Isle of wight (Yale University Press)

This is a comprehensive guide to the buildings of the Isle of Wight. The beguiling architecture of the many towns, villages and resorts is explored in full, as are the charming villas and cottages ornes dotted around the spectacular coasts.

But the Island also boasts architecture on the grandest scale: the powerful fortress of Carisbrooke Castle, with its evocative Saxon foundations; the rich and enigmatic baroque mansion of Appuldurcombe; Osborne House, the domestic paradise of Victoria and Albert, with its formal gardens; and the extraordinary "Quarr Abbey", a masterpiece of Expressionist brick by the French monk and architect, Dom Paul Bellot.

Other attractions include Roman villas, sturdy manor houses, powerful coastal defences built for Henry VIII (and reinforced under Queen Victoria), and the retreats of Tennyson and other Victorian notables, not to mention a well-established tradition of innovative modern design.

Each town or village is treated in a detailed gazetteer. A general introduction provides a historical and artistic overview.Numerous text illustrations, maps and plans, nearly a hundred new colour photographs, full indexes and an illustrated glossary help to make this book invaluable as both reference work and guide.