Customer Reviews

Building with Frank Lloyd Wright: An Illustrated Memoir

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This personal memoir of building two Frank Lloyd Wright houses is intriguing. Herbert and Katherine Jacobs offer a frank, honest account of their experiences. I have read this book twice. I think the glimpse of the personality of Frank Lloyd Wright is the most fascinating part of this book. You comprehend what a "pain" he was to work with and then you realize that he had the big picture and was trying to create a "timeless work of art" and the Jacobs' were just "not getting it". They didn't seem to understand that to make things work out correctly they needed to follow the details of the plans. Parts of the book, including chapters 18 and 19 are a trip down memory lane for them and offer the reader little information about their building experience. The black and white photos which illustrate this book were shot from 1936 to 1959. This is not a coffee table book like 50 Favorite Furnishings by Frank Lloyd Wright , and 50 Favorite Rooms by Frank Lloyd Wright by Diane Maddex. This book makes me curious about the famous architect whose style is timeless. An architect who could design a house of beauty and style for the common man -"the Usonia".

This is an an excellent book, written by the owners on the construction of their two Wright house designs - Jacob I & Jacobs II Solar Hemicycle. Each chapter outlines the process of design, construction drawings , materials selection and construction itself, Owner built by the owners - to save money- it is full of b & w photos of each stage, and some of the plans. The book illustrates how the simple plans are put into action and reveal the intricate structural solutions that Wright developed. For the architect in you, you will mullover the photos and plans working out in you own mind how this was put together. Both extraordinary designs for their time, this book will inspire you to have a home like them.

This personal memoir of building two Frank Lloyd Wright houses is intriguing. Herbert and Katherine Jacobs offer a frank, honest account of their experiences. I have read this book twice. I think the glimpse of the personality of Frank Lloyd Wright is the most fascinating part of this book. You comprehend what a "pain" he was to work with and then you realize that he had the big picture and was trying to create a "timeless work of art" and the Jacobs' were just "not getting it". They didn't seem to understand that to make things work out correctly they needed to follow the details of the plans. Parts of the book, including chapters 18 and 19 are a trip down memory lane for them and offer the reader little information about their building experience. The black and white photos which illustrate this book were shot from 1936 to 1959. This is not a coffee table book like 50 Favorite Furnishings by Frank Lloyd Wright , and 50 Favorite Rooms by Frank Lloyd Wright by Diane Maddex. This book makes me curious about the famous architect whose style is timeless. An architect who could design a house of beauty and style for the common man -"the Usonia".

An interesting chronicle of a way of life that is fast becoming lost to us. Worth reading.