Customer Reviews

Paris Buildings and Monuments

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

At first, I was disappointed with this book, as it contains only architectural drawings of Parisian buildings and no photos. It also contains only very brief entries on each building, often just the vital statistics of the date built, architecture, patron, etc.

However, reading through it completely I came to appreciate it more. The drawings are all very well done and reveal architectural points and overall themes to buildings that it's hard to capture with photos.

What I liked best, though, were the 3-D maps of each quarter as a whole, with detailed maps of each area within the quarter. These well-drawn maps show the fabric of each area and how the buildings relate to each other and to the open spaces. It also makes it easier to visualize where each building is, if you don't happen to be in Paris when you are reading the book.

Paris Buildings and Monuments is the superb achievement of Michel Poisson, a Paris architect. He made more than 850 drawings showing more than 500 well-chosen buildings. These drawings show everything that you need to know to decide whether to visit one of these buildings. Many of the drawings are front elevations. Some are floor plans. Others are three-quarter views. Still others are bird's-eye views.

Thanks to his carefully thought out design, the author makes it easy for you to find any of these building. First, he has organized the books to follow Paris's system of arrondissements. The book begins with the 1st Arrondisesment and continues, arrondissement by arrondissement, through the 20th Arrondissement.

There's an excellent, handdrawn map for each arrondissement, showing the exact location of each building described in the text. Also, there are smaller maps of neigborhoods within arrondissements, as well as bird's-eye views of larger building complexes such as the Louvre.

There is ample text describing each building, including the name of the architect who designed it and the name of the patron who paid for its construction.

The author shows the location of the Metro station nearest each building and makes it very easy for you to reach each building.

without question the illustrations are fine. the problem is that this book cries out for photos---photos that do justice to each structure, whether historic or contemporary photos are used. poisson has fine sketches, but more is needed. And not only photos, but perhaps more historical background to the buildings.

Arranged by arrondissement, each chapeter begins with bird's eye view perspective drawings that make walking tours a facile visual delight. Full of exquisite treasures that one cannot find in other architectrural guides. One example: the old Bibliotheque National with its splendid reading room. Historical background with each entry. Worth the price for just the ink drawings. Would be spoiled by mere photographs. Superb in every way. Pair with Anthony Sutcliffe's "Paris, An Architectural History" and understand Paris better than the experts. Valuable even if Paris is not in your itinerary.

This is, I believe, the most comprehensive one-volume catalogue of the notable buildings and quartiers of Paris. Some customer reviews criticise its lack of photos, but Poisson's elegant line drawings highlight the architectual character of his buildings and give the book a pleasantly personal touch. There are plenty of alternative books with photos. The Amazon.com review points out one disadvantage of the book. It is rather bulky in size and in weight--mainly as a result of its good-quality paper and its large quantities of white space. These features make it very pleasant to peruse, but not very practical as a guide book. It is best used as a review of one's past on-the-spot experiences or as a planner for future ones. The other weakness is that the text is very scanty. Most buildings are treated in only a sentence or two. The comments are always judicious, but one would like more.