. Goode is a carefully presented documentation and chronicle of the great architectural and cultural edifices of Washington, D.C., which have been lost to the endless grind of urban renewal in the years prior to 1978. That was the year in which crucial preservation legislation was passed. Packed from cover to cover with black-and-white photographs, enhancing a text which is extensive in detail, history, unique historical insights, Capital Losses is an exceptional architectural tour and a unique resource offering a kind of "window" into the architectural past of the nation's capital.

4 comments about Life in the English Country House: A Social and Architectural History.

1. With all that one can read and see of the impressive country homes of England's landed classes, the reasons the houses were designed as they were and the role they served is not always apparent. Architectural historian Mark Girouard addresses this critical gap in understanding in "Life in the English Country House: A Social and Architectural History", explaining whom these households comprised, how they functioned, and how their design served its purposes from the Middle Ages until World War II. Over the course of centuries, the style, nature and number of rooms changed, as did the relationships of those who occupied them, so examining the homes of the ruling classes proves to be a fascinating lesson in social history.
   
   Girouard presents the history of the country home alongside that of its household according to era: The Medieval Household and House, The Elizabethan and Jacobean House, The Formal House 1630-1720, The Social House 1720-70, The Arrival of Informality 1770-1830, The Moral House 1830-1900, and The Indian Summer 1900-1940. One chapter digresses to recount the history of books, collections and the rooms that housed them, and another talks about the evolving technologies used to heat, light, supply water, and dispose of sewage through the ages. Included are over 200 illustrations: floor plans, photographs, and drawings in black-and-white and color. "Life in the English Country House" is a literate and enlightening history of the homes and the power that they both reflected and fostered for eight centuries.



2. This book is brilliant. It reminded me of a paleontology book where the author looks at the shells of ancient marine fossils and reconstructs their lives from the shape of the shells.
   
   From the structure of the English Country House Girouard recreates the lives of those who lived in them. Not just the Lord and Lady but all those who lived and worked there. How many people were in this room during dinner? How did the food get to the dining area (usually a long trek. This minimized the chance the kitchen would burn the place down but mimimized the chance dinner hadn't congealed). How many people (ladies in waiting, servants, servants of servants) were sleeping in the room together in 1500, 1700 or 1890? The idea that one would actually have any privacy is a very recent concept.
   
   A fascinating reconstruction of what life was like not just for the head of the household, but for all who lived on the estate.



3. Don't be put off at first by the black and white photos. This book has some color photos, and I was at first hesitant to purchase this book because it seemed to be mostly black and white photography.
   However, once I began to read this book, all thoughts about photos went out of my head! This book is informative, intelligent and thorough. The author has studied his subject very well, and writes in a clear and easy to follow manner. I really do find the floorplans to be an invaluable tool towards understanding the buildings the author is describing.
   I am currently using this book as a research tool for my novel, but I did buy this book just for the love of the subject and I was not disappointed.
   I would recommend this book again and again to anyone with a love of history and architecture.



4. Mark Girouard, an architectural historian, has traced the roles of form and function in England's Great Houses in this densely illustrated, sensitively written book. Floor-plans, innumerable photographs and drawings (many of homes now destroyed), and portraits pepper the text, which is readability itself.

   The book follows a chronological path from the Mediaval Household to the present day. The text isn't dry at all. Delicious details abound: Bess of Hardwick pacing her Great Chamber of Hardwick Hall, waiting for the royal visit that never came in the instantly-dated house she'd built for this very purpose, ... The origin of the phrase "backstairs intrigues" (both political and sexual).... the slow but persistant birth of the aristocratic ideal of "privacy"--and how it affected dining halls....the rise of the great dilettante libraries (and the rooms to house them).....and the advent of the freakish innovation of indoor plumbing (and a picture of the Duke of Wellington's elaborate WC) are just a few tidbits.

   Mr. Girouard doesn't neglect the "downstairs" portion of a Great House, because he's interested in the whole institution as a functioning unit. Some of the most intriguing photos are of beloved servants' portraits, and the almost Shaker-like beauty of a working kitchen or laundry. Included, also, is a printed "Summary of Livery Men's Duties, Etc., Etc.", of Hatfield House, and darned if it doesn't sound like instructions for empoyees at an indifferent New York hotel!

   This book is a delicious retrospective, and will make any red-blooded Anglophile who longs for one of these faded leviathans very happy indeed. Now, if you need me further, I will be in the Orangery.

5 comments about New Orleans: Elegance and Decadence.

1. I have been to New Orleans millions of times and this is the best all around book. The author has really, really researched and pulled up ALL kinds of interesting tidbits.
   I think that Compass guides in general are the extra travel books one buys. I wanted more than Fodor's has because I already know all the best places to go. I think that she had good choices and you could use it as your only travel guide.
   I think some readers were disappointed because maybe they were taken back by the exorbitant prices hotels charge. Hotel-wise , you don't get much for your money unless you go in summer or during Christmas.



2. One of my all-time favorite books. The stuff of dreams and nightmares too.

   This is an utterly luscious picture book. Chock full of photos of real interiors. Real homes of artists and the creative. Homes of people who love peeling wallpaper and cracked plaster; and especially those who love living in the midst of art works, or deeply personal collections.

   The homes of people who love the humid haze, moist clay-scented New Orleans.




3. One of my all-time favorite books. The stuff of dreams and nightmares too.

   This is an utterly luscious picture book. Chock full of photos of real interiors. Real homes of artists and the creative. Homes of people who love peeling wallpaper and cracked plaster; and especially those who love living in the midst of art works, or deeply personal collections.

   The homes of people who love the humid haze, moist earth-scented New Orleans.




4. This book has great interior pictures of some glorious New Orleans homes. Unfortunately when I've been there, I didn't have the opportunity to go inside to see the many interior styles. This book gives me the opportunity to see the beauty inside, that I've only been able to view from outside. Great book for those of us who love and appreciate the city!



5. We just got back from 5 days in New Orleans, and this was the only guide we took with us. It was a mistake. It's a difficult book to navigate, has limited maps, limited selection of accomodation & restaurants. If you go outside of Madi Gras & with children (two teenagers in our case) half the book is irrelevent. The restaurant '100 best' list doesn't match Zagats (always reliable). It warns against solo visits to the cemeteries (they're not safe, go on a tour), but doesn't explain why! Pity there isn't a Michelin Green Guide.

No comments about Houses / Maisons / Hauser.

3 comments about Stone Houses: Colonial to Contemporary.

1. This book is just as at home on your coffee table as in your collected works on masonry. Goff provides a wonderful pictorial tour of stone buildings, from simple country cottages to splendid manors. The pictures are of excellent quality, and done by someone who knows a thing or two about how to compose with light and shadow. He provides some interior views as well, which give an added perspective to the house you've seen from the outside. But a weak spot is a distinct shortage of interior stonework photos, save for fireplaces.
   
   The text is relatively sparse; Goff clearly lets the pictures speak for themselves while providing some historical perspective. This isn't a book you pick up to learn about the evolution or science of masonry, it's something you use for inspiration and ideas before you start to incorporate stone into your own design. Well worth the price.



2. Full of beautiful photo's of exteriors and interiors of 43 different Stone Houses built in America from prehistoric times through the twenty-first century, along with descriptions of each house and discussions on each time period. This is a great book for anyone interested in stone work of any kind.



3. Stone Houses is a splendid survey which focuses exclusively on residential architecture in the USA. The book begins with several breathtaking photographs of historical sites in the Southwest where the Anasazi built beguiling settlements out of local stone over one thousand years ago. It then proceeds to document numerous stone structures of interest from colonial times right through to the present. Moreover, in addition to his commentary on the buildings presented within the pages of this beautifully realized volume, Lee Goff provides a thoughtful discussion of the qualities of stone itself which makes for such a superb, durable building material in the first instance as well as an inspirational source for imaginative residential design. To quote briefly from the introduction: "Stone has different moods. It can be warm or cold, protective or inhospitable. Before all else, however, stone evokes an image of power, strength, impregnability and endurance. Even more subliminally it conveys a sense of the primordial...Instinctively, we feel the millions of years ago the stones were formed. Thus, the materials of nature become the material of shelter, and the form the shelter takes in turn reflects the origin of the stone and the house's setting, connecting the dwelling and its inhabitants to the most permanent world of all-the natural world."

   Stone was the first material used for shelter. It can be (and has been) assembled in any number of creative, aesthetically pleasing ways. Stone Houses takes us on a wondrous tour of many of the possibilities inherent to this medium of construction. "Whether cottage or château, cabin or castle, stone houses embody feelings of romance and the picturesque. Their walls speak of permanence and history; their stones give whispered accounts of their prehistoric creation. They are an ongoing part of what Tennyson referred to as 'the eternal landscape of the past.' "

4 comments about Malibu: A Century of Living by the Sea.

1. I thought that the book was "outstanding" Particulary liked the history part and the progression of Malibu over the years.



2. Despite reading the "Nice, but not Nice Enough" comment by one reviewer, I purchased this book and considered it for myself. I'm so glad I did. The reviewer misses the point. It's an architecture-oriented lifestyle book about the history of living in Malibu, not a technical book. Which explains why there are no floorplans. It's about the photos that take you thru each decade and each house, and they are gorgeous. The introductory text/concise house-specific texts are well-written and informative. The featured houses are mostly private, which explains why no addresses are provided. The 2 or 3 houses in the book that are open to the public are well known in this area, easily findable for those who have a yellow pages.



3. The photography was excellent and commentary was okay. Very few detail images, no floor plans and few, if any, construction details. I'm interested in the details and how to replicate features or at least the materials used....but nothing in this book to help much. There was absolutely no street addresses of the houses mentioned, other architect books do---why not here??? The author did manage to keep very good track of the years of birth and death of the people involved.



4. I got my copy today... and roared through the pages and images... Beautiful and fascinating images of Malibu's past... Paradise Cove in 1890, the Malibu Ranch, The Adamson House. So many interesting stories and images... and lives! And... some great surf shots too. This is a perfect blend of the many lifestyles here in Malibu... all in one book. Educational and informative and with some good humor too. I know what I'm giving for Christmas presents now!

3 comments about A Chicago Tradition: Marshall Field's Food And Fashion (Chicago Cultural Center Foundation).

1. First of all the format is way, way too small, what was there was nice but I wanted to see more of everything, more recipes, more historical photos, more contemporary photos of the interiors, some advertising and graphic design would have been nice, I came away unsatisfied. Perhaps the author didn't have access to alot of the archival materials since it was going to be sold off to FDS. BOO!



2. This book not only has recipes from Marshall Field's Restaurants, but also beautiful pictures and a history of the store itself. I was very pleased with this book, I bought three of them, one for myself and one for each of my daughters as a remembrance of all the wonderful times we've spent at Marshall Field's. We all intend to make the recipe for the Walnut Room's famous Chicken Pot Pie!



3. This is the one of the neatest little books on Chicago that I have ever seen. Recently, I was on a business trip to the windy city and purchased two little books by Joan Greene that were done as a series for the Chicago Cultural Center Foundation.
   
   The one on Marshall Field's is great -- wonderful photos -- old and new and a good tribute to a Chicago institution that will be changing it's name next year. Growing up near Chicago, Marshall Field's Walnut Room Restaurant was always a treat at Christmas time and I love that the books has several recipes included. What I did not know and the book talks about is the number of retail first that began at Marshall Field's. If you like shopping or history or Chicago, this little easy-read is a must. I am ordering one for my sister to enjoy over Christmas.
   
   P. S. The Chicken Potpie recipe from Field's is included. I remember my mother ordering that when I was a child. The book made me want to stop by Field's for a meal the next time I am in town.