'Round Buildings, Square Buildings and Buildings That Wiggle Like a Fish' - Hardcover

Isaacson, Philip M.

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0862034477 ISBN 13: 9780862034474

Publisher: Julia MacRae, 1990

Synopsis

Philip M. Isaacson takes readers on a personal tour of buildings around the world, from places of worship, fortresses, and air terminals to bridges, windmills, and fishing shacks. Along the way they learn the many elements that give buildings their flavor and character.At once informative and beguiling, this striking introduction to architecture encourages readers to look for beauty where they may have never looked before.

About this title

About the Author

Philip M. Isaacson was an attorney and art critic for the Maine Sunday Telegram. His other book for young readers was A Short Walk Around the Pyramids & Through the World of Art. Mr. Isaacson passed away in 2013.

From School Library Journal

Grade 4-7 This obtuse collection of photographs takes readers on a tour of major and minor buildings around the world. In the accompanying text Isaacson discusses the elements that give a building its character and attempts to explain how the harmony of these elements makes a structure beautiful. Unfortunately, the organization of the book is so fragmented, jumping from place to place, backwards and forwards through time, that the result is more a travelogue than a survey of architectural styles. After looking at the Taj Mahal, the Parthenon, and Chartres, Isaacson examines building materials, windows, doors, roofs, and ornamentation. Some points are belabored, while others are not clearly defined, and the ``gee-whiz'' tone quickly becomes annoying. The 93 color photographs are mostly of high quality, and each is numbered for reference within the text. Because each building generally is allotted only one photograph, even when a different element is being discussed, readers are frequently required to turn back to a previous picture. An appended list of the photographs purports to offer additional information about the buildings and structures discussed but, for the most part, simply repeats information previously given. The lack of a bibliography, a glossary, and an index limits the book's usefulness. Jeanette Larson, Mesquite Public Library, Tex.
Copyright 1988 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Edition details

• Publisher: Julia MacRae
• Publication date: 1990
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0862034477
• ISBN 13: 9780862034474
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 128