Customer Reviews

Secret Gardens of Hollywood: And Other Private Oases in Los Angeles

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

 

 

It is not often that one sees a beautiful book with such a varied array of garden designs and plant material. Of course, it is southern california where so many plant types can grow. L.A. is the perfect place to choose to illustrate how many things a garden can be. The gardens chosen range from the eclectic, to the architectural and come in many sizes. This is not a book that only heralds huge estates that are for most of us to enjoy only within the pages of a book. Rather, this book shows us intimate spaces that inform what we also may do with our private spaces. The writing does not describe the plant material or process so do not think of this as a 'how to' book. This book is a visual study and can inform the gardeners sense of making space and style. Take it in with your eyes.

Do you want to get back to the garden??Joni Mitchell's,
Ted Dansen and Mary Steenburgen's, Director Nancy Meyers or Roland Emmerich's and all sorts of other Hollywood
Luminaries under the eye of Photographer Erica Lennard,
give us a lush voyage around the world in our favorite fantasy land, it is rare for one garden book to have such ,variety and give us so many ideas not to mention satisfy our curiosity.

This is an enjoyable and colorful look at gardens and
other private spaces around the Los Angeles area.
These are private homes and would not generally be
available to people to view and explore; but through
these pages, everyone who enjoys gardens can experience
their beauty and serenity.
This is a book I can turn to again and again and find
something new to see and try in my own small "oasis".

After reading the reviews, I passed on this book. But I am glad I changed my mind and ordered it. These are real L.A. gardens, with the combination of plant materials, they could be nowhere else but Southern California. Yes, the pictures are not fabulous by artistic standards but the do show the plants well and how it all works. (One of the things I hate about some garden books is pictures that look great but are so staged as to be unreal.)Yes, the writing is more about an odd collection of pseudo-celebrities but, again, it tells you what you want to know about the origin and composition of the gardens. I loved this book, and if you live in Southern California, it is a very valuable addition to a gardening library for people who really do garden.

I returned this book ~ the gardens selected are worth keeping secret. What a disappointment! Compared to the many beautiful books I have on gardens this is one of the worst, mainly because of the photos of the selected gardens.