Under Every Roof: A Kid's Style and Field Guide to the Architecture of American Houses. Dieser Artikel ist nicht verfügbar.Under Every Roof: A Kid's Style and Field Guide to the Architecture of American Houses

Dieses Buch ist ein entzückender Leitfaden zum Verständnis und Identifizieren von architektonischen Stilen für Kinder und ihre Eltern. Warum sehen Häuser so aus, wie sie tun? Warum haben Kuppel kleine Fenster, während andere scheinen, alles Glas zu sein? Warum umarmen manche die Landschaft, während andere groß sind mit sehr steilen Dächern? Warum leben Kuppelmenschen in Häusern, während andere in mobilen Häusern leben? Können Sie sich ein Haus vorstellen, das wie ein Elefant oder ein Schuh aussieht? Kinder und Erwachsene lernen mehr über die Geschichte der häuslichen Architektur, die Stile der Häuser, in denen wir leben, und die Begriffe für die architektonischen Elemente, die die Gebäude zusammenstellen. Verwenden Sie die Bildfeldführung, um Ihr eigenes Haus zu untersuchen, dann nehmen Sie es auf Familienausflüge mit, um verschiedene architektonische Details zu identifizieren. Unter jedem Dach befinden sich mehr als 60 Häuser aus 30 Staaten und das District of Columbia, die im National Register of Historic Places aufgeführt sind; viele davon sind Hausmuseen, die für die Öffentlichkeit zugänglich sind. Kinder müssen das Haus verstehen, in dem sie leben, daher enthält das Buch auch eine Vielzahl von regionalen Stilen und architektonischen Typen. Die farbigen Aquarell-Illustrationen verleihen dem Text einen einzigartigen, sanften Humor.

Grade 4-8-This overview of American houses provides a cursory look at how soil, environment, economics, available materials, and personal taste have shaped regional styles. The second half of the book focuses on the architectural elements, with each style generally accorded a single page and one or two illustrations. The presentation concludes with suggestions for field exercises for readers to conduct in their own communities. Glenn's task is noble, but her execution falls flat. A history of architectural styles will generally appeal to youngsters who already have at least some interest in architecture and construction. Unfortunately, those students won't find this book very enlightening; those without background knowledge won't learn much either. Stites's cartoon illustrations are distracting and, in some cases, confusing as they parody true architectural renderings. Occasionally, characters are drawn specifically to offer witty and inane remarks about the buildings or their uses. The yellow and purple print used for headings is difficult to read and the variety of type styles and sizes for subheadings and captions is dizzying. Libraries will be better served by Diane Maddex's Architects Make Zigzags (Preservation, 1986).
Jeanette Larson, Texas State Library, Austin
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Gr. 5-8. Glenn's comprehensive introduction to American domestic architecture will help children see the houses around them for what they are. Leading off is a long, chatty essay in which Glenn considers a wide range of historical and practical elements influencing why houses look the way they do. Next comes a basic style guide identifying and describing more than 30 different styles of domestic architecture. The third part is a short field guide that teaches children how to look at the houses in their own neighborhood and determine their style; finally, there is a listing of the historic status, location, architect, and accessibility to the public of the more than 70 houses surveyed in the book. Throughout are colorful, cartoon-style renderings of all the houses discussed, with appropriate features labeled, as well as numerous amusing details and asides (a young Frank Lloyd Wright hogging the building blocks). A bibliography is included, but the book lacks a glossary and an index. For junior architects and kids curious about house design, Glenn's text should become a standard resource to be used after Isadore Seltzer's simpler introduction, The House I Live In: At Home in America (1992). Annie Ayres