`A refreshingly humane and lucid book from one of our most intelligent architecture critics'
Daily Telegraph`Vivid and witty . . . it's a book about what happens when other non-architectural matter - capital, sex, family life, the caprices of function - barges into a discipline that sometimes likes to think of itself as pure'
Guardian`Architecture critic for the Observer, Rowan Moore, has written a fantastic book which is well worth reading for anyone interested in architecture.'
Sir Paul Smith
`Moore has a lot to offer those who like verbal flexibility and thought-provoking aphorisms. There is also a sense of mischief . . . if famous architects were a coconut shy, Moore would go home with the giant teddy . . . Elegant and witty, with a sometimes 18th-century sensuality, this is a hard-hitting book with great panache.'
Sunday Telegraph
'Moore has conjured a rare feat in producing a work that will be appreciated by professionals and punters alike.'
Observer`Moore writes with economy, clarity and wit' Will Wiles,
Building Design`A paean to the way we inhabit, which explains why good architecture changes constantly'
Financial Times
`Intelligent and cultured . . . packed with passionately held ideas about the epiphanies, farces and humanity in architecture'
Independent`Thoughtful and elegantly written, Why We Build will appeal to anyone with an interest in architecture . . . It benefits from a clear style and years of architectural criticism . . . the argument is forceful, but not prescriptive, the satisfying result of prolonged and sensitive observation of both buildings and human nature.'
Spectator
`Lively and engaging . . . Anyone with an interest in architecture will find good things here'
Evening Standard`A subtle, often eccentric but always entertaining guide . . . A fascinating work of love, intellectual curiosity and endurance'
Literary Review`Dazzling . . . there's plenty to discover.'
Sunday Times