Amazon.com: Customer reviews: Genius of Place: The Life of Frederick Law Olmsted

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Marvelous

Reviewed in the United States on June 18, 2019

I cannot recommend this book highly enough. Olmsted's life was sublimely interesting; he spent considerable portions of his life as a "scientific farmer," a newspaper reporter, the author of "travelogues" chronicling his journeys through the American South and England in the early 1850s, the supervisor of mining operations at the Mariposa gold mine in Bear Valley CA, the founder and head of the US Sanitary Commission during the Civil War, . . . - while along the way inventing, almost single-handedly, the profession of landscape architecture in the United States, creating a series of true masterpieces (NYC's Central, Prospect, Morningside, and Riverside Parks, Boston's "Emerald Necklace" parks, the grounds of the US Capitol, the Stanford University campus, among many, many others). Martin's book is wonderfully well-constructed and he tells the story with verve, and I found it extraordinarily interesting from start to finish and, by the end, quite moving.

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macbeth55

A great man

Reviewed in the United States on November 16, 2019

This book is full of details, although not always properly sourced. However, the real down fall is it reads as a term paper written by a 9th grader. Too bad for us.

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From the United States

Ross Rosenfeld

A Thoroughly Enjoyable Read

Reviewed in the United States on July 2, 2018

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An absolutely fantastic book by a clearly talented writer.

Initially, I wasn't sure how interested I'd be in Olmsted's life. All I knew about him at the start was his involvement in Central Park. I figured I'd read the first twenty pages and see how I liked it. Well, Mr. Martin hooked me in with his deeply personal narrative. I learned that there was a lot more to Olmsted than I had been aware, including his work for the Boston park system, his plan for the Capitol grounds, his design for the Biltmore estate, and his contribution to the Chicago World's Fair of 1893. Mr. Martin is clearly a first-rate historian. Kudos to him!

4 people found this helpful

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Louisa Grove

A Man of Many Talents

Reviewed in the United States on March 12, 2018

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Who knew that Olmsted was so many things before planning Central Park? This is a easily read serious account of his life and accomplishments. It inspired my to read his book on his travel in Texas before the Civil War and to read a book by Samuel Bowles who recorded the trip of the Speaker of the House across the continent after the Civil War. Read all three books, but the last two will give you a glimpse of what life was like before and after the Civil War. Today, we take so many things for granted, but in these time periods the railroad did not even go to the West Coast.

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Mark F

Favorite book.

Reviewed in the United States on July 2, 2022

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This is by far my favorite book. The pure scope of what this man accomplished is impossible to comprehend by any standard. I have gifted this numerous times. Great story to share.

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Belinda Marcy Joines

One of the most influential Americans ever.

Reviewed in the United States on October 5, 2016

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The definitive Olmsted biography. Best known as the designer of Central Park in New York, this engaging book reveals a man of extraordinary talents with the ability to envision and administer huge public works over a period of more than six decades. Justin Martin uses extensive research to unfold details of amazing achievements in the context of a (difficult) life well lived. In the formative years of a young nation, Olmsted literally changed the face and character of America with his social programs and landscape architecture.

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