Book: ‘Up on the Roof’

When this old world starts getting him down, to paraphrase the Drifters’ 1962 song, Alex MacLean finds a “paradise that’s trouble-proof” up on the roofs of New York City. The trained-architect-turned-photographer-pilot has made a living for 30 years by taking aerial shots of our country. His new book, Up on the Roof, features the lofty pools, tennis courts, restaurants, gardens, and solar panels of the quintessential American city, revealing the potential for living the green, urban, outdoor high life. For those interested in matching the buildings with their top-floor views, MacLean provides a map of the places he visited. • $50; Princeton Architectural Press, May 2012