Birmingham Andy Foster

A detailed, authoritative and easy-to-use guide to the architectural wealth of England's second city, the 'workshop of the world'. Its major buildings include the splendid English Baroque cathedral, the pioneering Neo-Roman town hall, and the mighty and still controversial Central Library of the 1970s. Streets of rich and varied Victorian and Edwardian architecture bear witness to the era when Birmingham's civic initiatives were the admiration of the country. More recently, the city has been rejuvenated with new architecture on a giant scale: the iconoclastic Selfridges, and the canalside precinct of Brindleyplace, where modernism and Classical Revival are excitingly juxtaposed. Outer districts and suburbs of extraordinary variety are explored in a series of tours. The famous Jewellery Quarter is a treasure-trove of quirky and resourceful historic buildings of every size and style. Stucco villas to match any in England can be found in Edgbaston, which also boasts educational buildings of outstanding quality. Cadburys' celebrated Garden Suburb at Bournville combines enlightened architecture with picturesque charm. A connecting theme is provided by the local Arts and Crafts school, which flourished well into the twentieth century. A narrative introduction sets the buildings in context. Birmingham and Leeds are the latest volumes in the acclaimed Pevsner City Guide series. Illustrated in colour throughout, including many specially-taken photographs, historical images, and numerous maps, they are both essential works of reference and indispensable visitors' companions.

Andy Foster is an architectural historian based in Birmingham.