The Secret Life of Hidden Places: Concealed Rooms, Clandestine Passageways, and the Curious Minds That Made Them

If you read the entire title and sub-title, you have a pretty good idea what this book is about. It is broken into eighteen chapters. Each chapter has a main story about a strange or mysterious place, but there are related smaller stories about similar places included. The writing is conversational and very pleasant to read, and there are a lot of photographs and other art included to support the text, although not as many as this reviewer would like.

The stories not only tell about the place but how it came to be, who was responsible for it, and something about the idiosyncrasies of the creators of the places. Only two of the chapters focus on American places, most are set in Europe, but it does include places in Mexico, Japan, and Egypt as well.

Clearly, authors Stefan Bachmann and April Genevieve Tucholke have done their homework. They have found fascinating places and stories to go with them and gathered them in an attractive tome. This is the perfect book to keep on the bedside table, next to the couch, in the bathroom, on a car trip, or any place you might have a few minutes to read.