I have always wanted to visit Highgate, but economics keep me at home. There is a nice history of the cemetery and a it is wonderfully illustrated. If you are into cemeteries, Highgate is The Victorian Vallhalla and it amazes me that it is out of print. Wouldn't The Friends of Highgate make a couple bucks selling copies? There are graves I would have liked to have seen pictures of that aren't in it, Elizabeth Siddal for instance, but there are wonderful stories about the people who are there.

I was surprised, when struck with curiosity about Highgate Cemetery, that there was so little information available about this beautiful and fascinating landmark. I managed to find this photographic study of the cemetery through my library. What a shame that it's no longer in print. (I believe it WAS in print in the UK until not so long ago, but last time I checked Amazon UK it wasn't there). Beautiful, well done photos, a record of a time when death was common and loved ones were remembered with spectacular display and tender words. Many of the photos were taken prior to the vandalism that occurred there in the 60's and 70's, so this may be one of the few records of how the place appeared before then. I highly recommend anyone to seek this out through an interlibrary loan.

If you buy any book on London make it this ! Thr photographs show even a Londoner like myself a view of the city never before seen. I bought a copy for myself and have given several copies as gifts

A book for a rather specific audience. If you are very interested in London (living there would count) and architectural/city planning oddities, this is the book for you. There are whole chapters about how best to rebuild the city after the Great Fire of 1666, alternative monuments to Nelson and other famous British heroes, and (my favorite) an ambitious man's attempt to outdo Paris with a tower better than Eiffel's. The book is full of architect's drawings and sketches (black and white only), all by the original planner or others from the period. This book is very hard to rate on a 1-10 scale because it's either something you are really interested in, or it's incredible boring. I gave it a seven, because the authors came up with a unique subject and cover it with as much interest and detail as is possible. However, you have to be VERY interested in the subject. As an non-architect American who is fascinated with the U.K. and has done my fair share of reading about Victorian (and before) design, but has only visited London once, I was lost at many points. The book has endless references to various concepts of how St. Paul's cathedral might have been or how it could have been improved, but it makes the assumption that the reader is intimately familiar with its current appearance. There are no comparisons with its present form, just the alternatives. And the architectural drawings and discussions about the placements of buildings were sometimes too much for me. I bought it hoping for a leisurely read about grand schemes for London filled with humorous stories about the failed plans for a "railway down the middle of the Thames" (as indicated on the back cover), and got more detail and specifics than I expected. However, if you are a Londoner (and I would welcome your second, much more authoritative, opinion), historical architect, or other interested someone who isn't put off by the above warnings, this is the best (if not only) book on the topic.