No comments about Brick, Concrete, Stonework.

No comments about David Chipperfield: Zusammenspiel: Ernsting Service Center.

1 comments about Fireplace Book : Idea Book of Fireplace Design (vol. 1).

1. The pictures are few, uninspired, and dated. Not a total waste of time but not far from it.

4 comments about Stone Primer: Ideas and Techniques for Incorporating Stone In and Around Your Home.

1. Stone work adds much to a property, whether it be in the form of a patio, staircase, wall, or fireplace - and stonemason and blacksmith author Charles McRaven here provides all the keys to incorporating stone into projects, from choosing between structures to putting together a stone barbecue, retaining walls, and much more. With color photos throughout, interviews with designers and homeowners, and keys to stoneworking success, STONE PRIMER is a top pick for any homeowner's library, and for general lending collections catering to handymen.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch



2. Of all of the McCraven books I think this is the best. It offers very solid technical information on the art and craft of stonebuilding as well as inspiring profiles on stone artisans and craftsmen working throughout the US. If you're thinking about or planning a stone project this book will provide both instruction and inspiration.



3. i now own a handful of books having to do with masonry and stonework, mcraven's 'stone primer' is so far the best. it's well written, his personality comes across nicely providing an enjoyable read. there are also loads of full color pictures of stonework in varying styles and locations. i'll be sure to reference this book often in the future for projects.



4. A primer by definition is a book of elementary principals; to this end McRaven succeeded in his intent. The book is full of large color photographs of good masonry used to visually aide in making his points. There are several very good sections on tools required for the job, the type of stone to be used, how stone is moved on the jobsite by the lone mason, and how every mason should start by building dry stack structures to teach them the principals of friction, proper fitting, etc. While While he covers a great deal of projects including retaining walls, patios, dry stack walls, and paths, he severely glosses over three things I was the most interested in;designing and building mortared stone columns, mortared arches, and load bearing structural masonry. As stated above this is a primer, but there is virtually no attention paid these topics. There was scarcely more than a page of typed material about one of the most basic structural element: the arch. Compared with the several pages devoted to tool selection and personal stories of other masons I found that to be troublesome and part of the reason this book receives only 4 stars. I would recommend reading this book because it is thought provoking, and makes you want to go lay a dry stack retaining wall in your back yard, but not build an arch.

1 comments about BDA Guide to Successful Brickwork, Third Edition.

1. The illustrations and the book design are very up-to-date. The text is from several authors, so some advice is occasionally repeated. Repetitio est mater studiorum, as they say.
   
   There's detailed instructions on simple walls, layout advice for maintaining the bond around openings, coverage of advanced topics like arches and corbelling, and background topics such as brick manufacture. All in metric and referenced to British building codes by the way.

No comments about Masons and Builders Library, Vol. 1: Concrete, Block, Tile, Terrazzo.

No comments about Masonry: How to Care for Old and Historic Brick and Stone (Respectful rehabilitation).

3 comments about Design of Reinforced Masonry Structures.

1. This book was my first experience with Masonry design. This book covers a lot of general topics as well as some engineering discussion. While there is an adequate number of worked out design/analysis examples there was not as many as I had hoped to see. This is a good book for a beginning engineer in structures (like me) but has very little to offer an engineer with masonry experience.

   The large appendix is very useful as a refernce for many items (i.e. Wind Load).




2. I have only looked at one section and found several errors. There are better masonry books out there!



3. The book seemed to be more specific towards the Eastern United States building codes. Lots of algebraic errors but there are many good examples in the book which can be followed.

No comments about Tiling Step-by-Step (Step-By-Step).

No comments about Masonry and Steel Detailing Handbook.