The Vanderbilts and the Gilded Age: Architectural Aspirations, 1879-1901
This loosely written and poorly edited survey of the 13 great houses built by the eight children of Cornelius "Commodore" Vanderbilt's eldest son is part potted social history, part architectural history, and part personal biography. After an introductory chapter on the family antecedents, the book consists of a chapter on each of the houses--Biltmore, Shelburne, the Breakers, Marble House, and others less well known--that the third generation of wealth erected in what Mark Twain labeled "the gilded age." The illustrations, many of the period, are fascinating, but the text is superficial in content and uncertain in tone. Typos, layout mistakes, and an absence of editing make this a bad book on a good topic. Not recommended.- Jack Perry Brown, Art Inst. of Chicago Libs.Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.