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Title: American Shelter : An Illustrated Encyclopedia of the American Homes by Les Walker, Lester Walker ISBN: 0-87951-871-5 Publisher: Overlook Press Pub. Date: 01 July, 1998 Format: Hardcover Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $45.00

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Average Customer Rating: 4.92 (12 reviews)

Rating: 5
Summary: Reference Combines Fun & Information
Comment: Lester Walker's AMERICAN SHELTER is one of the monst entertaining and enlightening books in my personal library. Each page features drawings and details of American homes from simple Earth Lodges to complex post-modern homes or all sizes and shapes. Along the way, Mr. Walker gives insight into why particular styles came to be popular and how they have influenced architectural trends. I personally purchased the book to use as an art reference, but there are as many potential uses are there are readers. Even those with only a modicum of knowledge and a passing interest in architecture can't help but be drawn in. Thank you Mr. Walker for a terrific book!

Rating: 5
Summary: A superb tribute to the American home
Comment: Lester Walker's "American Shelter" is one of those great reference works which is not only informative, but also fascinating and beautiful. A true illustrated encyclopedia of the American home (as the subtitle says), this book covers a vast range of styles, historical periods, and geographic regions.

Each short chapter--beginning with Native American earth lodges and ending with speculative space station housing--covers a specific type of home architecture in the United States. Walker's straightforward prose is accompanied by cutaway drawings, detailed floor plans, and superbly rendered drawings of home exteriors.

It would be impossible in a short review to name all of the various styles covered by Walker. He covers everything from such well-known styles as the A-frame and Greek Revival to styles that may be less familiar to some: the baled hay and sod homes of 1890s Nebraska, the silo and yurt homes which gained popularity in the 1970s, and more. Another fascinating part of the book is the presence of many famous homes: Thomas Jefferson's Monticello, Frank Lloyd Wright's Falling Water, and more.

Along the way, the reader will encounter many wonderful surprises--check out, for example, the "Elephant House" designed by James Lafferty! "American Shelter" is a book that you can pick up and start reading anywhere. But if you read this from cover to cover, you will have taken a truly epic journey with a master artist-historian.

Rating: 5
Summary: Excellent Reference for Planners and Designers
Comment: I purchased this book while I was an undergraduate studying city planning. This book has been on my shelf since it was published and I still use it quite frequently today. This is a fantastic reference for anyone interested in housing, architecture and urban design. In fact, I highly recommend this book to any planning students with a housing or preservation focus. You will not regret having made the investment!

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