Art History Books

This book was excellent!!!

I commend the author for her expertise in associating individuals with the Bid Whist card game. The book is funny and interesting, in that it keeps the reader guessing as to which turn the story will take next.

In a card game, you never know which hand you will be dealt or how you will play that hand. So were the relationships in this book, as the players made calulated and reactionary decisions based on their circumstances. Although the decisions the players made affected everyone around them, the players were only concerned with themselves. You will be quite surprised at who the Joker really is in Bid Whist.

If you are looking for a book that is entertaining and a quick read, I highly recommend this book.

I had a chance to read it after my husband finished the book, I really enjoyed it.

I just finished reading this book and it blew me away! The way that it started out I thought that it was going to be like ever other book, and then it started to happen. Things I did not expect started happening. People started acting like jokers, and some people were truly Kings and Queens. I was truly impressed with the message that this book conveyed. For every women that has had a joker, what was your part in it?

Ms. Ashford has done a brilliant job of weaving a facinating and inspiring story that catches the reader by surprise like an exhilirating rollercoaster ride. The characters are multi-fauceted, and their relationships are cleverly depicted. There are also threads of history that provide a interesting look at a not so far away time.

Once I started reading it, I didn't want to put it down. I hope to see this one on the big screen.

I've never read a book about Bid Whist and I have always wondered how the game was played. Lucky for me the directions for Bid Whist are in the begining of the book. The story is based on a group of friends and some not so friendly that meet weekly to play the game. There is a lot of drama in the lives of these players.Some play games and some get played. I like the main character. I liked the way she handled herself and her husbands affairs while trying to help her daughter who is confused and trying to figure life out for herself. This was a good read. I enjoyed it. It was inspirational, laugh out loud funny and the characters are some people you will know. Some you like and some you don't.
Reviewed by
Dawnny

Al-Jazeera is the all-Arabic TV news channel which burst on to the international scene in the wake of September 11 and the war in Afghanistan. Its unfettered access to that country during the war and its showing of the bin Laden tapes made it an automatic force on the world stage.Based in the Gulf state of Qatar, it came from the remnants of the BBC Arabic TV service. With the help of startup money from the Emir of Qatar, Al-Jazeera was to have complete editorial independence.In a part of the world where the press is usually government controlled, Al-Jazeera is not afraid to get specific and name names. At one time or another, it has been criticized or condemned by seemingly every government in the Arab world, for broadcasting things that the local government would prefer not be broadcast. Every local editorial of condemnation and every denial of press credentials to Al-Jazeera reporters just increases its audience all over the world by satellite.One of the things that Al-Jazeera is most known for is its talk shows, especially a nightly, two-hour show called The Opposite Direction. Two guests appear on the show, with totally opposite opinions on a certain issue, and with help from live phone calls, the sparks fly. Even by American TV standards, things get pretty loud and lively. Arab governments have noticed, and have begun imitating the format on their tame and boring government TV channels.Even though Al-Jazeera is an Arab TV channel, it has tried very hard to be impartial, hosting members of the Bush Administration, after September 11, and government officials from Israel.For those who want to decide for themselves if Al-Jazeera is a legitimate news broadcaster or a terrorist mouthpiece, this book is highly recommended. It's comprehensive, clearly written and is quite enlightening.

All the reviews I've read for this book have been unequivocally complimentary. One newspaper said it should be required reading for Bush's entire cabinet! Quite bold, but rightly so. After reading this book, I came to the realization that everything Al-Jazeera is courageous enough to air, my own country's media is petrified of. I wonder why our government is so afraid of a democratic Arab world? While the dozens of titles coming out on the Middle East are regurgitating the same history and concepts, this book is a refreshing new look at a MODERN Middle East, not a primitive and orientalized one.

This is a great book and I highly recommend it for everyone striving to know about the Arab media from an objective perspective. The book will inform you about the Arabs' struggle for freedom of speech through an unbiased Arab network that is not subject to the control of any government. The authors have succesfully portrayed the true picture of the Arab media scene through Arab eyes.

Al Jazeera is giving us a vivid and moving picture of a New Arab World in the making. There is no way to go back in times. This media channel is succeeding to keep one step ahead of many others advancing, foreign or local, TVs.
Live transmissions are notably courageous in their way struggling so hard to persuade local (and influential) governments to let them work into the `heart' of the stories being anchored, against the background of petty local political bickering and futility.
It is not easy, but the beauty about it is that it is also challenging, and a source of pride to millions of Arabs

Collaboratively written by Egyptian born Middle East journalist Mohammed El-Nawawy and Middle East media expert Adel Iskandar, Al-Jazeera: How The Free Arab News Network Scooped The World And Changed The Middle East is a fascinating and informed history. This is a superbly presented account of Al-Jazeera, a modern, independent, entirely Arab television news network based in Qatar, which since the September 11 attacks, gained high profile prominence through daily exposure on CNN. This is also the compelling story of Al-Jazeera's struggle to keep its independence as an international news network, beholden to none. Overall, Al-Jazeera is an engaging, unique, detailed study of the origin of the Al-Jazeera network, its broadcasts, its effect on Arab viewers, and its struggle for a free press. Al-Jazeera is very highly recommended for Journalism Studies and Mideast Studies supplemental reading lists and academic reference collections.

What a wonderful resource! This book offers so many alchemical and hermetic diagrams and illustrations, it's hard to choose where to start. From the musical and mystical illustrations of Robert Fludd, to William Blake, this book has it all.

Nicely organized by numerous categories such as "Light and Darkness," "Serpent," and "Divine Geometry." The only drawback is that the descriptions for the illustrations are sometimes difficult to understand. I'm not an expert on alchemy, and at times I became a bit frustrated since some of the concepts are not easily grasped.

But perhaps it is not necessary that just our intellect comprehends these phenomenal drawings since many of the illustrations visually send messages our subconscious minds receive and interpret. For that reason alone, this book is a must-have for anyone seriously interested in learning and experiencing more about alchemy and hermeticism.

Everyone else is saying what I would. This book is fantastic. Great illustrations, great captions, great information hard to find elsewhere! Get it!

This book is fat and loaded with color plates of pretty much every major example of medieval/renaissance alchemical artwork. It seems impossible that such a book would be so inexpensive! As such it is an invaluable reference guide. There are textual explanations of each plate included in the book, some more detailed than others, though the text won't help you understand the emblems or the subtext if you don't already know about it. I would recommend anyone interested in alchemical imagery to visit the Alchemy website (...) and check out anything else online by Adam McLean.

All the other reviewers have already said it: this book is absoluteley amazing and the price .. I feel almost guilty paying so little for it. This book is a treasure of the ages. I didn't know much about alchemy when I bought it (though the subject is one that has always interested me.) Reading it was a long, slow, contemplative journey. There's a vast wealth of information there, between the glorious pictures and the intelligent captions, the thoughtful text at the beginning of each section ... It seems alchemy is not merely a materialistic quest for profit by turning cheap metals into gold; the true goal of "philosophical" alchemy was to turn the alchemist himself into spiritual gold, in other words, to obtain enlightenment. It's a quest to find God, and many of its principles cannot be explained in words. Many of its secrets cannot be told except in cryptic hints and mysterious symbols, because discovering the key for yourself is part of the journey. Reading this book feels almost like taking a few steps down that road, and glimpsing from far away the great Light waiting at the end of it ...
This is definitely a "must read" if you have any interest in metaphysical subjects.

Hot off the shelf from some wizard harem this "brickbook" consisting of about a 1000 full-color illustrations on over 700 pages of glossified paper from the Renaissance & Enlightenment eras' for the most part, but going back to the early post-crucfixion days of the prevailing Mystery Religions and into our terrifying millenary day with a few examples of Modernist/Post-Modernist Art such as Duchamp's work & the playwright August Strindberg's cosmological photographic exposures to the night sky; several references to Fulcanelli as well as Theosophical Architectural drawings...around 30 pieces from the AURORA CONSURGENS (14-17th cen./see CGJung's writings) are celebrated herein, they are some of the most intriguing works I have ever seen!; all variety of outtakes from myriad illuminated manuscripts & Medieval incunabula fill these pages; but it is mostly the Renaissance Hermetic texts of the Alchemists and Mystics (hence the title) that is represented in the finest detailed prints; from Anastasius Kircher's beautiful cabalistic diagrams to the mnemonic palaces & Hermetic/Alchemical graphics of Robert Fludd, H.Khunrath, Jacob Bohme, M.Maier...the names go on in a never ending procession of Renaissance & Enlightenment Artistic brilliance. There is no other work ever printed in the last few hundred years, at least that I have ever even heard of mythologized by bibliophiles & collectors or Antiquarians that warrants comparison with such a high-quality work as this is and for such a trifle of a price! For the sheer bulk, much less the quality prints that one gets from Sir Benedikt Taschen's wondrous press (which is unequalled in the Art world!) the price is practically nil as even a lesser book consisting of half the number of the same works would go for 10 times what Mr. taschen's offering it to the world for!...and only Taschen could ever come up with a second volume to match it! I & many others I suppose have fantasized for hundreds of years perhaps for a book like this to be published at under a 1000 dollars say; for it is definitely a luxury item for poorer students & scholars both independent and academic to be able to afford such a sublime effort and product as this, for which I thank Taschen press from the bottom of a bookish passion for all they have done in just the past decade or so. The work defends itself, nay it has no need but only should be championed by anyone who appreciates and admires history itself. This book is a lens by which one can focus in on lost eras whose words cannot be trusted nearly as much as these illustrative works; it's a catalogue of dreams, maps of lost and/or forgotten utopian ideals, charts of spiritual aspirations and records of strange initiations; a massive book of riddles in pictograph, for which the puzzle-subject is one's very own microprosopus-being whose final assembly means heaven reached or paradise achieved; & at the least intellectual delight/enlightenment, & gnosis at best. The artwork is perhaps from the most sublime genre of them all, the human tradition at the heart of all scientific endeavor & religious searching; it is no less than an journey into both inner & outer space, whose realms the artists' believed an iron lung was not necessary in order to explore, and which many mystics & theologians of contemporary times as well as philosophers & scientists of the past are inclined to agree. The book should give "Occulture" a whole new rightful respect for it's rich past filled with sheer artistic brilliance and depth of knowledge, and I need not mention those aspirations which are the highest humankind can ever aspire to in any age that are herein depicted and portrayed in the most profound ways imaginable that many dragons herein seem almost ready to take flight in many a reader's enriched mind...ouroboros, the snake that eats itself revolves furiously and only ceases and stands still when the book is opened so that its admirers may better perceive its classical serpentine symmetry...such is the magic that is just barely contained in this museum catalogue from the deepest recesses of humankind's time here in these terrestrial & celestial spheres in the immense spaces, sublime in all the terror they hold for such miniscule beings, ("Aliens of Universal charity" as Constant said) aspiring to so large a consciousness which is charted in the finest infinitesimal details in this atlas of human history.

This is the best, most-amazing book on US WWII fighter aircraft that I have ever read, and I've read a lot of them. There are other good ones out there, but this one is very special. I didn't even know about it until it was mentioned by a fellow pilot in Aces High. I'm very glad for that chance method by which I learned of this fine work.

This is more of an echo/chorus to the previous reviews. Thus, it is only helpful in the context of reading those first...

If you want technical information overload on U.S. WWII fighters this is the place to find it.

It would be nice to see other writers and publishers be as successful, as this book has, on similar subjects.

I second Dan Fords review in its entirety, except that I do not think the book either too big or heavy. I would have liked even more, at least the P 35A, P 36 and P 43. It is an incredible compilation of data. It is obviously not Mr. Deans fault that some of it is wrong, (e.g. If the data was right, the P-39 would have had enough climbing capacity to perform well over Guadalcanal in 1942.) It is too much to ask to expect him to tell us everything.

Make no mistake, this book isn't for military enthusiasts who want to know about the operational history of the planes mentioned and who shot down what with it, leave that to the hundreds of other books out there on the same subject. The purpose of this book is to give you a true in-depth and technical understanding of each of america's fighter aircraft.

This is a true technical resource book that is also fun to read and will educate you on the true handling characteristics of the aircraft contained in it. It constitutes more of a pilot-related information bible than anything else, this is the book to hit if you ever get lucky enough to be offered to fly a warbird, it also makes an excellent resource to those who want to create simulations or wargames.

In the end, military aviation buffs will find it extremely interesting, but this is truely a pilot's guidebook.

If you need info on how these planes worked, real detail, not the typical picture book fluff, in the average book, this is the book for you.

Nuts and bolts info you can really learn from.

A complete Day to Day timeline for each plane, pilots comments on everything from the cockpits to the ground handling and how good of a gun platform.

Info about all the systems and structures.

Simple the best, short of Warren Bodies Books on the P-38 and P-47.

this book is great, it takes you through all the big moments in architecture and explains why it happened and how it happened. Great pictures and its easy and fun to read.

This book is 5+ years old now, but it doesn't show it, besides possibly missing some of the most recent developments in the field - the book starts with a brief introduction to modernism, and moves quickly to the iconic photo of the felling of the Pruit Housing project in St. Louis- symbolizing the end of modernism. Post-modern examples quickly give way to the best of contemporary architecture around the world. As other reviewers have mentioned, gorgeous, ALL COLOR photographs in large format dominate this book, as any book about the visual and contextual aspects of architecture should. As another reviewer also points out, the writing is more critical art-historical than typical coffee-table book banter, and makes for a coherent review of architecture, who's size and strenth make it a piece of architecture itself. 5 stars - surprised I'm only the 10th reviewer.

James Steele has assembled an impressive compendium of contemporary architecture up to 1997. The photographs are glorious and rightly dominate this book. The chapters correspond to various currents, more or less stemming from Modern Architecture, which is given a rather cursory review in the first chapter.

The aim is to help readers chart the often tempestuous waters of contemporary architecture, as it branches into numerous streams of thought that seem to grow ever more divergent. Steele's chapters are a little too tidy in that they encapsulate, rather than expand on the attitudes of the architects. One's appetite is barely wetted before Steele brings a chapter to a close.

He offers some alluring examples of Green Architecture of both the hi-tech and lo-tech sort, illustrating the different attitudes that emerged in the 90's. This seems the direction architecture is heading as sustainable development becomes an ever more pressing concern. It is a sharp contrast to the various intellectual movements covered in this book that deal almost exclusively with abstract architectural ideas. Steele also takes in the various popular movements such as historic revivalism, contemporary vernacular, and the theme park architecture of Disney and Las Vegas. I was drawn to his concluding chapter on "World Cities," in which he discusses the urban impact of globalization, a recurring theme in the book. He touches on some of the current popular theories on urbanism, various urban renewal projects and the unchecked sprawl of Asian cities like Shanghai.

James Steele is a committed writer who has published numerous works. I particularly liked his book on Los Angeles Architecture, which is given a chapter in this compendium. Although a Modernist at heart, he offers an even-handed treatment of the various approaches to architecture, including the ever-contentious Post-Modernism.

James Steele's mammoth compendium of modern architecture is as definitive as can be imagined. The book combines fascinating text, highlighting his years of professional knowledge, with amazing color photographs, to yield one of the most breathtaking large-format architectural books I have ever seen.

Most stunning in this book is the photography. The breadth of buildings photographed is amazing, and all developments in modern architecture including minimalism, post-modernism, European rationalism, and deconstructivism are well covered. I particularly enjoyed the sections on megastructures, world cities, and populist architecture. I noted that London seemed a tad over-represented, but I didn't mind as the examples showcased (The Ark and The Circle, for instance) were so interesting. Also displayed heavily is the deconstructivist Bernard Tschumi, whose Parc de la Villette is modestly interesting, but who otherwise seems a bit more conventional than his reputation would tend to indicate.

My favorites in the book include all the works by Michael Graves, particularly the Benacerraf House Addition, and Ken Yeang's Menara Mesiniaga Tower in Kuala Lumpur, which is a peculiarly skeletal, yet overstated building. Of course there are many other wonders in this book, and I highly recommend that anyone with an interest in contemporary architecture buy it today.

I had James Steele for many of my architectural professional classes at the University of Southern California. He has a monochromatic voice, funny cold humor and is very knowledgeable as a professor. This book is set up very similar to some of the subjects he teaches at USC and in somewhat the in same chronological order. This book is complementary to Trachenberg's "Architecture: From Prehistory to Postmodernism." which was also a very thick and insightful book. As an architectural student I had to get Trachenberg for a class, but flipping through Steele I knew they were both on the same highly written quality. Where Trachenberg left off describing architecture of the past, Steele brings us up to speed with the architecture in the modern era.

Steele explored many of the architectural style architects fall into today like: Deconstructivism, Vernacular, Expressionists, Minimalism, etc. He smoothly stratifies how architectural ideology emerges from evolving from on another and sometime on its own. The project he uses for his reference are many well-known and some less popular, but all bench mark in architectural innovation and important. Steele's descriptions of architecture are helped from outside references. He cross-references architecture with the community, pop culture, people, philosophies that shapes, influences and constitutes architecture over time. The photos are of high qualities with good angles. Some are small and some fill up a whole page.

I used this book for references in many of my writings at USC. This book is a great insight into architecture and Steele leaves few stones unturned. For the price, knowledge and pictures, this is one off the best architectural book out there.

Tons of great beading techniques & some history lessons to go with. No need for me to repeat in 2008 what others have been writing since 2005! :)

I do want to point out this book is unique in my collection because it's the only one I know of to cover polygon stitch. Not only is it covered, the instructions are easy and there is a FANTASTIC chart to go with it so you can resize it, change your bead counts/rows and weave this hollow tubular rope in any number of ways. I'd like to hug the author for publishing that chart alone! :)

This is a truly beautifully organized and presented book. It appeals to a wide audience, not only those who plan to create the beaded jewelry from the detailed instructions given. It is excellent from a historical basis, and those who just want to look at the lavish photos will be richly rewarded!

This is an interesting book, filled with history about beading. I do wish Ms Hector had given specific instructions for her "big bead" Japanese beads (shown on the back of the book).

I have been doing beadwork, writing about beadwork, researching beads and beadwork, devoting my master's degree work to beadwork ... everything I have ever done these past 10 years seem to relate to beads ... even vacations with my wife center on going to specific bead stores, collections and museums.

This book is PHENOMENAL! There are things in this book that I could never have dreamed about. The photography, illustrations and explanations for the projects are first rate. Linking them to traditional pieces is brilliant.

This is the one book that will change the face of beadwork to come in the future.

Beadworkers have traditionally received less volume and detail in their guidebooks than quilters, but the genre is growing and has been enhanced by the addition of Valerie Hector's The Art Of Beadwork: Historic Inspiration, Contemporary Design. Valerie Hector is a famous jewelry designer who invited several artists to use a piece of beadwork from another time or culture as inspiration for creating a new piece: The Art Of Beadwork celebrates this effort, blending history and an overview of cross-cultural beading traditions with artist profiles and fun projects for creating necklaces, earrings, pins and more. With the world as its inspiration, The Art Of Beadwork features inspirational pieces from around the world, with diagrams and easy project notes assuring relative newcomers will be able to duplicate the polished results.

This book is worth more than it's monetary cost. Simply by the historical content so hard to find. I enjoyed reading it. The pictures are great and the fine examples are totally mindblowing. I definitely recommend this book to anyone who is interested in learning of "boots".

Howdy, For all of you boot fanatics around the world, Jim and I will be serving up a new helping of bodacious beauties in the form of "photographed boots" in an upcoming book, which will complete our boot trilogy. Start hollerin' and stompin' and callin' 1-800-748-5439 to demand what is rightfully your!!!! The book will be published by Gibbs-Smith Books in 2005.

I live for boots,so I've bought that book and I have to say this is the best book about boots I've ever seen,a must for every bootaficionado.

Howdy, For all of you boot fanatics around the world, Jim and I will be serving up a new helping of bodacious beauties in the form of "photographed boots" in an upcoming book, which will complete our boot trilogy. Start hollerin' and stompin' and callin' 1-800-748-5439 to demand what is rightfully yours!!!! The book will be published by Gibbs-Smith Books in 2005.

"The Art of the Boot" is informative, interesting and fun to read. The photos are outstanding. This is another outstanding book from this duo. I had the good fortune to recently meet Tyler and his lovely wife, Theresa, when they visited our shop. I can honestly state that I have never met a more interesting guy! Anyone interested in wearing, knowing about or just looking at boots will love this great book. AND it looks so cool on the coffee table!

I had visited Russia in 1996 and purchased many matryoshkas for myself and souvenirs. I loved this book, because I saw many of the ones I had bought, and others I hadn't and it was wonderful to learn their history. I also am fond of the store that Mr. Ertl has online and hope to purchase some matryoshkas from him in the future.

Fantastic book! Color plates are exquisite and the text very informative. A definate must-have for any doll collector!

Our daughter was so happy receiving the book The Art of the Matroyshka for her school project. The book marvelous! Extreem beautiful pictures, so clear! A good story with much details. Very usable for the school project.
We also were very pleased with the fast en accurate delivery.

Many thanks, Robert

The detailed and collaborative work of Rett Ertl and Rick Hibberd, The Art Of The Russian Matryoshka is a unique and distinctive artbook devoted to the classic Russian toy consisting of dolls that fit inside one another. 330 full-color photographs illustrate and showcase rare and vintage matryoshka, while the narrative text covers the history of this device as well as the steps of its creation today. The Art Of The Russian Matryoshka is especially recommended for toy collectors and a welcome contribution Russian Cultural Studies collections.

As an avid collector of matryoshka dolls, I found this book covered it all! I especially enjoyed the pictures and explanation of the lathing and prepping of the blanks. And the techniques used to paint the dolls. This book is a must-have for every collector!

This product was in perfect shape and I received it in no time! I was very happy with this transaction!

I strongly recommend this book. I read "set phasers on stun" and thought it was very good. The author has done even better this time.

Fascinating stories on human stupidity, negligence, incompetence and lack of common sense that ends up costing people's lives. Anyone involved with Engineering, Sciences or Maintenance needs to read this book. Actually everyone should read this book to understand human failings and why no one should ever take safety for granted. Every day people die needlessly and this book details how and why.
I really commend the author for bringing these stories to print and hope that it may save some lives.

I just finished reading "The Atomic Chef" and found it difficult to put down. I simply couldn't resist finding out what unexpected consequence or turn of events was around the next corner.

This is an absolute must read if you are in any way involved with the development of new products or services. Sometimes things don't go as planned despite everyone's best efforts. Like the bumper sticker says, "stuff" happens. This book gets into the stuff to reveal what really happened. The author painstakingly researches and recounts the real story behind mismatches in people and technology.

If you like fairy tale endings this may not be the book for you. However, if you are interested in learning the true details behind real world events, I highly recommend the Atomic Chef. In contrast to more traditional Human Factors books or case studies, the Atomic Chef presents enjoyable and eminently readable accounts of actual events.

Little things can make a big difference, I'd recommend The Atomic Chef's cautionary tales to any student or professional interested in learning more about the relationship between people and technology.

This anthology of 20 brilliantly written true stories should be of special interest to anyone dealing with technology management or product development, but it also would be enjoyed by any lay reader. As a well-known expert and writer on human factors engineering and human error, Steven Casey has obviously selected these stories because each subtly educates the reader about the role of the user interface in system failure, but also because each is tremendously interesting.

Although each chapter stands solidly on its own, a few stand prominent in my own mind due to personal interests. "Rhymes and Reasons" is a beautifully written story of musician John Denver's fatal flight in a new aircraft. Although an accomplished pilot, Denver's piloting skills were no match for a confusing set of aircraft controls and displays in his just-purchased home-built plane. The story makes the clearest case possible for the importance of good user interface design and ergonomics, and like all the stories in the book this one is thoroughly researched and referenced.

In addition to aviation and aerospace settings, the stories address transportation, maritime, medical, and various everyday events in contemporary life. Particularly poignant is "Event Horizon," a disturbing accident involving a child and an MRI machine in a New York hospital. In hindsight, the reader understands the procedures and barriers that must be in place when dealing with powerful new technologies like this.

Casey throws some truly hilarious stories in the mix to break up the pattern of predictability inherent in a book on error and disaster, and this approach works well. But, overall, be forewarned: the author is skilled at putting the reader in the "pilot's seat" to experience the confusion, shock, and terror that can occur when technology and human behavior conflict. I highly recommended this book.

After days of a dry spell, in trying to figure out a design problem; I started to flip through this fabulous book. Maya Lin's Boundaries; is a book that is food for the soul of an architect. Ironically, the title of the book is Boundaries, but the whole essence and poetic journey allows for one to see the world with out "Boundaries".

Traveling through each project, Lin is able to take us from her thought process through a complete execution on each project. She is so delicate in describing each event, from growing up, the Vietnam memorial, to her goals in the future. The reader can travel with her, through each process, struggle, and creating architecture that is able to resonate within it's setting.

Thinking with her hands, Lin describes each event, each challenge, and solution, allowing for the the reader to gain an inside, touching the souls of what every architect and designer needs.

This book accomplishes for me what Maya Lin set out to do - it provides a well of knowledge that I keep coming back to. I have shared her philosophy with friends and family providing a direct and intimate dialogue with her work.
I first came across 'Boundaries' while doing research on public controversy and sculpture. I felt that I was listening to Lin's voice and began to understand why she depicted the works as she did. I was drawn to the simplicity of her designs that left space for human participation. When the book had to be returned to the library I had to have a copy for myself to continue my understanding of her works.
The aesthetic set-out of the book draws the viewer into the designs with more understanding. It is not just a coffee table book, but one that encourages one to rethink and revalue ideas.

Maya Lin's "Boundaries" is both creative and stimulating.

This book is not an autobiography and it is not an art book, but rather an extension of Lin's work. Many know Lin for creating the Vietnam Veterans Memorial and like the memorial "Boundaries" provides a medium-both public and private-to observe and interpret what we sometimes don't even consider.

If you like photography, architecture, or simply wish to know more about an idea behind one of Lin's works then this book is for you. I love the format. It is easy to read and the pictures are of high quality. The pages are numbered from 1:00 to 12:00 and each chapter starts with a new hour. "Boundaries" is refreshing- it's truly unique and inspiring.

Sometimes I felt really sad that I don't have enough money to bring this book home.Maya lin should be an architect who can be also known as a good writter.Her writting had combined both beauty architecturally and verbally,like a stream of purity norished readers'heart,explained her designs with pleasure of sights.She got similar passion as her famous aunt lin huiyin,composed a melody of life,mastered the way a human being might uneasy to see.I am appreciated her way of representation.That she inheritaged from Lin's family.She absolutely knew that poetics in their family traditions,a symbol of very special abilities.

There are two ways to read this book, as Lin points out in the preface. First is just as a coffee table picture book. In that role, "Boundaries" gives a photographic tour of many varied monuments and installations. Lin is best known for the Vietnam Veteran's memorial. At the time, it was an unprecendented look and a deep controversy. Since then, I think it has become what Lin had hoped: one of the most personally involving war memorials ever. Lin has moved on since then, and this book shows many of her more recent works.

Although her family heritage is Chinese, Lin identifies herself as American. That gives her the freedom to use concepts from many Asian traditions. Many of her later works show a sense that I see as Zen-like. They are centered on stone, water, earth, and light. Like that first memorial, they invite the viewer to touch and become involved in the work. "Waves", for example, is a large-scale earthwork to be explored, offering surprising privacy in an open, sunlit lawn.

The second reading of this book comes from its text. It explains Lin's approach to her work. I was quite surprised to fined out how important collaboration is for her. Most of her installations are undertaken with archtitects, writers, or preparators of various kinds, quite opposite the 'lonely artist' stereotype. I was also surprised to learn that her first conception of most pieces is narrative, not pictorial. To me, translating word into image and structure is a complete mystery. My own thoughts work in the other direction. That difference intrigues me.

The book itself is a pleasant artifact. It's well printed, well organized, and displays some thoughtful, unusual typography. It's a vehicle well suited to the material it carries.

"Boundaries" was printed in 2000. That means that the catalog of Lin's work has developed since then. More of her work surely exists that was locked out by the publication date. I look forward to the next book documenting her work, and I look forward to her future development as an artist.