New York's Fabulous Luxury Apartments: With Original Floor Plans from the Dakota, River House, Olympic Tower and Other Great Buildings

Andrew Alpern's magnificent book, BEW YORK'S FABULOUS LUXURT APARTMENTS: WITH ORIGINAL FLOOR PLANS FROM TEH DAKOTA, RIVER HOUSE, OLYMPIC TOWER AND OTHER GREAT BUILDINGS, is one of those very rare books that is the "REAL Deal"! This means that it is EXACTLY what it purports to be -- page after page shows wonderful, luxurious floorplans, from wonderful, luxurious buildings, in one of the world's most, (if you have the money), luxurious and wonderful cities!Of course, not every luxury building is presented, and some of the illustrations, though full-page illustrations, do seem a bit cramped -- because they show so much!Many, (but not, thankfully, all), of these buildings have been, em..."changed" through the years. Some have simply been upgraded to allow for modern conveniences. Others, (unfortunately), have had their super-luxury apartments sub-divided into mere luxury apartments -- or worse, into quite ordinary dwellings. The text of this book shows that the author is just as upset and disappointed at these sub-divisions as most of his readers must be. (Thanks, Mr. Alpern! It's good to know someone else cares, as well! :_)This aside, (and one can always have those pages with floorplans that seem cramped, enlarged at your local copy-shop!), this book is a true treasure, for anyone who studies or admires fine architecture, longs for luxury -- and/or who needs constant inspiration that one's talents WILL take one to the stars, (or at least to the HEIGHTS of the great apartment buldings of New York!), THIS is the book you need!Even if you don't feel some of the illustrations are cramped, have them enlarged, and copied anyway. Then put them on the walls of your 180 square-foot apartment-- and start dreaming.............AND DOING!

My love of NYC apartment buildings and with the floor plans is amazing.

This is quite good and what I was after. Though the quality of the prints of the floor plans leaves a little to be desired (readability), I'm sure much of that was beyond the control of the authors based on the originals available to them. From a historical standpoint, this book is what I was aftyer and provides tremendous insight into the living space and style of an age long gone.

Okay, so I didn't purchase "New York's Fabulous Luxury Apartments" with the slightest notion that I would ever be in the market, let alone reside in, any one of this book's featured "apartments" (I still have a hard time referring to these dwellings as "apartments" - hardly are these the places that come to mind which feature a broiler pan in the oven and free heat). The description mentioned that floor plans are included, and that is what sold me. I've always had an odd fascination for how those high-priced, high-rise New York apartment buildings featured in the back of the NY Times Sunday magazine were laid out, and this book delivers. While all the photos are in black and white - which is understandable, given that many of the structures were demolished long ago and that the book's print date is 1974 - if floor plans are your thing, this book was written for you. An added nicety is that plans for all levels are provided in the instance of a duplex or triplex unit, rather than just those for the main floor.

Nice info and cool floor plans. I just wish they were cleaned up and more easy to see in the book.

Interesting book on Luxury apartments in NYC and includes the original floor plans!

Was given as a gift and I knew the recipient would like because it included floor plans. I was right. What made it extra sweet was when her son-in=law asked if he could borrow it after she had read it. A double whammy!a

Classic architecture.

A nice bit concise summary of buildings with photos and plan drawings.

If you love architecture and New York Apartments, then this is a must for you! Arranged chronologically and beautifully illustrated, complete with floor plans for each building. A pleasure to read

It is very interesting to see not only black & White photographs of some of the iconic New York Luxury Apartment Blocks with their mini-histories but with over 100 line drawings of representative apartment floor plans that show some of the original layouts.Many apartments were very spacious with servant's quarters but with a few exceptions this commodious accommodation has been gobbled up by property speculators and converted into smaller units. For those interested in the history and social changes in the life of the middle and upper classes Manhattan over the years Mr Alpern's work is a useful accessory.

Book is OK but pics scarce and would have like more interior views, It is good addition to your library if you love heritage

This would be a useful addition to an architects' library but otherwise simply reproduces rather small plans of a range of New York apartment buildings. I would have liked more text to describe the apartments with, perhaps, a few photographs of the interiors to complement the plans.