Category Archives: Reviews

Design And Architecture: The Top Ten Books Of 2024

Best architecture and design books

Dezeen (December 17, 2024): The top 10 architecture and design books of 2024 include:

2024 top architecture books: Kiosk by David Navarro and Martyna Sobecka

Kiosk by David Navarro and Martyna Sobecka

Simply named Kiosk, this book features photos of more than 150 modernist, modular kiosks that brighten streets across central and eastern Europe.

Authors David Navarro and Martyna Sobecka aimed to draw attention to the surviving, unusual structures that were constructed in factories in the Eastern Bloc from the 1970s to the 1990s.

Find out more about Kiosk ›


100 Women: Architects in Practice by Harriet Harriss, Naomi House, Monika Parrinder and Tom Ravenscroft

100 Women: Architects in Practice by Harriet Harriss, Naomi House, Monika Parrinder and Tom Ravenscroft

Written by academics Harriet Harriss, Naomi House, Monika Parrinder and Dezeen editor Tom Ravenscroft, 100 Women: Architects in Practice showcases the work of  architects from 78 different countries.

The book contains interviews with some of the world’s best-known architects including Liz Diller, Tatiana Bilbao, Mariam Issoufou Kamara and Lina Ghotmeh, along with numerous women who have not yet received extensive global attention.

Find out more about 100 Women: Architects in Practice ›


2024 top architecture books: Atlas of Mid-Century Modern Masterpieces by Dominic Bradbury

Atlas of Mid-Century Modern Masterpieces by Dominic Bradbury

Published by Phaidon, the Atlas of Mid-Century Modern Masterpieces is an encyclopedia featuring 450 mid-century-modern buildings from all across the world.

The book not only contains many of the key buildings created by the movement’s trailblazers but also those designed by more under-represented architects.

Find out more about Atlas of Mid-Century Modern Masterpieces ›


2024 top architecture books: Humanise by Thomas Heatherwick

Humanise by Thomas Heatherwick

The book that undoubtedly drew the most attention this year was Thomas Heatherwick’s Humanise.

In the book, along with a Radio 4 series and initiative of the same name, British designer Heatherwick takes aim at “boring” buildings.

Find out more about Humanise ›


2024 top architecture books: Sacred Modernity by Jamie McGregor Smith

Sacred Modernity by Jamie McGregor Smith

Sacred Modernity aimed to showcase the “unique beauty and architectural innovation” of brutalist churches across Europe.

The book contains 139 photographs of 100 churches taken by photographer Jamie McGregor Smith over five years, along with essays by writers Jonathan Meades and Ivica Brnic.

Find out more about Sacred Modernity ›


Brutal Wales by Simon Phipps

Brutal Wales by Simon Phipps

Simon Phipps’ follow up to his Brutal North and Brutal London books, Brutal Wales highlights architecture in the brutalist style across the country.

Alongside photography of 60 buildings, the book has explanatory texts in both Welsh and English, as well as an introduction by social historian John Grindrod.

Find out more about Brutal Wales ›


Donald Judd Furniture by Judd Foundation

Donald Judd Furniture by Judd Foundation

The Donald Judd Furniture book contains photos of all the furniture pieces created by the artist for his New York and Marfa, Texas, properties that remain in production.

Along with the photos, the book contains archival sketches by Judd, newly commissioned drawings of each piece and several essays by the artist.

Find out more about Donald Judd Furniture ›


London Estates by Thaddeus Zupančič

London Estates by Thaddeus Zupančič

London Estates documents the modernist council housing built in the UK capital in the post-war period.

Described by publisher Fuel as “the most comprehensive photographic document of council housing schemes in the capital”, the book was photographed by Thaddeus Zupančič.

Find out more about London Estates ›


Made in America by Christopher Payne

Made in America by Christopher Payne

Photographer Christopher Payne’s Made in America book contains images taken over the past decade in the USA’s factories.

Payne created the book as a way of helping to preserve the legacy of industry in America, while documenting the skill of workers who are featured in the photography.

Find out more about Made in America ›


50 Design Ideas You Really Need to Know by John Jervis

50 Design Ideas You Really Need to Know by John Jervis

The latest book in the 50 ideas series, 50 Design Ideas You Really Need to Know contains essays tracking the evolution of design from the 19th century to today.

Written by John Jervis, the book aims to make a broad range of design concepts accessible to a wide audience.

Find out more about 50 Design Ideas You Really Need to Know ›

The American Prospect Magazine – December 2024

Prospect Archive - The American Prospect

The American Prospect (December 14, 2024): The latest issue features ‘What Now?’ – Election 2024 and its aftermath….

How Democrats Can Regain the Working Class

It’s time to go after the nation’s real elite—not the Republicans’ largely fictitious one. Harold Meyerson

The Housing Industry Never Recovered From the Great Recession

A decade of depression in construction led to a concentrated, sclerotic industry. Ryan Cooper

Make It Legal to Build

The Yes In My Backyard, or YIMBY, movement believes that solving the housing shortage entails removing impediments to adding supply. Robert Cruickshank

The New York Times Magazine – Dec. 8, 2024

Issue Archive - The New York Times

THE NEW YORK TIMES MAGAZINE (December 14 2024): The 12.15.24 issue features ‘The Silence of Alice Munro’…

What Alice Munro Knew

The Nobel-winning author’s husband was a pedophile who targeted her daughter and other children. Why did she stay silent?

Opioids Ravaged a Kentucky Town. Then Rehab Became Its Business.

In Louisa, an unbearable social crisis has become the main source of economic opportunity.

Could This Tiny School Break Down the Wall Between Church and State?

Officials in Oklahoma are laying the groundwork to push Christianity into public schools.

Finance Preview: Barron’s Magazine – Dec. 16, 2024

Magazine - Latest Issue - Barron's

BARRON’S MAGAZINE (December 7, 2024): The latest issue features ‘Outlook 2025’….

Stocks Could Gain Another 20% in 2025. Embrace the Bubble.

Wall Street’s market forecasts are too tepid. The S&P 500 could rally next year on a combination of AI growth and deregulation. But investors should prepare for a wilder ride.

The Economy and the Fed Could Shine in 2025. It All Depends on Inflation.

The Federal Reserve could find it harder to balance growth and inflation next year, given the incoming Trump administration’s policies. So far, the forecast looks sunny.

Millennials Are Scared of Buying a Home. They Might Have a Point.

Millennials see real estate as a speculative asset. That makes them less apt to buy than their parents did at similar ages.

Trump Aims to Slash Government Spending. What It Could Mean for Social Security.

Wringing savings from the program could result in worse customer service. What you need to know.

Research Preview: Science Magazine-Dec. 13, 2024

Science Magazine – December 13, 2024: The new issue features ‘2024 Breakthrough Of The Year’…

The long shot

An injectable HIV drug with a novel mechanism shows remarkable ability to prevent infection

Mantle waves sculpt the continents

When the forces of plate tectonics tear continents apart, it’s an incredibly violent process, unfolding in slow motion. It was also thought to be very local: Magma from hot, rising mantle rock seeds volcanoes along the rift zone, while the far-removed cold interiors of continents remain intact.

Multicellularity came early for ancient eukaryotes

Microscopic algalike fossils from China reported early this year astounded evolutionary biologists with their extreme age. Dated at 1.6 billion years old, the specimens suggest one of the hallmarks of complex life—multicellularity—arose far earlier than previously thought.

A new type of magnetism emerges

For 98 years, physicists knew of two types of permanently magnetic materials. Now, they’ve found a third. In familiar ferromagnets such as iron, unpaired electrons on neighboring atoms spin in the same direction, magnetizing the material so that, for example, it sticks to a refrigerator. Antiferromagnets such as chromium have zero overall magnetism, but they possess an atomic-scale magnetic pattern, with neighboring electrons spinning in opposite directions. Novel altermagnets—hypothesized 5 years ago—share aspects of both. 

Commentary Magazine – January 2025 Preview

Commentary Magazine (December 12, 2024) The latest issue features ‘The Anti-Woke King Of Hollywood Lets Loose’ – Taylor Sheridan’s shows explain how and why we got Trump again…

The Anti-Woke King of Hollywood Lets Loose

Taylor Sheridan’s shows explain how and why we got Trump again by Rick Marin

Israel Chose, and the World Changed

by John Podhoretz

The Trumpmoon

by Matthew Continetti

The Times Will Stop at Nothing

by Christine Rosen

The Economist Magazine – December 14, 2024 Preview

All weekly editions | The Economist

The Economist Magazine (December 12, 2024): The latest issue features ‘What Now?’…

How the new Syria might succeed or fail

The end of the house of Assad. Much will go wrong. But for now, celebrate a tyrant’s fall

What Spain can teach the rest of Europe

Our number-crunching suggests it was the best-performing rich economy in 2024

America’s searing market rally brings new risks

Financial innovation is just as much to blame as the technological sort

Multilateral institutions are turning away from the poorest countries

Even bail-outs are getting expensive

Future Technology: Can AI Build Cities In Space?

The Economist (December 12, 2024): The EconomistFast forward into the future, when building in space is normal, from huge satellites and spacecraft in orbit, to entire cities on the Moon and Mars. Could robots guided by AI make it happen?

Video timeiine: 00:00 – Future of building in space 00:43 – Machina Labs 02:15 – Could we 3D print in space? 02:44 – Infrastructure on the Moon 03:25 – AI & robotics on Mars 04:41 – History of AI in space 05:41 – Challenges to space technology

Video supported by @mishcon_de_reya

Politics: The Guardian Weekly-December 13, 2024

Image

The Guardian Weekly (December 11, 2024): The new issue features The fall of Syria’s brutal dictatorship. Plus The best books of 2024.

Not even the most optimistic of rebels could have predicted the rapid collapse, last weekend, of the Assad dynasty that ruled Syria with an iron fist for more than 50 years. Yet while there was relief and joy both inside Syria and among the nation’s vast displaced diaspora, it was also accompanied by apprehension over what might come next.

1

Spotlight | Russia and Ukraine wait warily for Trump transition
The idea of the US president-election as a saviour for Ukraine, as unlikely as it may seem, holds an appeal for an exhausted nation without a clear path to victory. Shaun Walker and Pjotr Sauer report

2

Environment | The jailed anti-whaler defiant in face of extradition threat
Capt Paul Watson talks to Daniel Boffey about his arrest on behalf of the Japanese government, his ‘interesting’ Greenland prison, and separation from his children

3

Feature | The growing threat of firearms that can be made at home
One far-right cell wanted to use 3D-printed guns to cause ‘maximum confusion and fear’ on the streets of Finland. Could the police intercept them in time? By Samira Shackle

4

Opinion | Farage is lying in wait. Britain can’t afford for Starmer to fail
It is not enough for the Labour leader’s ‘milestones’ to be achieved. Voters must feel the improvement in their daily lives, says Guardian columnist Jonathan Freedland

5

Culture | The best books of 2024
From a radical retelling of Huckleberry Finn to Al Pacino’s autobiography, our critics round up their favourite reads of the year