<DIV>This is the story of how the heir of a middle-class American family after countless differences (many of his own making) found his way through the mine field of architectural practice and education. Filled with innumerable tales of steps not to take, the story is a ?page-turner” as the author is not above self-mockery.<BR><BR>Tigerman's exploits, both large and small, represents one idiosyncratic way of challenging convention. It is not recommended as a guide or ?how-to” but rather as a ?how-not-to” way of penetrating a field, which until now, was not thought of to be permeable. After a series of self-defeating trials, Stanley Tigerman arrived at the portal to architecture theory and practice. Designing Bridges to Burn is about a long and circuitous journey toward professional standing in a field historically only available to those born to large estates. <I>Designing Bridges to Burn</I> is filled with hilarious and poignant stories about the last quarter of the 20th century of American architecture, with architects' conceits, foibles, and missteps that only an outsider could have engaged in.<BR></DIV>