Chu, whose background is in medieval studies and religion, has assembled 37 literary accounts of architecture in California, most of them excerpts from larger works of fiction or non-fiction. Among the selections are George Vancouver from A Voyage of Discovery to the North Pacific Ocean and Round the World, Gray Brechin on early synagogues of San Francisco, Edmond Wilson's "The Jumping-Off Place" from The American Earthquake, Allan Temko's "Bridge of Bridges--A Quantum Leap into Architectural Glory," Robert Duncan in Italian, Herb Caen's "Edifice Wrecks," Mike Davis from City of Quartz: Excavating the Future in Los Angeles, Ernest Callenbach From Ecotopia, and William Gibson's "Skinner's Room." No index is provided. Annotation ©2010 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)