I was fortunate enough to have been a student of Howard Hibbard during his days at Columbia. He is one of those teachers that as a student you can never forget. In one class, he showed a slide of Manet's Luncheon on the Grass and compared it with the punk band Bowowow's album cover which recreated the artwork by photograph, depicting the lead woman singer in the nude. His point was to show how shocking the artwork would have been at the time by revealing the same shocking effect by photograph.
Before I go on a long tribute to Hibbard, I can say that his entertaining teaching style full of anecdotes combined with his seriousness of the subject and his overall brilliance of observation are all reflected in this book. Indeed, as other comments indicate, it is an excellent art book to introduce to those who have never appreciate art before as it helps them to understand and truly appreciate the history and details that made artists like Bernini immortal.