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Rating: 
Summary: Summarizes in Simple, Graphic Fashion what a Building Does
Review: A practical overview of the natural order of architecture. Explains what building do (i.e. Effects of outdoor environment, human environment and the concept of shelter). Explains how a building works (i.e. Various practical functions, providing water, removing wastes, thermal comfort, HVAC, acoustics, form, structural support, fire control, building expansion, etc.).This book sticks to the basics of what a building is all about. This is not a book about design princples and concepts (old or modern); the book stresses the practical nature of building construction/design and the interface with human beings and the environment. Excellent book for students, architecture professors, practicing architects, builders and people just wanting to know more about the principles of architecture.
Rating:
Summary: Summarizes in Simple, Graphic Fashion what a Building Does
Review: A practical overview of the natural order of architecture. Explains what building do (i.e. Effects of outdoor environment, human environment and the concept of shelter). Explains how a building works (i.e. Various practical functions, providing water, removing wastes, thermal comfort, HVAC, acoustics, form, structural support, fire control, building expansion, etc.). This book sticks to the basics of what a building is all about. This is not a book about design princples and concepts (old or modern); the book stresses the practical nature of building construction/design and the interface with human beings and the environment. Excellent book for students, architecture professors, practicing architects, builders and people just wanting to know more about the principles of architecture.
Rating:
Summary: This is an excellent primer on architecture for anyone.
Review: Edward Allen clearly, thoroughly, and succinctly explains the basics of architecture to the average reader. He covers not only the materials and methods of construction, but introduces the theory, history, and philosophy of architecture. The reader's mind is filled with knowledge in short order, and is left delighted. Edward Allen is a rare gem of a teacher--someone who honestly understands a topic and can convey that knowledge. There are so many badly written, stuffy, elitist, and meaningless tomes on architecture, that this book stands almost alone. If you had to read only one book on architecture your whole life, then this is it. If you had to read two, then include "How Buildings Learn" by Stewart Brand.
Rating:
Summary: More than a book about buildings
Review: Edward Allen presents a way of looking at systems and objects that should be valuable to designers in many disciplines. I bought this book AFTER I finished reading a copy from the library. I needed it in my personal library, next to Christopher Alexander's "The Timeless Way of Building," Edward Tufte's "The Visual Display of Quantitative Information," and Louis Rosenfeld's and Peter Morville's "Information Architecture."
Rating:
Summary: More than a book about buildings
Review: Edward Allen presents a way of looking at systems and objects that should be valuable to designers in many disciplines. I bought this book AFTER I finished reading a copy from the library. I needed it in my personal library, next to Christopher Alexander's "The Timeless Way of Building," Edward Tufte's "The Visual Display of Quantitative Information," and Louis Rosenfeld's and Peter Morville's "Information Architecture."
Rating: 
Summary: recomended
Review: Great book. Pictures aren't to cute or anything but there are alot of them. I liked particularly how it started by talking about the sun which caught me in the right mood breathed a little life into the book right away. I have some serious interest in architecture and this book is a good place to start i think.
Rating:
Summary: What buildings are
Review: HOW BUILDINGS WORK is just a great book, even more interesting than Macaulay's THE WAY THINGS WORK. Buildings are everywhere, and most everyone uses buildings of various kinds for various purposes. Yet how a building works is often a mystery. In this way, I think buildings are much like computers; most people who use them have no clue about the inner workings of them. Edward Allen takes us through the functions of a building without going into traditional architectural theory. This book is more concerned with the needs that buildings must fulfill, and how we can fulfull them. He discusses water, waste, heat, ventilation, lighting, accoustics, energy, structure, and more, first by explaining each particular concept, and then by examining how problems can be solved with the knowledge of those concepts. While this isn't a book on theory, neither is it a wholly practical book. That is, it won't equip you with the skills to go and build a house. But it will open your eyes to the various elements of buildings and building construction and you may think "Aha!" the next time you look at a building and observe a strange structural or design detail. You don't have to be an architecture freak to enjoy the book either. You just need to be curious.
Rating:
Summary: What buildings are
Review: HOW BUILDINGS WORK is just a great book, even more interesting than Macaulay's THE WAY THINGS WORK. Buildings are everywhere, and most everyone uses buildings of various kinds for various purposes. Yet how a building works is often a mystery. In this way, I think buildings are much like computers; most people who use them have no clue about the inner workings of them. Edward Allen takes us through the functions of a building without going into traditional architectural theory. This book is more concerned with the needs that buildings must fulfill, and how we can fulfull them. He discusses water, waste, heat, ventilation, lighting, accoustics, energy, structure, and more, first by explaining each particular concept, and then by examining how problems can be solved with the knowledge of those concepts. While this isn't a book on theory, neither is it a wholly practical book. That is, it won't equip you with the skills to go and build a house. But it will open your eyes to the various elements of buildings and building construction and you may think "Aha!" the next time you look at a building and observe a strange structural or design detail. You don't have to be an architecture freak to enjoy the book either. You just need to be curious.
Rating:
Summary: All architecture/ building science students should own this
Review: I practice and teach architecture. This is the best book I have ever found for communicating material essential for the study of building science and architecture. The presentation style is frendly and informative. The knowledge of the subject displayed by Edward Allen is superb. I am a unashamed book-a-holic, if I could only take one book to the proverbial desert island - How Buildings Work would be it.
Rating:
Summary: All architecture/ building science students should own this
Review: I practice and teach architecture. This is the best book I have ever found for communicating material essential for the study of building science and architecture. The presentation style is frendly and informative. The knowledge of the subject displayed by Edward Allen is superb. I am a unashamed book-a-holic, if I could only take one book to the proverbial desert island - How Buildings Work would be it.
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