Customer Reviews

S, M, L, XL

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Possibly one of the many great books on architecture of today with plenty of references and clean graphics. A must have for all architecs or if you just want a wonderfully beautiful book for your home or office.

This is one of the most spurious books on architecture and town planning that it has ever been my misfortune to browse through: too long to read and badly needs an editor. Heavyweight only in the sense of it weighing something like 5 pounds. Many of the ideas second-hand or self-evident, and the graphics are hard to follow too. Koolhaas's little jokes with the ® and © symbols are plain unfunny. Phrases like The Emperor'sNew Clothes® or Could Do Better spring to mind. Bernard Meares, Geneva, Switzerland.

This is one of the finest books dealing with Architectural concerns of the last few years. A book which will be read again and again and used as a reference for a lot of parrallel issues a student may come across. I enjoyed the book for the different essays esp. the one on Singapore and Atlanta. that is the beauty of the book. Rather than simply talking about his work He explains the city, site imp. historical references and this is such an important aspect of process today. I also enjoyed his style of writing. serious issues coloured with a lot of wit and humour. A must buy.

Buy this book just for the pleasure of having it! It's a book about ideas. Just that. If you can imagine such thing.

I've read, and re-read the book, although not it's full content, but randomly I open it and find a surprise each time. I just love it.

Rem Koolhaas has invented a set of theories in S,M,L,XL that transcends and show progression from his earlier work, Delirious New York. What a glory it is for a man of his vision and talent to spend the time in documenting his works. For one man to maintain his practice as an architect and planner, and also produce this epic anti-coffee table book with such vigor is indispensable. The novel's greatest asset is in the way it moves the architect from the coffee table or decorative bookcase, to the mind. Koolhaas is a genius, and I congratulate him as being the recipient of the Pritzker Architecture Prize.

Never before have I seen such obscure organization of thoughts and randomness-

koolhaas denotes an intellectually vigorous connotation of architectural theory on the precepts of form space and order.It is indigenous to the truths found from deep within the soul

I'm about half way through it and already it has profoundly changed my view of the world around me. This book transcends architecture and touches on spirituality, politics, society and culture. A stirring manifesto for the convergence of several aspects of the global condition. Reading it has sparked a wave of creativity in my own line of work (financial analyst/software developer). Why is architecture important? Because it deals with the design of systems. Physical systems, biological, computer and natural systems. Architecture is life. I beleive Mr. Koolhaas understands this by evidence of his writings. Bravo!

This novel is dually satisfying and frustrating. The density of information put forth requires the reader to analyze each page, afraid that if something is missed the entire meaning of the work will be lost. This is, unfortunately, more than any normal being could handle. Each page adds more information to an increasingly overwhelmed mind until you find yourself simply flipping through pages, grasping at the imagery and completely ignoring the text. A few days later, however, the reader's brain will be ready for more, because this book desires and requires to be understood.