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Whether you’re an architect, an urban planner, an architecture student, or just an architecture enthusiast, books are some of the best ways to expand your knowledge and understanding of the built environment and “learn from the greats.” Cityscapes give us a glimpse of metropolitan architecture but it's important to recognize where it all stems from. Architecture matters. That’s why we have compiled 25 of our favorite books for architects and architecture lovers.
Many of these books are popular pieces about architecture theory that seriously influenced the architectural profession—modern architecture and contemporary architecture are informed by these works. They represent the manifestos of specific architectural movements—think Venturi, Scott Brown, and Izenour’s Learning from Las Vegas and its relationship to the Postmodern movement. We also included great resource books that show how architectural drawings can truly be works of art. If you love flipping through beautifully detailed drawings, you’ll love Manual of Section or even A Visual Dictionary to Architecture.
Plus, if you’re looking for a gift for an architecture lover in your life, they might be missing an architectural classic that would complete their library. In this case, we think famous titles like the revolutionary Le Corbusier’s Towards a New Architecture or Rem Koolhaas’ Delirious New York are some great choices.
Scroll down for a taste of our favorite architecture books to add to your collection, and be sure to check out My Modern Met's Bookshop and our architecture collection for even more great titles.
Keep scrolling to find 25 great books about architecture.
A Visual Dictionary of Architecture by Francis D. K. Ching
![A Visual Dictionary of Architecture - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-19.jpg)
Francis D. K. Ching | $55
The Architecture of Community by Léon Krier
![The Architecture of Community - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-2.jpg)
Leon Krier | $56.35
The Architecture of Happiness by Alain de Botton
![The Architecture of Happiness- 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-1.jpg)
Alain De Botton | $23.20
The Architecture of the City by Aldo Rossi
![The Architecture of the City - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-3.jpg)
Aldo Rossi | $54
Black: Architecture in Monochrome by Stella Paul and Phaidon Press
![Black Architecture in Monochrome - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-20.jpg)
Stella Paul and Phaidon Press | $18.55
Cities for People by Jan Gehl
![Cities for People - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-21.jpg)
Jan Gehl | $65.55
Complexity and Contradiction in Architecture by Robert Venturi
![Complexity and Contradiction in Architecture - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-4.jpg)
Robert Venturi | $27.85
The Death and Life of Great American Cities by Jane Jacobs
![The Death an Life of Great American Cities - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-5.jpg)
Jane Jacobs | $17.67
Delirious New York: A Retroactive Manifesto for Manhattan by Rem Koolhaas
![Delirious New York - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-6.jpg)
Rem Koolhaas | $32.55
Design Like You Give a Damn [2]: Building Change from the Ground Up by Architecture for Humanity
![Design Like You Give a Damn - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-7.jpg)
Architecture for Humanity | $47.12
The Eyes of the Skin: Architecture and the Senses by Juhani Pallasmaa
![The Eyes of the Skin - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-8.gif)
Juhani Pallasmaa | $46.95
Experiencing Architecture by Steen Eiler Rasmussen
![Experiencing Architecture - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-9.jpg)
Steen Eiler Rasmussen | $42
The Four Books on Architecture by Andrea Palladio
![The Four Books of Architecture - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-10.jpg)
Andrea Palladio | $46.45
The Future of Architecture in 100 Buildings by Marc Kushner
![Future of Architecture in 100 Buildings - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-22.jpg)
Marc Kushner | $20.45
In Praise of Shadows by Junichiro Tanazaki
![In Praise of Shadows - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-11.jpg)
Junichiro Tanizaki | $9.25
Jutaku: Japanese Houses by Naomi Pollock
![Jutaku: Japanese Houses - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-26.jpg)
Naomi Pollock | $23.20
Learning from Las Vegas by Robert Ventury, Denise Scott Brown, Steven Izenour
Lo—TEK. Design by Radical Indigenism by Julia Watson
![Lo-TEK Design by Radical Indigenism - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-23.jpg)
Julia Watson | $46.50
Manual of Section by Marc Tsurumaki, David J. Lewis, Paul Lewis
A Pattern Language: Towns, Buildings, Construction by Christopher Alexander, Sara Ishikawa, Murray Silverstein
The Poetics of Space by Gaston Bachelard
![The Poetics of Space - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-14.jpg)
Gaston Bachelard | $16.74
The Ten Books on Architecture by Vitruvius
![Vitruvious The Ten Books of Architecture - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-16.jpeg)
Vitruvius | $11.99
Towards a New Architecture by
![Towards a New Architecture - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-17.jpeg)
Le Corbusier | $15.76
The Works: Anatomy of a City by Kate Ascher
![The Works Anatomy of the City - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-25.jpg)
Kate Ascher | $25.11
Yes Is More: An Archicomic on Architectural Evolution by Bjarke Ingels Group
![Yes is More - 25 Books Every Architect and Architecture Lover Should Read](https://mymodernmet.com/wp/wp-content/uploads/2021/04/architecture-books-for-architects-buildings-design-my-modern-met-18.jpg)
Bjarke Ingels Group | $27.90
This article has been edited and updated.
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