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From The Critics
This work is a primer or textbook on historic preservation. It is divided into three main parts: a general overview of building forms; a short course in building components and materials; and a primer on historic building public policy issues...Irwin attempts to help the reader to construct an analysis of communities and neighborhoods as well as individual historic buildings. He does this to show how historical structures were not just examples of period architecture, but were actually the very fabric of society. Among the techniques the author uses is the use of geometric forms to show how building elements fit into standardized shapes. In the building "craft" section Irwin covers some basic structure elements...
Overall, the author accomplishes very well what he has set out to do. He attempts to weave the individual details of historic building analysis into the larger fabric of time, place, and form...He claims the book will help teach the new generation of architectural historians and preservationists how they can "achieve the New Urbanist goal of increasing density by making it both livable and appealing," while at the same time the author explores with the reader the "heart and meaning of preservation in the twenty-first century." Libraries with historic building and architectural history collections will want to add this important work. Most readers using general collections who are interested in historic preservation will find this work a good place to start studying the field.
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