Product Description

Unusual as they seem, underground buildings are surprisingly common.

Every day, millions in North America work, shop, dine, study, and play in the more than three hundred public and commercial structures and five thousand private homes nestled in the earth.

Underground buildings are safe, attractive, useful, and comfortable places to frequent and live. Unlike a common misconception, most are dry and warm, and they are often sun-filled.

More than one hundred underground buildings are included in this fascinating subterranean tour. These buildings range from the famous to the unnoticed. Some were built for pragmatic reasons, others for aesthetic considerations, still others, for a combination of both.

There are impressive success stories and discouraging tales of failure. Some underground buildings are incredibly energy-efficient, for example, while others leaked so badly they were abandoned.

A vast spectrum of structures is presented, ranging from stunning examples of hidden opulence to humble subterranean cubbyholes where unassuming people immerse themselves in nature’s simplicity.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #466560 in Books
• Published on: 2003-10
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 224 pages

Review
Hall’s intelligent and witty book demystifies an important subject and reinforces underground building as an appealing solution to... demanding problems. -- David J. Bennett, FAIA. Architect of numerous underground buildings including the University
of Minnesota’s Civil and Mineral Engineering Building

Review

From the Inside Flap
Features over 125 photographs and architectural drawings

A full-color illustrated guided tour of public, commercial, and private structures where millions of people live, work and play underground.

Customer Reviews

Phenomenal, Practical, Superb Photographs, Detailed
At $29 or less, this book is being given away. This is a museum-quality book in terms of the paper, the photographs, the lay-out, and the cover.

I bought this book in part because land is becoming extremely scarce around the great universities and the central business districts, and I was looking for something to help me think through how to persuade a university to let me put a building into a hill or under a playing field.

This book does that. It is a very fast read, the photographs are priceless--worth 10,000 words each as the Chinese would say--and the only thing I did not find in this book were architectural specifics and photos of underlying infrastructure (pump rooms, air cleaning rooms, etc.)

If you are contemplating the need for squeezing a building into an area that is down to the "do not disturb" green space, or if you are contemplating how to exploit existing mines, caverns, or other underground options, this exquisite book is not only useful as a tool for reflection, it will help you "make the sale" to skeptical others you have to get on board.

The author provides a list of 50 places to visit with addresses, telephone numbers, and web sites, a fine resource section for more reading, and an excellent index.

This is an all-around world-class book that is easily worth $49 or more.

Taken the the next level
This book is filled with wonderful pictures that augment the authors descriptions of underground buildings. She writes with wit and demonstrates that undergound buildings have many benefits, including financial and asthetic ones. This book is well worth a read as a detailed resource of information on this topic, as well as being an entertaining "coffee table" book. She explores this issue, which is more common than the average person would believe, and takes it to the next level.

Architectural drawings accompany these examples
Underground buildings are surprisingly common, offering users a safe, attractive alternative to above-ground buildings. Most are even dry, warm and sun-filled. Loretta Hall's Underground Buildings features over a hundred underground buildings from famous structures to those which have received little comparative attention. Architectural drawings accompany these examples and a spectrum of structures provide a variety of examples of their applications and use. Beautiful, rich photos wonderfully enhance the informative text making Underground Buildings a welcome and much appreciated addition to academic and professional Architectural Studies collections.