Goodbye History, Hello Hamburger: An Anthology of Architectural Delights and Disasters

Most of the 68 essays here were selected from two collections of Huxtable's architecture columns that appeared in the New York Times in the '60s and '70s, a period marked by a frustratingly slow and limited acceptance of the idea that restoration of urban buildings might be preferable to their demolition. Many of Huxtable's pieces thus rage against developers and others responsible for the tearing down of architectural treasures. After the destruction of New York City's Pennsylvania Station in 1966, she declares that we are an ""impoverished society'' that ``has no money for anything except expressways to rush people out of our dull and deteriorating cities and that treats land values as the highest morality.'' Other pieces, particularly the later ones, celebrate both new works and restorationssuch as those in several downtown Brooklyn neighborhoods and the historic center of Salem, Mass. Huxtable remains refreshingly sharp, sardonic and wittyand promotes an urban experience that respects the old, uses imagination and uplifts people. (February)