4 comments about The Conquest of Nature: Water, Landscape, and the Making of Modern Germany.

1. In this masterful and original account the author takes the reader on a virtual tour de force examination of the way in which nature was changed, conquered, preserved, destroyed and manipulated in Germany between the time of Fredrick the Great and the present. The author notes that to "write about the shaping of the modern German landscape is to write about how modern Germany itself was shaped." It begins with the tale of the draining of the Oderburch, a great swamp on the river Oder from Oderberg to Lebus. This swamp along with others was progressively drained and settled in the 18th century. Colonists were brought in and the wolves were hunted to extinction. This was a frontier like any other and the author compares it to other conquests of nature in the New World and South Africa. It was a "conquest from barbarism". This use of science and technology to tame the wild beast of nature is as old as man itself but found a special expression in Germany.
   
   The next section of the book examines the taming of the Rhine river and the harnessing of it to agriculture and the state. The book takes the reader on a wonderful journey alongside the German engineers and statesmen and visionaries who tried the utmost to control flooding and build ports and canals such as Wilhelmshaven. Land reclamation followed. Once again people had to settle and colonize the new areas. The same was being done across Europe, for instance South of Rome where in the 1920s and 1930s colonists would be set to colonizing the Malarial swamps.
   
   But where once colonizing and reclamation were peaceful pursuits they eventually turned sinister with the advent of Nazism and the decision to reclaim the East for German settlers. The idea was that the `barbaric' Slavic peoples could be harnessed as well or removed from the swamps they were `indigenous' to. Propaganda saw them as growing out of the swamps themselves. The `dead space' of the Pripet marshes. Everywhere German `model villages' were designed to replace the `natural' villages that seethed with disease and closed spaces in the `east'.
   
   A brilliant book that weaves together so many topics and is hard to put down, the subject seems staid, but is fascinating.
   
   Seth J. Frantzman



2. THE CONQUEST OF NATURE: WATER, LANDSCAPE, AND THE MAKING OF MODERN GERMANY is a recommended pick for any library strong in modern Western history in general and German history and culture in particular. Both college-level and general-interest lending collections will appreciate the fine reproductions of paintings, maps and photos which go into a survey linking culture, politic and environmental issues in German history to modern times. It's a key component of any comprehensive collection on German issues and background.



3. This is quite a book.
   
   There are a number of books on how the he U.S. Army Corp of Engineers has modified rivers like the Mississippi in the United States (with more or less success, witness Katrina). This is the first one I've seen on what was done in Northern Europe. The projects in Germany were monumental in scale, taking some 250 years to accomplish. This is part of what made Germany into a nation.
   
   It is quite interesting as it talks not only about what was done but about other aspects such as the health, econonic, cultural, and political aspects. The Nazi's for instance looked at the work done as proof of the natural superiority of the German people.
   
   With all of the success of the projects, the book at the end turns to the problems the efforts have caused: flooding, fish habitat destroyed. In essence all of the problems we are having with these same areas in the United States.



4. There are many fine environmental histories of North America but seemingly very few of Europe. Following a brief description of how the end of the Ice Age produced the sodden, water-filled plains of central and northern Germany, this book explores how man created the modern German landscape by straightening the Rhine River and "reclaiming" the southern coast of the North Sea and other watery regions. The maps are useful. Great stuff, I wish there were more books on the transformation of the European environment over the past 12,000 years.

No comments about Non-Plan: Essays on Freedom, Participation and Change in Modern Architecture and Urbanism.

No comments about The City Builders: Property Development in New York and London, 1980-2000 (Studies in Government and Public Policy).

1 comments about Talking Cities: The Micropolitics of Urban Space / Die Mikropolitik des urbanen Raums.

1. Written in German and English, the book is a glossy exhibition of urban architecture throughout the world. Not all the photos are of beautiful, sparkling buildings. One shows some kids riding mountain bikes over an old rubbish dump in a European city.
   
   Other photos are of Desert Cities in Egypt. Commissioned by Sadat, these are high rises of flats. Each some 10 stories or so. The extreme population pressures along the Nile has given rise, of necessity, to some very bleak images. The snapshots of the cities show concrete buildings surrounded by desert sands, with very little vegetation to relieve the stark monotony.
   
   Some of the so-called "Risky Buildings" of Britain are shown. Some architects claim unappreciated merits to these buildings, to try to ensure their preservation. The photos of the buildings may lead some readers to agree. But some buildings do seem deserving of take down.

No comments about Dwelling, Seeing, and Designing: Toward a Phenomenological Ecology (Suny Series in Environmental and Architectural Phenomenology).

No comments about 30 60 90 09: Regarding Public Space.

No comments about Introduction to Environmental Impact Assesment: Principles, and Procedures, Process, Practice and Prospects (The Natural and Built Environment Series).

No comments about Ian McHarg / Dwelling in Nature: Conversations with Students (Conversations With Students).

1 comments about Planning for a New Generation of Public Library Buildings (The Greenwood Library Management Collection).

1. Written by an experienced library consultant, this work covers all aspects of planning, designing and building a new public library - from the decision to do something to furnishing the new building. McCabe details each phase of the process, starting with hiring a qualified library consultant; selecting an experienced architect; and choosing and evaluating a site for the library building. He also explores issues related to preparing the library building program; planning specific spaces in the library; choosing furnishings and equipment that meet both design elements and functional needs; and selecting specific architectural building components.

   The author is widely read in both library and architectural literature and includes many helpful notes and references in each chapter, providing the reader with a wide variety of additional sources to consult. The book also includes an annotated bibliography and numerous useful checklists.

   While I felt the work should have included more specific information and recommendations for incorporating technology in new library buildings, I believe it is nonetheless a valuable overview for librarians and others involved in the library building process. Written in a concise, straightforward manner, it contains a wealth of practical advice for those involved in the complex process of planning and building a new public library.

1 comments about In Search of a Living Architecture.

1. this book is fantastic! i am currently a 5th year architecture student...i wish i had come across this book by first year. it is plainly written, precise, easily comprehensible. in a school where the archi(babble) is almost as important as the design, this book gives a person like myself hope for the future of architecture, design, and construction. albert frey (whose mentor was le corbusier) is one of the lesser known great architects of the 20th century. his work has so much to offer. simplicity at its best! a must own!!!!!!!!