The Plaza Mayor and the Shaping of Baroque Madrid

Rating:
Summary: Worth the Money
Review: Escobar's work is well-organized and very readable. He stays on point and gives a blow-by-blow account of the development of the plaza. The book is full of facts, analysis, and some speculation with supporting evidence. The illustrations are well-selected and are of good quality; they help Escobar develop his points. In the book, Escobar proves that the Spaniards were (and are) master city builders on par with their Roman and Greek predecessors. He shows that the Spaniards perfected the art of creating first-class urban spaces and places. An interesting follow-up work might discuss in more detail how the Spaniards applied their skills to cities they built and rebuilt around the world, from San Juan to New Orleans to Manila. This book has a lot of relevant information for architects and urban planners. I highly recommend this book to historians, art historians, and anyone interested in cities, architecture, or urban planning.