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77th out of 88 books
—
20 voters
The Most Beautiful House in the World
A book about architecture: what architects do, how they get it right, what an architectural genius can see, and what distinguishes architecture from other arts. Illustrated.
Paperback, 224 pages
Published
July 1st 1990
by Penguin Books
(first published 1989)
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This book took me a long time to read because I kept putting it down before coming back again. However, I finally finished reading it and I intend to reread it again with a highlighter and a notebook to write down my thoughts and favorite passages. Portions of the book are pretty boring due to the subject, but it's a testament to good writing that I continued to read because of how well it flowed and the lively language.
The worst title in the world! Fantastic book however. I wish i really read it the "first time" when I was a freshmen in Architecture school, but back then there was too much to do to really read everything, so I skimmed it and never really understood the true intent of the book. It's nice to have time to go back and read these books that I looked over in school.
This rumination, rambling at times, describes the author's quest to have the perfect house for himself. It is both a discussion of what constitutes a house or home, and a memoir relating the processes of finding a home (or in this case, the location to build a home), and the process of managing the project whereby the house is built.
"The most beautiful house in the world is the one that you build for yourself." (186) It is always worthwhile reading Witold Rybczinski. This book did not capture my attention in the way some of his other books have, probably because I feel far from ever constructing my own house. "Building your own home - and inhabiting a space of your own making - is considered by most to be a luxury. It may yet be rediscovered to be more essential than that." Still, his journey, from buying land to building...more
My first experience of Rybczynski. I have enjoyed everything of his that I have read. I appreciate very much his idea of creating one's own perfect environment.
Very interesting and informative. Not what I expected at all; not much of a "story". More an interesting study on architecture formed around a personal experience by the author. I enjoyed it.
Reading this has resurrected my 20 year old dream of renovating and living in a barn. "Waiting for the Weekend" by Rybczynski is one of my favourite books. This one is of a similar style - an architectural journal with many historical digressions. Most are interesting like the explanation of feng-shui, the Pompidou Centre in Paris, the history of toys and game playing, Mies van der Rohe's Farnsworth house. Some are a little technical and dull such as a review of architectural treatises through t...more
An architect builds his own house & through the design process realizes that the humblest to the grandest edifice have common properties
I love his writing. Searching for a writer who writes about landscape like he writes about architecture.
I'm only about one-third into this book, which I selected as a representative of the more popular type of discussion of domestic aesthetic preferences. Turns out, the book is really about the lives of famous architects, the author included, and why they make the decisions they make. Usually these reasons are internal and subjective to the architects, as opposed to politically driven and social fear-based. What's best about Rybczynski's style is its clarity, but also its inherent intimacy. It's a...more
This is the first Rybczynski book I read. I liked him right away.
This book is a little hard to explain. It is non-fiction and tells the story of a man remodeling a second home starting from essentially a shed. It describes the personality of homes and how they relate to the land and to the personalities of home owners. It jumps back and forth between the story of the home remodel and a description of the homes and architecture of various times and places. It makes you appreciate the details of your home and the effect they have on you.
Purportedly a chronicle of the author building his own boatshed in which he was going to build a boat, it turns out to be more a frractured history of architecture.
The kicker is that the author winds up losing interest in boatbuilding before he even starts, and winds up adapting the shed into a house. Yes,adaptive reuse of an existing structure is a fine architectural goal, but having a clear idea of the design/build mission is also required.
The kicker is that the author winds up losing interest in boatbuilding before he even starts, and winds up adapting the shed into a house. Yes,adaptive reuse of an existing structure is a fine architectural goal, but having a clear idea of the design/build mission is also required.
This is one of the few books I've found that integrates the study/appreciation of architecture with the creation of a home or vessel for living. The backbone of this book is a middle-aged man's desire to build a boat, despite never having sailed, etc. Instead, he builds a barn for the boat, and ruminates over home, houses, pedestrian architecture, and the satisfaction one gets from doing something start to finish.
I read this book a few years ago and again this year. I have to admit the cover on my copy (several years old) is more appealing. The title is also deceptive. Anyone interested in what's happening in both home building, public spaces or the environment around them should read it. It really makes you think about the basic need we all have to feel comfortable where we" live".
This is one of the only books on architecture that I have read that beautifully describes the art of architecture and building. Wonderful read for those interested in architecture and those in the field of architecture. I often recommend it to anyone who would like to know about the field of architecture and the process of design.
Rybczynski writes clearly and well about stuff and what it means. By focusing on the little house he builds he can expound on a lot of issues related to building.
I enjoyed listening to the ramblings of an architect. His ideas about working with one's hands resonated with some of my recent thoughts.
Wonderfully written, as if he's your own tour guide and you're in the house with him.
"Susan, I think you and Pat will find this book very interesting. Love, Mom"
Very good, I look forward to borrowing his other books from Ben.
Read this book if you are thinking about building your own house.
Fun, fun, fun!
May 09, 2013
Kelli
marked it as to-read
May 03, 2013
Justine Paradis
added it
May 03, 2013
Ayesha Khan
marked it as to-read
Apr 21, 2013
Chuck Weiss
marked it as to-read
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Witold Rybczynski was born in Edinburgh, of Polish parentage, raised in London, and attended Jesuit schools in England and Canada. He studied architecture at McGill University in Montreal, where he also taught for twenty years. He is currently the Martin and Margy Meyerson Professor of Urbanism at the University of Pennsylvania, where he also co-edits the Wharton Real Estate Review. Rybczynski has...more
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