Book Description
Flesh Unlimited is a compendium edition of three classic erotic/ surrealist novellas: Les Onze Mille Verges and Les Mémoires d'un Jeune Don Juan by Guillaume Appollinaire and Le Con d'Irène by Louis Aragon.
Dadaist poet Guillaume Apollinaire fine-tuned his uniquely poetic and surreal vision to produce these two materpieces of the explicit erotic imagination at the turn of the century, works which compare with the best of the Marquis de Sade. In Les Onze Milles Verges, debauched aristocrat Mony Vibescu and a circle of fellow sybarites blaze a trail of uncontrollable lust, bloody cruelty and depravity across the streets of Europe. Whilst in Les Mémoires d'un Jeune Don Juan, a young man reminisces his sexual awakening at the hands of his aunt, his sister and their friends as he is utterly corrupted in a season of carnal excess.
Louis Aragon's Le Con d'Irène is the intense story of a man's torment when he becomes fixated upon the genitalia of an imaginary woman and is reduced to voyeuristically scoping her erotic encounters in-between describing various events in brothels and other sexual adventures.
Translated from the original, complete and unexpurgated versions by Alexis Lykiard (translator of Lautréamonts Maldoror), Flesh Unlimited has a general introduction and notes section.
Customer Reviews:
Intimidated?.......2006-02-10
I've got something of a selective taste. For instance, I can read a book of depravity should the style resonate something within myself. Bataille's Story of the Eye did not reach me in a positive way, I found its grotesqueries too vivid and realistic to enjoy...and since reading it I have been wary of this sort of "Surrealist Erotica."
Meanwhile, Flesh Unlimited has continued to pop up on my reccomended page, so after a bit of hesitation, I ordered and read the thing. I must say I find it more enjoyable than Story of the Eye due to the manner in which it was written.
Apollinaire's first story (The Eleven Thousand Rods) is absolutely hilarious. The "action" in it is so over the top, cartoonishly scatological...expulsions of all sorts from the body descibed in almost campy detail. The characters in the story have no repercussions in mind regarding their actions, and the text feels as though Apollinaire felt the same in the way in which he wrote it. The story is essentially that of an unfulfilled promise (made in the throes of passion) and follows a man's quest across Eurasia and his various sexual conquests (featuring loads of "buggering," incest, sexual violence...even pedophelia and necrophelia). This may all sound shocking, but I assure you, it is written is such a manner that makes you snicker with an "O god" as opposed to shuddering.
Apollinaire's second story, the infamous Confessions of a Young Don Juan, is written with less brevity. It is about a young man's early sexual awakening. While the boy's age is about 17 at the time of the story, the narration and content make him seem very, very, very young - around 12. This can add all sorts of disturbing overtones to the story if that sort of thing bothers you. I found this selection less enjoyable than the first.
Finally the book closes with Louis Aragon's classic story Le C** d'Irene, which, as mentioned in an earlier review, is written in more of a "classic" surrealist style than anything else. If, at the very least, you are familiar with the chaotic "cut-up" style of William S. Burroughs, you should be more than able to handle and enjoy it.
Overall the collection is entertaining and sometimes (albiet, for me, less frequently) titillating. If you're apprehensive as to whether or not this will offend you after this review, maybe you should hold off until you're more confident. However, I was not put off by Flesh Unlimited in the slightest, much to my surprise.
Each Book is different.......2005-10-24
First thing to note about this book is that it is not one book. Its actually three different stories written by different french erotic authors. That being said, Let me explain that the authors are vastly different in style and mood. For Example, The story "memiors of a young don juan" is written very much like how you would expect a normal erotic novel to be written that panders more towards hedonism: "My sister, then, had tumbled to the foot of the stairs. She lay there with her skirt dissarranged, making no effort to get up again"
While the story "Le C** D'Irene" is much more surrealistic then erotic. Mostly just rambling in foul language: "Don't wake me, for gods sake, you bastards, don't wake me, watch out I bite I see red."
I don't care for the surrealistic rambling bit because I don't find it terribly creative and more foul then anything. Although I did enjoy the other stories quite a bit which read more like books. the writing is well done, which doesn't surprise me since I believe the translator of this book also did a good translation of marldoror I believe. Although, this is not extremely artistic or extremely elegent. It is very good if you are interested in reading some very hedonistic erotica that is extremely well written with a bit of artist in it.
So when am I supposed to be offended?.......2005-04-30
I read these reviews of these supposed risqué novels and every time I buy the book I'm disappointed. I keep waiting for that moment where the novel leaps out of my hands and inappropriately exposes itself in a dark alley to my fragile mind. Perhaps my expectations were to high, with a name like `flesh unlimited, surrealist erotica' one would expect sexual acts from the deepest parts of the mind, unhindered by social-taboo or even personal-unconscious-censorship, things that perhaps aren't even physically possible but are some sort of `conceptual-art-sex-act.' I've read more titillating sexual accounts and fantasies in `seventeen magazine' - which by the way I highly recommend.
If your looking for something `new' don't get this, or `the Torture Garden' by Octave Mirbeau - that's a pretty over hyped one too, it would have done well to STAY out of print. Try J.G. Ballard, Carlton Mellick III, Georges Bataille, Marquis De Sade, or even William S. Burroughs.
Flesh Unlimited.......2004-12-24
With all my due respect to Guillaume Apollinaire The Poet, this is the first book in my life that I threw away.
This is something... it is hard to find a proper name for it. To begin with, this is not erotica. For those who is looking for erotica, this book will be a sheer disappointment. Erotica induces desire. This book provokes disgust.
This is a crude pornography written by a talented person without gag reflex. Yes, talented. This is why it is so pictorially repulsive. And without a gag reflex - because normal person cannot read it without nausea. I can only surmise that this repugnant masterpiece was written for diversion.
If you like reading about animalistic sex in odorous slimy excrements, this book is for you.
Unrestrained, Vulgar, and Artful.......2002-12-19
Apollinaire delivers some of the most explicit erotica ever committed to the printed page, managing to do so with wit and a refreshing matter-of-fact bluntness that never degenerates into a mere exhibition of so-called perversion. This is not for the squeamish, or those easily put off by marginal sexual practices. These two works act as a fantastic clean sweep of the residual psychological Victorianism that still permeates our society, even after the sexual revolution. Like Bataille's "Story of the Eye" without that author's harrowing social vivisections, this book has caused more than one ostensibly jaded friend to recoil in disgust. That Apollinaire manages this with style is a testament to his twisted genius.
Book Description
He lived by night--the dark, dangerous highwayman who stole her heart....
"It was a fine night for treachery, dark with a pale moon rising...."
Like a wraith he appeared in the Coventry night, the notorious highwayman called Captain Starlight. Renée d'Anton watched, breathless, as the cloaked figure commanded, "Stand and deliver!" and her coach shuddered to a halt. Little did he know Renée had come in desperation to meet him. For the dark, seductive highwayman was her only hope in a perilous game of chance....
She was pure temptation, challenging Tyrone Hart to steal a set of heirloom rubies and name his price. He couldn't resist her. So he agreed to risk his life for the fiery beauty--to recover the jewels that would free her from an arranged marriage and an unspeakable threat. But first Renée had to win his trust--even as she ignited passions that seduced him out of the shadows to sweep her into his arms....
Bestselling, award-winning author Marsha Canham once again delivers dangerous intrigue, sensuous romance, and two unforgettable characters whose love story will touch your heart as it takes your breath away.
Customer Reviews:
A Fantastic Read.......2006-11-01
This is classic Marsha Canham. I've never read a book of hers I didn't love. Tyrone is one of the most honest heroes I've come across in a long while; and he's absolutely convinced he's no good for anyone, and boy does Renee prove him wrong! She's just perfect for him. She's smart and compassionate; and when she falls for him she holds nothing back. Highly recommended.
Can't really see what the big deal is..........2006-07-07
I'm afraid I can't really see what the big deal is about this author. I find that her writing style is very long and rambling. Everything feels overdescribed and "padded", as if Canham is trying to reach a certain word count. I found this book more work to read than fun. I know I'm in the minority here, but I'm not just saying this to be different.
Canham's writing style reminds me of the writing of the following authors: Laura Kinsale, Kathleen E. Woodiwiss, and Rebecca Brandywyne. You can take that as praise or censure, depending on how you feel about their books. I like fast moving writing, in the style of Sabrina Jeffries or Jacquie D'Allessandro. I don't like feeling like I'm slogging through a book, and that's what Canham's writing feels like.
Very Exciting & Romantic.......2006-05-02
One of my favorite books is "The Scarlet Pimpernel" and this story comes really close to the excitement & romance of the period. Great hero and perfect ending. Highly recommended reading for adventure fans.
Good Read.......2006-03-14
It was not her best but I gave it 5 anyway. Very engrossing.
Outstanding!.......2004-06-13
Canham definitely has a new fan here, following up Pride of Lions & Blood of Roses with this fantastic story.
I was on the edge of my seat through this entire book it seems. The hero & heroine & villains are in such close proximity the entire time that I was constantly on edge for something to go wrong...in a most delicious way. The hero is unabashedly UNapologetic for his lifestyle; he is not troubled or tormented, there is no deep pain rooted in his past. I found that refreshingly different. The heroine is a refugeee from the French revolution, towing along a younger brother & a humorously stiff but protective servant.
Pale Moon Rider is well written, fast moving, and just has all the right elements of a great romance; passion, humor, excitement, drama, tenderness.
Ms Canham, I put you right up there with my other favorite, Penelope Williamson. You have a beautiful skill for 'making it real' and drawing us deeply into a story.
Average customer rating:
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Pale Moon Rider
Marsha Canham
Manufacturer: Dell Pub Co
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Mass Market Paperback
ASIN: B000OAI2HE |
Customer Reviews:
Not Free SF Reader.......2007-09-03
Severian, a member of the Guild of Torturers, is journeying. He again
is involved in executions and violence, so this book may well be a bit
strong for some, or creep people out.
A very non-romantic fantasy.
The Torturer's Wondrous Journey Continues.......2003-12-15
The young torturer Severian continues his journey in this, the second volume of Wolfe's "Book of the New Sun" series. Skipping the first volume (The Shadow of the Torturer) is not recommended - this series is difficult enough to follow even for those who read every page. References to events that took place earlier are explained only in the briefest detail.
In this volume, Severian's uneasy allegiance to both the Autarch and the mysterious revolutionary named Vodalus is severely tested. While journeying to Thrax where his guild has a position awaiting him, he takes part in the brutal execution of an innocent woman, has a mysterious assignation with his late beloved Thecla, battles a horde of man-apes, is captured by Volalus, participates in the bizarre sharing ceremony of the alzabo, and suffers a lengthy imprisonment before a portentous encounter in the picture room at the House Absolute, among other adventures.
Once again, Wolfe uses language to create the other-worldly locale, employing archaic words to describe objects that are common enough on "Urth", but are unfamiliar to us. And even though the practical-minded Severian frequently doesn't seem to react to the astounding things he sees and experiences, most readers will find themselves intrigued, even though the question "What does it all mean?" remains unresolved.
Like the first volume, this book is pretty light stuff - pure escapism, with no real point or depth of human insight apparent, but it is still a quick, enjoyable read. The fictional narrator foreshadows great things in Severian's future, and presumably the succeeding books will show an overall plan and sense of purpose that this novel lacks in and of itself. The violence and sexual content of these books makes this series unsuitable for young teens, but fans of this kind of pseudo-medieval fantasy should be very pleased indeed.
Customer Reviews:
Sometimes You Wonder if Your Missing the Man Behind the Curtain.......2007-06-10
Gene Wolfe's 'Sun Series' has been described as a 'Masterwork' and is considered by many to be one of the greatest pieces of (any genre of) literature written during the twentieth century. Many compare it to Ulysses or to the works of the great Russian writers of the nineteenth century. I though have my own doubts, but this is just my opinion.
Having read this second part of the two books of the "New Sun", or Volume 2 of the tetralogy (take your pick) I feel that I'm missing something that all those 'in the know' have seen in these books. I especially feel that whatever was going on in the last fifty pages of the book was so beyond my comprehension and convoluted that I could have skipped it without loosing much of my enjoyment of the story.
I'm not sure which left me more confused, the 'Play' of Dr. Talos (Hello! what the heck is this about?), the occurance at the River, or what occurred in the 'Stone City' on top of the roof of the wrecked house. The ambiguities and enigmas that saturate the end of the book lead me to feel like I don't have a clue or the author is having me by the 'short hairs'. What would be more than funny is if Wolfe wrote all this 'allegory' just to leave something for people to ponder, while he laughed himself silly?
I'll probably finish the 'New Sun' cycle but whether I follow it to the end is itself a paradox of mitigated visions that are seen as phantasms on the other side of an occluded window pane (or window of pain).
Product Description
Set of 4 paperbacks by Gene Wolfe: The Shadow of the Torturer, The Claw of the Conciliator, The Sword of the Lictor and The Citadel of the Autarch (The Book of the New Sun, 1 thru 4).
Product Description
Four individual hardcover volumes comprise the complete "Book of the New Sun" series.
Book Description
In 1999, the Reverend Jerry Falwell outed Tinky-Winky, the purple character from TV's Teletubbies. Events such as this reinforced in many quarters the common idea that evangelicals are reactionary, out of touch, and just plain paranoid. But reducing evangelicals to such caricatures does not help us understand their true spiritual and political agendas and the means they use to advance them. Shaking the World for Jesus moves beyond sensationalism to consider how the evangelical movement has effectively targeted Americans—as both converts and consumers—since the 1970s.
Thousands of products promoting the Christian faith are sold to millions of consumers each year through the Web, mail order catalogs, and even national chains such as Kmart and Wal-Mart. Heather Hendershot explores in this book the vast industry of film, video, magazines, and kitsch that evangelicals use to spread their message. Focusing on the center of conservative evangelical culture—the white, middle-class Americans who can afford to buy "Christian lifestyle" products—she examines the industrial history of evangelist media, the curious subtleties of the products themselves, and their success in the religious and secular marketplace.
To garner a wider audience, Hendershot argues, evangelicals have had to carefully temper their message. But in so doing, they have painted themselves into a corner. In the postwar years, evangelical media wore the message of salvation on its sleeve, but as the evangelical media industry has grown, many of its most popular products have been those with heavily diluted Christian messages. In the eyes of many followers, the evangelicals who purvey such products are sellouts—hucksters more interested in making money than spreading the word of God.
Working to understand evangelicalism rather than pass judgment on it, Shaking the World for Jesus offers a penetrating glimpse into a thriving religious phenomenon.
Customer Reviews:
Jesus would get this from the library rather than buy it........2005-03-23
I was excited to read this book for a graduate class on Pop culture. However, the disjointed chapters and pages of flimsy text analysis that stretched to cover the glaring absence of solid ethnographic research resulted in yet another book that attempts map the evangelical landscape without setting foot on it. The book is a resounding disappointment when it could have been so cool. Hendershot admittedly has no interest in the users of the media products she examines and instead focuses on the producers--Dr. Dobson of Focus on the Family in particular. While being an outsider can give a striking vantage in surveying beliefs and practices, here it becomes a painful deficiency. Hendershot gives us nothing of the textured lives of the people who believe, commune, and consume within the broad sweep of the evangelical community. As such, her analysis is uneven and the history of politics, media and evangelical Christianity she hopes to illuminate through her research into contemporary Christianty and its products is confusing at best. Theory is only sporadically supplied--usually at a moment of self-determined crisis, and her selective reading of texts leaves us without any inkling of how people actually respond to and incorporate them into their daily practice. I'd suggest forgoing this book and hanging out with your local evangelical youth group for a more scintillating introduction to contemprorary Christian media and lifestyles.
Academic Can't Shake It.......2004-12-28
This book gets off to a pretty interesting start as Hendershot defines the world of evangelicals, who are much more numerous and integrated than fundamentalists, and describes their use of media to spread the word, either to each other or "non-born-agains." Unfortunately, this initially informative discourse soon becomes lost under extremely typical and unrewarding academic methods, in a book that claims to have interest for the general reader but has merely been constructed by a professor for the approval of a few other professors. (I can say this as an academic myself, coming from the same discipline as Hendershot.) All of the worst academic tendencies are here - excessive introductions and summaries, anemic cultural observations, name-dropping other obscure academics under a guise of corroborating evidence, disjointed chapters that likely originated as separate research projects, grand conclusions based on limited specific examples, and the obligatory application of obtuse theory (especially outdated feminism and cultural studies) to real-world phenomena.
The low point of the book is a suspiciously reference-deficient passage in chapter 3 in which Hendershot constructs the supposed inner thoughts of Christian teenage girls who have eating disorders, after personally interviewing not a single person in that demographic. This and the following chapter, dealing with gender and sexuality respectively, are loaded with preconceived notions that are propped up after the fact by a supposedly detached application of moribund and leaden bodies of theory, that would merely impress the limited number of other people who also write about those theories (a problem of epidemic proportions in academic writing). The final academic blunder here is the inability, or unwillingness, of a professor to write outside of the stiff but accepted structure - a few hundred pages of specific examples wrapped up in an obligatory conclusion that is merely yet another summary. This research by Hendershot takes an interesting topic and spends a lot of her time and yours summarizing the obvious but providing little of cultural or political value to the interested layperson. [~doomsdayer520~]
Good but flawed study.......2004-06-19
Heather Hendershot does a wonderful job of reviewing Christian conservative media culture and some of what propels it. Her survey of Christian entertainment feels plausible enough that her conclusions are not unreasonable. However, I found her discussion of Evengelical attitudes toward sex incomplete and biased. The chapter, Holy Homosexuals, while interesting hardly belonged with the rest of the book. The other chapter dealing with sexuality only surveyed Focus on the Family publications. It ignored denominational publications - there must be some. I am still not convinced Focus on the Family is representative. These chapters felt like Evengelical books reviewing the beliefs of other religions: here are their beliefs and why they are wrong. Unfourtunately, the editor didn't strongly recommend removing or rewriting these chapters. It would have improved the insight and power of this book. Still, I enjoyed the book, and recommend it.
Book Description
This digital document is an article from Church History, published by Thomson Gale on December 1, 2006. The length of the article is 996 words. The page length shown above is based on a typical 300-word page. The article is delivered in HTML format and is available in your Amazon.com Digital Locker immediately after purchase. You can view it with any web browser.
Citation Details
Title: Shaking the World for Jesus: Media and Conservative Evangelical Culture.(Book review)
Author: Andrew Rojecki
Publication:
Church History (Magazine/Journal)
Date: December 1, 2006
Publisher: Thomson Gale
Volume: 75
Issue: 4
Page: 948(3)
Article Type: Book review
Distributed by Thomson Gale
Book Description
How many miles does it take to braise a fish fillet? Should you use your exhaust manifold or your valve cover for a pork tenderloin? Were Jaguars really designed with veal scallopini in mind?
In the new revised and expanded Manifold Destiny, Chris Maynard and Bill Scheller, two experienced rally drivers--and cooks--answer these and any other questions you've got about cooking under the hood. After all, why drive to a diner when you can turn your Chevy into one, especially when you can make a better meal right on top of your engine? With a little bit of ingenuity--and a whole lot of aluminum foil--you can whip up dishes like Cutlass Cod Supreme, Cruise-Control Pork Tenderloin, Nifty NAFTA Nachos, Donner Pass Red Flannel Hash, and Fupped Duck Catera.
Witty, preposterous, and great highway fun, the more than forty recipes in this cult classic are road-tested and taste-bud-approved. It's a must for anyone hitting the road with an empty stomach and a full tank of gas.
Customer Reviews:
Out of Date, Out of Mind.......2007-09-27
I was given Manifold Destiny in the early 1990s for a college graduation gift because my friends knew that I was going to travel a lot (and did) by car. It was a hilarious read and I enjoyed it. However, unlike the majority of reviewers here, I actually TRIED a bunch of recipes. Folks, I'm here to tell you that your results aren't as good as the read. I even secured the efforts of a couple of truckers (who had years of experience cooking food on their engines) and found out that newer cars are better insulated, making cooking anywhere on their engines mighty difficult. Not to mention that everything is STEAMED. Got that? You know what my steak with mushrooms looked like 4 hours after being attached near the hot part of the engine block? Disgusting and undercooked. Chicken wasn't much better. Steamed vegetables weren't ever completely done no matter where they were placed. I tested this in 8 different states (including Hawaii) and 4 different vehicles. My college buddy did try fish in a Chevy truck on the way to Montana. That seemed to work well, but the flavor was not that great. Manifold Destiny was a great idea whose time has passed. I'll stick to wayside stops and my campstove, thank you.
If Alton Brown's not geeky enough for you..........2007-09-21
To look at the prices being charged for used copies of this book is a somewhat frightening experience, because it makes quite obvious that Manifold Destiny is something of an unrecognized culinary classic when people will pay $50 and up for a paperback. But I tell ya something, for the truly hardcore kitchen geek, the same sort of person who might try cooking with lava or a bunsen burner, this would make an incredibly thoughtful present. One can only hope there's a third edition in the pipeline for sometime in the next couple of years.
This book is about cooking in your car, and also eating in your car. That's important, because it gives some nice information on a lot of unusual regional specialties around the United States and Canada (including Michigan's now-famous pasties and Binghamton, NY's spiedies, as well as the legendary smoked meat from Schwartz's Deli in Montreal). It's a nice little hors d'oeuvre for the food tourist.
But there's also lots of good information about cooking on car engines, which is what you came to this review to find out about in the first place, right? Maynard and Scheller talk about all kinds of concerns -- finding the best place on your engine block to secure a packet of food, what kind of aluminum foil to use (and how much -- triple layers), and even a whole bunch of recipes based on American regional cuisine, from traditional Italian like uova in purgatorio to nouvelle-inspired dishes like Thruway Thighs (a stuffed chicken dish). While the info on reviewing cars for their suitability as cookstoves is rather dated, there's still a lot of good information on a rather silly subject.
So find this book for someone very special who loves doing interesting things in the kitchen. They will appreciate it very much.
Dangerous to cars around you.......2005-11-04
Yes. A fine tome of lore.
Well, it's hard to be taken seriously by your travel mates till the fumes roll off of "any cajun spice you can find" simmering there under your hood next to your alternator waft through the cabin air conditioning system. After putting up with their insults the first 100 km of your trip, they are suddenly bought into the process.
Eating out of the engine bay of your car, hood open will doubtlessly attract the attension of those travelling down the highway. It's polite to tilt your wine glass to them as they pause to offer help (drivers excluded, of course).
All good fun.
Manifold Dstiny - A Good Read.......2005-01-04
Manifold Destiny, how to cook on your car engine, is entertaining to read but practical in application. Imagine, if you will, dining on cajun shrimp in garlic rather than McFast Food while motoring to your destination. Recipes for Thruway Chicken Thighs, Hyundai Halibut, Merritt Parkway Veal Scalllopine or Safe-At-Any-Speed Eggplant suggest some of the haute cuisine which can be tucked under the hood of your car for an over the road treat. Presented with both culinary wisdom and a sense of humor, Manifold Destiny is fun to read but serves as a real cookbook as well. Rather than recommending specific cooking times, recipes note the number of miles you should drive before expecting you meal to be done. What a way to plan rest stops! A sure winner.
One of my favorite books.......2002-12-23
The first thing you are likely to wonder is why used copies of this book often go for [fifty dollars] or more in online auctions. Here's why. Once having read it, you'd really truly miss the ability to share it with disbelieving friends. I admit, I am biased, since I happen to have the same type of vehicle/kitchen used in the writing and testing of these recipes. If you own a different type of vehicle, your mileage may vary. Sorry, couldn't resist. It's hilarious reading even if you don't have the guts to try it yourself. The somewhat prosiac nature of the recipes, as derided by one reviewer, actually serves to heighten the surrealism. If you're attracted to the title, the book won't disappoint.
Book Description
101 authentic charted folk designs in a wide array of lovely representations with many suggestions for effective use. Designs can be easily used for needlepoint, cross-stitch, latch-hooking or any form of counted thread embroidery. Introduction. 2 color photos on covers.
Customer Reviews:
For the Price, It's hard to beat.......2005-10-30
I am what most would call a beginning cross stitcher but I brought this book because I wanted to look at folk art and traditional cross stitch patterns. The book is not a book on how to do cross stitch, there are several volumes out there on that topic which are fantastic. This book is not a how to guide, it is a book with over 100 old fashioned folk art designs. They are all printed in black and white and could be used for anything from cross stitch to needle point or ever as knitting patterns. The designs range from mythical beasts to elaborate boarders. I would have liked to have seen more ideas on how to use the patterns included in the book, but for the price, it's a hard volume to beat.
Book Description
A virtual tour of thirty-five landmark houses, 1947-1966, built in a quiet New England community.
Since the fifties, "the Harvard Five" has been the catchphrase for the five architects featured in this book, who all built houses for themselves and for clients in New Canaan, Connecticut. Other architects, well known (Frank Lloyd Wright, for example) and not so well known, also contributed significant modern houses that elicited strong reactions from nearly everyone who saw them and are still astonishing today. An introductory essay by Jean Ely, "New Canaan Modern" (reprinted by permission of the New Canaan Historical Society), recounts the history of the area and how New Canaan came to be the locus of the modern movement's experimentation in materials, construction methods, space, and form. The book is done as a "house tour" in chronological order, with photographs and floor plans. 50 color, 50 black-and-white illustrations.
Customer Reviews:
New in Canaan.......2007-09-20
William Earls reveals an interesting fact in his introduction: that a small group of brilliant young architects uniquely designed houses for themselves and others in this conservative small town in the post-war years. The book details thirty-seven modern houses though it has to be said that nine were demolished. Each house starts on a spread with photos, floor plan and a brief description.
This should have been an interesting editorial concept but I thought it had all the signs of a quickie production not helped by a rather bland design. The distribution of pages to each house varies quite a lot (most likely depending on what images were available). Philip Johnson's Glass House estate gets sixteen pages, Frank Lloyd Wright's Rayford House gets six pages but Marcel Breuer's demolished Mills house gets a spread with one photo. The book's title refers to the Harvard Five and they have the most houses but twelve architects are actually featured.
Many of these houses are standing and occupied but there is no contemporary reference to them. The author rightly says that private homes are not open to the public but surely it would have been worthwhile to contact the owners and ask them what they thought of the house and were there any technical problems in living in a 'modern' house that is now some decades old. Some owners would probably have agreed to allow a photo of their house so the reader can see its contemporary look.
Because the screen size is only 133dpi so many of the photos are grey and also much of the cropping does not bring out the best in these buildings. I wish more thought had gone into the design. Some photos have nearly unreadable text on them, captions are sometimes white out of a photo while others are placed (correctly) underneath the image.
Certainly this is an interesting idea for a book but I don't think it really comes off.
***FOR AN INSIDE LOOK click 'customer images' under the cover.
Black and white interior and exterior photos abound........2006-10-15
New Canaan was a household name according to a 1953 issue of House and Garden magazine: it referred to five architects who designed houses for themselves and their clients in New Canaan, Connecticut. An introductory essay provides the history, recounting how the town became the figurehead of a new modern movement in housing experimentation: chapters which follow analyze the structures and works of Marcel Breuer, Landis Gores, John Johansen, Philip Johnson and Eliot Noyes. Black and white interior and exterior photos abound.
Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch
Average customer rating:
- worth a few bones
- A highly illuminating and accessible book.
- A Must Read for an Architecture Enthusiast
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Architecture Without Rules: The Houses of Marcel Breuer and Herbert Beckhard
David Masello
Manufacturer: W. W. Norton & Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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| Building Types & Styles
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Customer Reviews:
worth a few bones.......2005-08-03
I enjoyed this book.
the pictures were clear, and the text was informative and not too full of theory, but had enough detail about the construction of the projects to satisfy my carpenter's curiousity.
A highly illuminating and accessible book........2000-11-05
So many architectural books can get lost in jargon, but this one never does. It's extremely readable, and its insights into the work and careers of Marcel Breuer and Herbert Beckhard are always on point and thought-provoking. The book also happens to be handsomely produced, with lots of back-and-white and color photographs of their finished work. This book is essential, I think, as a reference, and a pleasure to read throughout.
A Must Read for an Architecture Enthusiast.......2000-10-28
An in-depth analysis of collaborated works between Marcel Breur & Herbert Beckhard through their professional lives together. They are conveyed as architects who get along well with one another both professionally & personally. Marcel Breur is depicted as an architect that didn't want to force his idea upon his clients but respecting their wishes despite in some instances, that compromised with his vision of how the final outcome should be like. Ironically, thru interaction with his clients that his greatest works are produced which are discussed in detail in this book. A chapter is dedicated for every & each houses that are worth mentioning. We are told of Japanese influence upon their work, the usage of natural material in their works i.e the international style buildings which are rampant during their time. All the works are displayed in black & white photos but towards the end, colour photos are shown & that's when everything hit you as you're able to see the buildings from the other perspective. Morevoer, building layouts are provided as well. I guess the exclusion of colour in the beginning is enabling us to appreciate the form more rather than been confused with the detraction, ie. colour. To be honest, it works well in this instance. I also enjoy the layout of the book. It is easy to read, and informative. In a way, this is a semi-biography book of those 2 famous architects. Towards the end, it's heart touching to read about Herbert's reflection on the day when Marcel handed him a note, wanted him to announce to the firm that he would be retiring thereafter. It's interesting also to read about Richard Meier's beginning in Marcel's firm as well.
Book Description
During the course of an illustrious 50-year career that took him from the Bauhaus to London, Harvard University, and then New York, architect Marcel Breuer (1902-1981) generated a huge, influential, and remarkably varied body of work. Among his hundreds of buildings are such architectural triumphs as the Whitney Museum of American Art in New York and the UNESCO headquarters in Paris.
This is the first comprehensive study of Breuer's architectural oeuvre. To write it, architectural historian Isabelle Hyman utilized for the first time extensive unpublished archival material and collected hundreds of photographs, plans, and sketches. While Breuer has been best known for his tubular steel chairs and other furniture designs, this book makes clear why he received dozens of architectural honors and awards and was called "a monumental figure among modern architects."
295 illustrations, 35 in full color, 384 pages, 10 1/2 x 10 1/4"
Customer Reviews:
excellent .......2007-05-11
This is the reference book on Breuer. For those who are interested to get a full scope of this under-rated architect's work, this is the book to buy. It includes a survey in phases of his career, along with a catalogue raisonne of his built and unbuilt work. The projects speak nostalgically, of that period in the 50's and 60's when good design went beyond the jargon of 'blobs' and 'smooth surfaces' and empty forms. Granted, Breuer was not immune from committing some major mistakes, such as the UNESCO or other institutional buildings that turned modernism into a bad name, but this should not discredit his whole oeuvre. This book corrects some of these misconceptions. Hyman has done a wonderful job.
Biography and well researched catalogue of his works... .......2006-12-11
There are two sections in this book. It begins with the biography which takes up about 130 pages and provides with valuable behind stories. The other portion of the book is mainly dedicated to the well researched catalogue of his built and unbuilt works. The book might be worth it for the stories and for the comprehensiveness. However, personally I was hoping to see more information on each project especially if for a well known work like Whitney museum on which two photos of facade, one of lobby and a section drawing cover the whole project. In most cases, a page or two, sometimes half a page is dedicated to each project or work, which gives good impression and starting point to learn of his works but not sufficient in itself. It would have been more helpful if new color photos and redrawn drawings are included, but as I said, this is a catalogue in order to lead to further research and provoke more interests in Marcel. It is unfortunate that I was actually looking for a book which would provide me with more detailed information on his buildings and projects in this book. I haven't had a chance to peek into newer publication by Vitra museum since I am located in Asia, and I do not have an excess to public libraries or book stores to research prior to purchases, but I wish I would have taken a look at that book. For anyone interested, Gustavo Gili's 2G issue on Marcel's houses provide excellent documentation on some of his houses in America with new attractive color photos and drawings, and I want to see something like that on his larger buildings.
LA Architect Magazine Book Reviews.......2001-12-29
In his six-decade career as a Bauhaus teacher and furniture maker, as a collaborator with Walter Gropius in London and Cambridge, and as head of his own office in New York, Breuer deserves to be ranked with the great 20th-century formgivers. And yet he never did achieve the fame of Mies, though he was far more prolific and humane, or of Gropius, though he was a much better designer. If he is remembered today it is for the Whitney Museum in Manhattan, the UNESCO headquarters in Paris, and his modern houses in New England; however, as this comprehensive survey shows, there was much more-mostly forgotten and quite out of fashion. This eloquent, handsomely illustrated volume may help to shift public perceptions and stir admiration for the architect's tough, sculptural take on modernism.
Average customer rating:
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Marcel Breuer, Design (Big Art Series)
Droste , and
Magdalena Droste
Manufacturer: Benedikt Taschen Verlag
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback
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Book Description
Soon reveals the inner workings of leading advertisers and creative thinkers from around the globe when asked to create advertising for brands that will answer the needs of society in the future. Each project is meant to provoke, stimulate and inform with narratives, images and objects developed around issues like a synthetic drug that provides the benefits of eight hours of sleep in sixty minutes. Or "solid state" wired clothing that plays music, links to the web, and projects messaging onto sunglasses. It's a fascinating study, an exciting challenge and compelling read--just what the brave new world needs.
Book Description
"The author's candor and good humor have produced a compelling memoir for anyone entering the contemporary music business — and for any young performers pondering an artistic career."
—William Border, Time
Schuyler Chapin has worked in close association with more artists on the musical and performing arts than perhaps any other musical entrepreneur. Musical Chairs tells how he did this in association with the worlds musical greats, from Jascha Heifetz and Vladimir Horowitz to Leonard Bernstein and Beverly Sills.
Customer Reviews:
A different kind of memoir.......2001-09-19
When most retired opera/arts folks write their memoirs, it usually disentigrates into name dropping somewhere around page 30. Mr. Chapin, however, delivers a very readable and highly entertaining look at life on the administrative side of the arts. Sure, there are names to be dropped, but he always does so tastefully and in a way that doesn't detract from the stories to be told. As an arts administrator with a soft spot for opera, I am impressed by Mr. Chapin's early dedication to forging a career as a full-scale arts administrator, not an artist who happens to fall into administration.
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- Friends at Thrush Green (Miss Read)
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- Grimus: A Novel (Modern Library Paperbacks)
- Growing Up Ethnic in America: Contemporary Fiction About Learning to Be American
- Growing Up Nigger Rich: A Novel
- Guess Again: Short Stories
- H.M. Pulham, Esquire
- Had a Good Time: Stories from American Postcards
- Hell's Bottom, Colorado
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