Christoph Höcker - Schnellkurs Architektur

in January, i read a brief introduction into the architecture of the 20th century. just when i finished it, i saw another architecture book in the library: one that starts with the first buildings (3000 B.C. in the Middle East), and that runs from there through the main phases of architecture, up to now. 5000 years in 12 main chapters, written in a casual-informative voice that took me with it, through all those years.

a surprise at the end: the last chapter, next to postmodern high-tech buildings, also includes a feature on slums, titled: "Architektur der Not" - "Architecture of Hardship".

i just checked - there also is a wiki-page on the history of architecture, with a mix of chapters that both refer to regions and to timespans: History of Architecture.