6,000 Years of Housing

6,000 Years of Housing by Schoenauer, Norbert. hardcover edition. ISBN: 9780393730524.

This compendium of world shelter part architecture, history, and anthropology moves from pre-urban nomadic structures to the fixed cubes of todays gridded cities. Schoenauer, town planner and emeritus professor of architecture at McGill University, discusses what he calls "Oriental" urban houses of ancient civilizations and the Middle East, India, and China and occidental urban housing from the Dark Ages through the Hot Ages of the 20th century. He writes that ancient urban dwellings were inward-looking, those built after the fall of the Roman empire were outward-looking, the Middle Ages saw work and living spaces combined, and after the industrial revolution housing reflected socio-economic disparities (high-density for those poorer, low density for those richer). The book is replete with simple architectural plans for the majority of the structures discussed. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)