Mvrdv: Book Mountain Spijkenisse: Biography of a Building

MVRDV's Book Mountain is a building with a mission: to encourage a town populated by the least enthusiastic readers in the Netherlands—Spijkenisse, in South Holland—to switch off their televisions and start reading books again. Former Volkskrant newspaper editor Nicoline Baartman's "biography" of Book Mountain, from conception to construction, paints a picture of the town of Spijkenisse and the political and social contexts in which such buildings are realized. Book Mountain Spijkenisse is the story of an architect with a vision, a revolutionary counselor, the widow of a veterinarian, an art-oriented library director and a visionary hero from India who saves the town. The motives of the protagonists and the context are described in an accessible, straightforward style. Baartman's book offers a fascinating portrayal of life and customs in a new polder town. The story is illustrated with photographs by Marcel Veldman and informative graphics by MVRDV.