This story includes a brief excursion into Western human history and through pre-Industrial European towns and villages, in order to explore our fundamental nature and our real needs as human beings. The journey will show us what sustainable human settlements that existed for hundreds of years and into the present looked like before the era of fossil fuels. This view of a past full of insight and ingenuity - both of which were somehow lost as we blindly embraced everything "modern" - allows us to visualize a future world with healthy, fulfilling lifestyles, and buildings and communities that nurture the human spirit and exist in harmony with nature. This book will help us understand what is necessary to rediscover the extraordinary human creativity and ingenuity that have repeatedly saved us throughout our existence and allowed us to thrive as a species. Drawing from the best of our past, present, and visionary re-thinking of both, The Poetry of Architecture is an indispensable guide to a sustainable and livable future.