Recommend some good books on architecture

My sister-in-law’s in school earning her architecture degree, and it’s occurred to me that while I know what an architect is, I don’t know much about the art form.

I’d like to read two or three non-expert books that will give me a decent survey of architectural history, theory and principles. I don’t want to become an architect, but I want an idea of the big picture. Single-architect or single-building studies are probably off the list for now, unless they double as good surveys of the discipline.

Anyone have any books to recommend? I’d like to avoid just picking up Architecture for Dummies – unless, of course, that’s actually a good book to start with.

Don’t know about general overview books, since I am also an architecture student, so all I have are the big books. But for understanding the school experience and the working world, I highly recommend “Architect? A Candid Guide to the Profession” by Roger Lewis. Perhaps try searching in Amazon under Architecture: History.

No suggestions out of me, but I’ll be aviding scratching down list of what other Dopers suggest.

My husband got his architecture degree from Michigan. He says that while he can build one hell of a retaining wall, his education was real light on theory and history. He’s an architectural moron in those areas.

We must have 50 architecture books at home, but they are mostly about specific architects, not the field in general. I suppose it might be interesting for you to read a biography of Frank Lloyd Wright, one of our homegrown guys who is quite a study in genius, creativity, hubris, and arrogance.

Tom Wolfe’s “From Bauhaus to Our House” is a short, very witty overview of how architecture went right down the terlet in the 20th century.

It’s opinionated—but since he shares my opnion, that’s a GOOD thing! And it only covers the late 19th/20th centuries.

The following are not necessarily overviews, but they are great reads on the subject. I have learned so much about architecture by reading these books:

Salvadori’s Why Buildings Stand Up is a fascinating look at the physics of…why buildings stand up. It is definitely written for a lay audience, so don’t worry if you don’t understand physics. Unhappy side note–I finished reading that on Sept. 10. I guess the benefit was that I was able to really understand why the towers fell down. I believe the same author has a book called Why Buildings Fall Down. I’d like to read that one, too.

Kunstler’s Geography of Nowhere is a very interesting look at our man-made world.

Petroski’s To Engineer is Human. It’s about design failures.

Also, I would check out the books by David Macaulay. They are picture books that detail how a number of things are built. Very easy reads. Cathedral is the first one I read. Fascinating look at this architectural form from the Middle Ages. Another good one is Underground, where you can see what is happening under the buildings.

A friend recommended The Most Beautiful House in the World by Witold Rybczynski. I haven’t read it yet, but he is a very popular author among interested laymen. Some of his books will be on my Christmas list.

And just for fun–check out Towards a New Architecture by Le Corbusier. IMVHO, the guy’s a nutball, but it is a seminal work in modernism.
And I, too, will be noting everyone else’s suggestions.

For general world architecture try:
‘A History of Architecture’ - Sir Banister Fletcher
‘A History of Architecture, Settings and Rituals’ - Spiro Kostof
For construction info:
‘Building Construction Illustrated’ - F.D.K. Ching
And the ‘bible’ on the subject:
‘Architectural graphic Standards’ - published by the A.I.A.
For general period architectural detailing:
‘The Elements of Style’ - Calloway/Cromley
And for American architecture classifiing:
‘A Field Guide to American Houses’ - V. & L. M[sup]c[/sup]alester (recomended)

This is great! I’ve been trying to decide what to do with myself career wise and have finally settled on getting a degree in architecture. I’ll definitely be reading some of these books.

John Summerson’s The Classical Language of Architecture (BBC, 1963; Thames and Hudson, 1980) is an excellent short introduction to the classical tradition. It’s organised roughly chronologically, but the emphasis is more on explaining the principles involved in the designs. Should enable a beginner to grasp the central ideas without getting lost in a succession of one damn building after another.

I enjoyed Frank Lloyd Wright’s books, and he wrote them more or less for a popular audience. I’ve got THE FUTURE OF ARCHITECTURE, THE LIVING CITY, and THE NATURAL HOUSE here on the shelf.

One of my all-time favorites is Rem Koolhaus’s DELIRIOUS NEW YORK, a bizarro look at NYC architecture and design from the mid-19th century to 1978. Nice pictures, too. It’s probably back in print, as Koolhaus is now certifiably Hot in architectural circles.

If, after you’ve read up on architecture, you’d like to get a “big picture” view of where all those buildings fit, you can’t go wrong with Jane Jacobs’ “The Death and Life of American Cities.” It is a deserved classic, and anyone who cares anything about the built environment should read it.

This ends the shameless plug for my chosen profession: Urban Planner.

Cool! Now I’ve got another dozen or so books to add to my ever-growing list of stuff to read . . .

And I should’ve remembered the Macaulay books. I remember reading some of them – Pyramid, Cathedral, etc. – when I was younger. D’oh!

the field is doing very poorly right now. this maybe somethng you want to consider.

being in the field myself, I can tell you that it is fulfilling, but the pay sucks and the hours are very very long.

I am a bit jaded by the field as a whole, and I wont bore others, but if you are interested, IM me sometime and we can talk. I can tell you about the stuff the schools don’t tell you about.
however, in regards to the OP,

there is a book called “the architecture pop up book”. it is a really good book for non-career people. heck, its even neat for us, too! It is laid out nicely, and shows you in pop up form various aspects of architecture.

its not a difficult read, but it is enjoyable and thus I found that most non career people came away with a better grasp of what it is we do.

if you want a more indepth book, look up the works of Vincent Sculley.

a stellar website for architecture books is http://www.williamstout.com

I’m a designer myself and I find it very rewarding. Right now, I’m swamped with work. But I confine my design to residential architecture. To pay is decent and the feeling of seeing one of your creations brought to life is indescribable.
I say go for it. But as , BNBsez - there are some things you need to know you won’t learn in school! I’m available for info as well.
Lots of luck.

Although not a reference work in any sense, I’ll still toss The Fountainhead into the hat.