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Center for Environmental Structure books in order

Christopher Alexander

Center for Environmental Structure is a series of 13 books by Christopher Alexander: 2,356 pages in the 4 with a known length, about 43 hours of reading. Shown in publication order; no numbering is on record.

13
books
2,356
pages in 4 of them
43 hours
to read those 4
87 days
at 30 minutes a day
The Oregon Experiment 1975 length not known
A Pattern Language 1977 21.5 h The Timeless Way of Building 1979 10.1 h
The Linz Cafe 1981 length not known
The Production of Houses 1985 7.0 h A New Theory of Urban Design 1987 4.6 h
Foreshadowing of 21st Century Art: The Color and Geometry of Very Early Turkish Carpets 1993 length not known
The Mary Rose Museum 1995 length not known
The Nature of Order Book 1: The Phenomenon of Life 2002 length not known
The Nature of Order Book 2: The Process of Creating Life 2002 length not known
The Nature of Order Book 3: A Vision of a Living World 2005 length not known
The Nature of Order Book 4: The Luminous Ground 2004 length not known
The Battle for the Life and Beauty of the Earth: A Struggle between Two World-Systems 2012 length not known

Bar height shows length. Books without a number have no number in our records.

The books

  1. The Oregon Experiment 1975 length not known

  2. A Pattern Language 1977 21.5 h

    Alexander and his co-authors present us with over two hundred (roughly 250) "patterns" that they believe must be present in order for an environment to be pleasing, comfortable…

  3. The Timeless Way of Building 1979 10.1 h

    The theory of architecture implicit in our world today, Christopher Alexander believes, is bankrupt.

  4. The Linz Cafe 1981 length not known

  5. The Production of Houses 1985 7.0 h

    Describes how the design and construction of a cluster of five homes were carried out under the guidance of Alexander’s architectural principles.

  6. A New Theory of Urban Design 1987 4.6 h

  7. Foreshadowing of 21st Century Art: The Color and Geometry of Very Early Turkish Carpets 1993 length not known

  8. The Mary Rose Museum 1995 length not known

  9. The Nature of Order Book 1: The Phenomenon of Life 2002 length not known

  10. The Nature of Order Book 2: The Process of Creating Life 2002 length not known

  11. The Nature of Order Book 3: A Vision of a Living World 2005 length not known

  12. The Nature of Order Book 4: The Luminous Ground 2004 length not known

  13. The Battle for the Life and Beauty of the Earth: A Struggle between Two World-Systems 2012 length not known

How much is left

After The Oregon Experiment about 43 hours left, not counting 8 books of unknown length
After A Pattern Language about 22 hours left, not counting 8 books of unknown length
After The Timeless Way of Building about 12 hours left, not counting 8 books of unknown length
After The Linz Cafe about 12 hours left, not counting 7 books of unknown length
After The Production of Houses about 5 hours left, not counting 7 books of unknown length

Reading the whole series

About 43 hours 12 minutes

4 of 13 books, 2,356 pages. Estimated at 250 words a minute.

87 days (about 13 weeks) at 30 minutes a day

Estimate based on 275 words per page.