Ever since Prince Charles' famous "carbuncle" criticism of the extension to the National Gallery architecture has received ever increasing attention. This book provides an introduction to contemporary architecture for students, interested general readers and professional architects. It explains the current major debates in architecture, profiles the key people involved in these debates with reference to particular examples of their work and sets out the key architectural movements influencing what we see being built today. The book is written with the non-expert in mind, introducing architecture through its achievements and its problems, its buildings and practitioners.