Architects Today: The 100 Greatest Living Architects

In a series of engaging vignettes, British journalists Rattenbury, Bevan and Long (the author of The Essential Eye, the former editor of Building Design and the deputy editor of Icon, respectively) offer an A-to-Z look at some of the world's best architects, from the Madrid-based team Abalos & Herreros to Peter Zumthor, one of the most important figures on the Swiss architectural scene. The authors' two-page spreads combine analytical text with a selection of stunning photos that show the architects' most famous works. Americans will recognize such luminaries such as Frank Gehry, Michael Graves, Maya Lin and Richard Meier, but readers will also be impressed with the accomplishments of Japanese architects Kenzo Tange and Toyo Ito, Italian designers Renzo Piano and Vittorio Gregotti, and Dutch firms West 8 and UN Studio. Though the authors' attitude is clearly reverential--they announce in their opening that all the 100 architects and firms that they profile ""have changed the way in which their contemporaries and successors think and practice""--their tone is also unusually biting and amusing, making their book as fun to read as it to peruse. They call Meier, for example, ""the rotund elder statesman of world architecture"" and point out that I.M. Pei's National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder ""leaked, but looked lovely."" The British firm Caruso St. John ""deserves more major public buildings,"" they opine, while Indian architect Balkrishna Doshi ""has become lost in his dream of bringing past and future together."" Entries such as these give the book an undeniable appeal, making it an excellent choice for both architecture experts and laymen in the mood for a lively introduction.