More than just a pretty coffee table book
579692
I initially bought this book for the photos and to help me with little known facts about Central Park for my company's annual scavenger hunt (which I've won both years!). This book is chock full of history and trivia that is amazingly dense as well as beautiful photos of CP. I really found it all in this book. I am learning so much that I am taking my time getting into it. I found out that my favorite part (the mall) was meant to be the center 'crown jewel' of the Park and funny I always sensed it was! If you are at all interested in the park, this is a great educational tool.
1789572
At first glance, I flipped through and instantly thought "not enough color photos." But as another reviewer mentioned - it's not meant to be a coffeetable book, though it is quite attractive. It is full of really interesting information, not just about trends throughout the decades but about the socio-economic factors that caused the public to embrace a particular style over another. It has brief profiles of major/important designers of each era, as well as some of the designers that may not be as well-known but who influenced the public taste in other ways. And by "public" I mean all of the public, not just the fashion runways of Paris & Milan; but ordinary people like you and me who need affordable ready-to-wear and often make our own "fashion" out of more basic clothing.

There are a lot of fashion books that are all glossy photos with very little information, and others that delve deeply into the fashion world and explores the designers and their influences much more thoroughly, but Dressing the Decades seems to strike the right balance somewhere in between. If you're a fashion scholar, you probably know all this information already (and much more), but anyone with a general interest will find this very accessible and quite fascinating. The photos, while beautiful (and largely black & white), primarily serve to illustrate an example from the text. Occasionally I find myself wishing for a few more, but overall I think it's a good balance between information and photography.

For me, it's not just an exploration of fashion history, but a peek into the creative process that inspired the designers who influenced public taste. As an artist myself, with interests in clothing & fashion, I find it not only informative but also quite inspiring! I was honestly expecting a glossy coffeetable tome with pretty pictures, but this is much, much better.
2059109
This book, which is more than just a book, is a beautiful anthology of stories (non-fiction), photos, poems, and songs based around the theme of music and the role it plays in people's lives.  There are some very touching stories and poems in there, but what truly elevates the book is the multi-media interaction in being able to bring up the video and/or audio files in conjunction with those pieces that include them.  Inspirational, entertaining, a wonderful compilation.
2947294
Growing up in New England and with architect/designer and carpenters in the family, this book called my attention.  Turning through the pages is like taking a virtual design tour.  I would say it's in the upper crust of "coffee table" books and certainly a wide audience could appreciate or be inspired by the photographs.  I also find they are helpful for me in relaxing and I recall some of the memories during meditation... while that may seem a little off topic to me it says that the structures and photos really speak and do justice reflecting the talent of the people behind it all.  Some might be drawn specifically to a technical or design aspect, it appealled to me in both design and sentiment.
4220617
What this book is not:  An illustrated history of design, designers, or of Sister Parish herself.  What this book is:  An intriguing and engaging collection of insights by many of the major designers of our time.  It was surprisingly hard to put down because of its gossipy side notes and because the contributors' personalities come through so strongly as they opine on different topics.  The watercolors are beautiful but there are not as many illustrations as I would like to see especially on the tricky topics of lighting and kitchens.  If you read it and don't look at your home space differently, then you missed the point.  It's more useful and more timely than Alexandra Stoddard's "Creating a Beautiful Home." The diverse points of view help identify the most common themes-- be useful, be comfortable, and be beautiful-- all at once.  Rooms should be for real living.
844866
This book is well done with many, many photos I've never seen before. A great coffee table book. I give it two thumbs up.
306738
I have no connection to Louisville, but I couldn't resist buying this book because it has such an extensive and superb collection of photos.  The older photos are in sepia (really lovely) and there's a lot of interesting written information.  The printing process is very good, and the cover (especially the front, but also the back) is gorgeous.  This is a special "coffee table" book and it was published with great care.
2054757
This is a really lovely coffee table style book loaded with suggestions of unusual suggestions of things you might want to do during your lifetime.  It ranges from buying a pair of cowboy boots to finishing a marathon to becoming a world champion (of something.)

The photography and printing in this book is excellent.  Glancing through the pages, reading here and there, is a wonderful way to spend an rainy afternoon.  It is a wonderful idea for a gift for the truly adventurous or for those who may only go on adventures by way of books.
2916263
beautiful book w/lots of good color photographs
2295092
This book is not only very informative, but full of wonderful photographs. It is an interesting read and lovely to look at.
181066
Readers may find it difficult to believe that author Norma Shephard has such a magnificent collection of wedding accessories. And then to see them photographed so beautifully is almost beyond the realm of imagination. But it is true. Most artifacts exhibited in Accessorizing the Bride, Vintage Wedding Finery Through the Decades are part of the Mobile Millinery Museum's Wedding Collection and yes, she did all the photography in her tiny Burlington, Ontario studio.
What makes this coffee table book so fascinating? It may be the detailed pictures of fabrics, styles, hues, beads, sequins and lace. Or it may be the memories and dreams that it ignites as we flip from era to era and maybe for the first time experience what grandmother or greatgran or even her mother may have worn on her wedding day.
If a bride-to-be is lucky enough to view this book before she's selected her gown and accessories, it may help her decide about a veil, train, headpiece, waistline or hemline.
And for the many ladies who donated or loaned gowns to the Mobile Millinery Museum's Wedding Collection, the book takes on a magical quality of pride and appreciation to know that their wedding finery is being admired all around the world.
What Shephard shows she also tells and her apparent wealth of knowledge goes beyond fashion. Between the lines of real-life stories, anecdotes and progression of style, she subtly integrates the social history of women's movements, traditions, issues and advancements.
Collectors, historians, curators and fashion aficionados will devour this tome of information and illustration, but Accessorizing the Bride, Vintage Wedding Finery Through the Decades offers more than that. While many wedding books feature gowns of celebrities, this issue credits everyday women like you and me with the ability to select, design or create that special gown for that very special day.
Whether chosen as a reference or as a keepsake, this is one high quality coffee table book that will be opened over and over for second, third, fourth and more perusals.
820139
I'm a major fan of beautifully artistic photography and a minor fan of most of the indie acts pictured here, so this book felt like a perfect fit. My father was an avid amateur photographer, and his photographs of the local Memphis artists from the seventies resonate with me to this day. There's a thread between musicians, particularly like-minded genre partners, that has a familial tinge to it. The book, I've pleasantly discovered, captures that same sort of feel.

"Family" is exquisitely bound in a very deep purple hardcover, eye-catching from the first glance. The back cover is embossed with the names of the artists pictured within, which includes: Devendra Banhart, Bat for Lashes, Vetiver, Espers, Joanna Newsom, Little Joy, and Vashti Bunyan (among others). I would've liked to have seen more variety in the photography, because primarily the book features Banhart in well over thirty pictures. This isn't exactly a complaint, because the majority of the shots featured are quite interesting.

Notable exceptions include a frightening near-nude shot and a handful of others that prominently display Banhart's penchant for the bizarre (Banhart across a bed wearing a gem-encrusted brassiere and fruit-adorned underthings). Still, as the cover suggests there's a fine number of photographs featuring the other artists in his inner circle. These were, admittedly, more interesting to me than the bulk of the Banhart ones. My favorites being the group photos which recall the apt title of "Family".

The book features a brief foreword by Banhart and an engaging enough introduction by the photographer, Lauren Dukoff. It covers ten pages, but the font is quite large. The pictures are featured in excellent resolution, often one photograph crosses over into two pages. Nearing the end of the book, there's some poetry and a short email exchange printed along with biographies of the artists included. Most helpfully, there's an index of the photographs at the very back which includes the date, location, and the artists pictured.

As a small added bonus, the book includes a download code for eight songs which can be downloaded from the Chronicle Books site. The tracks featured are "I Know No Pardon" by Vetiver, "You and Me" by Kevin Barker, "All I Know" by Ruthann Friedman, "Wayward" by Vashti Bunyan & Friends (including Banhart and minimalist composer Max Richter), "We Came Home" by Ariana Delawari, "The Magic" by Hecuba, "Surfing" by Megapuss, and "Pagoda" by Matteah Baim.

"Family" is, without question, a necessary purchase for those who enjoy great photography and interesting faces. A predilection to any of the artists featured here helps, but is certainly not required. There's an intimate feel to these photographs, because they're not glossy promotional photos and only a few of them feature instruments or a darkened studio. These feel like personal portraits of the artists, and because of this they're that much more engaging. Highly recommended.
4895070
The most striking thing about this book is the collection of images. HUNDREDS of images, incredible, eye-catching, fascinating examples of effective ways to communicate information visually. Most pages have at least 2-3 large images, with detailed captions, to illustrate the principles in the text.  It looks and feels like a beautiful coffee table book (and more fun to flip through!), big and glossy, even though it has way more informative content than a coffee table book. Kudos to the author for finding so many excellent examples of the things she writes about, from both the U.S. and around the world -- if a picture is worth a thousand words, then this book is a treasure trove!

As an educational tool for students and professionals, the information in this book is a wonderful, clear summary of the smartest information in the field. Even for someone who is not a designer, the book is fascinating to browse through, and there's so much to be learned.
3186849
This is my new favorite shelter book.  The photos are lovely, and I particularly enjoyed her chapter breakdowns and discussion of styles such as eclectic English, classic English and so on. Most of the homes are very layered visually, with creative use of color and textiles(not just white on white here), many are in the country.  They generally have great charm or architectural detail to begin with, although the ways they are decorated varies considerably. There is not much in the way of pure modernism, and also little of the aristocratic design of Haute Britain, although more than a few of these "cottages" of course are owned by decorators, antiques dealers, or other people with a professional interest in a beautiful home. I have not seen these homes in other books, and the book is generous on photographs. If you liked the Taschen Country Homes books, you will want this.
1045219
When DK and Smithsonian team up on a publishing enterprise, certain expectations of quality are activated, and this book doesn't disappoint. It is a large format coffee table book of about 450 pages, that is chock-full of fascinating stories and stunning illustrations. It features many of history's most famous travelers, like Marco Polo and Captain Cook, along with many who are less-known, including many courageous women who risked their lives in some cases to pursue their curiosity and document exotic or unknown places.

While organized roughly in a chronological/historical manner, beginning with the ancient world and the Minoans of 3000 B.C., this survey of travel doesn't try to weave a single narrative. Its approach is much more episodic and dips in an out of many cultures and the stories of particular individuals. Also as part of its exploration, it focuses on technological developments (such as the railroads) and social/economic changes (such as the invention of the "Grand Hotel") to explain the changes to travel over the centuries.

This is a fun book to dip into, read a mini-feature or two, and put down until next time. It's also a great way to explore travel with children who may have an interest in faraway places.
224808
The photographs are amazing.  They are witty and visually interesting.  I gave it to my grandfather for his birthday and it was a huge hit.  The book got passed around and everyone enjoyed it.  I went back and bought a second copy for myself.  It is the perfect coffee table book.
209917
This is a wonderful coffee table book. It is exactly what I am always looking for in one but rarely find. It is large - make no mistake, this is a substantial, heavy book. The photographs are stunning and the book has so, so much. I enjoy looking through the pages with my toddler daughter and I feel like we still have much more to see. I would enthusiastically recommend this to anyone looking to add to the coffee table book collection.