NEW YORK LANDMARKS

While the gift book sale -- to dedicated New Yorkers -- is an obvious market, this book should be of continuing value as a composite of architectural styles brought to America and adapted to the exigencies of the American way of life in a big city. Highlighting this aspect of a book primarily notable for its fine photographs is an excellent and informative introduction by the editor, the best part of which provides a capsule summary of the chronology of architectural styles- most of which are exemplified in the ""landmarks"" selected for inclusion. Public buildings, churches, private houses, clubs, even some monuments provide visual interest for the peruser. Many local readers may have lived in the midst of this wealth of architectural source material, only half aware of what New York afforded to the keen and informed observer. The book well serves its purpose:- to identify New York landmarks and call expert attention to their distinguishing characteristics. There is a further purpose here, to which the backers- the Municipal Art Society -- is devoting attention, and that is the preservation of a heritage too often sacrificed to pressures of economic necessity. With the World's Fair in the offing, the appeal of a book of this type to the millions that will visit New York is self-evident.