3 comments about Houses for Good Living.

1. "Houses for Good Living" is an excellent introduction to the craft and vision of Royal Barry Wills, the talented Boston architect whose legacy lives on in the firm that bears his name. This book invites the reader to explore dozens of magnificent houses that represent the Royal Barry Wills philosophy. Detailed floor plans are complemented with a wealth of exterior and interior photographs.

   Every page of this book is a visual feast. The homes presented represent a dazzling diversity of configurations, but each one bears the Wills trademark of elegant harmony and functionality. The appealing black-and-white photographs record numerous memorable details. We see the turned balusters of a wooden staircase, a multi-paned bow window, a charming cobblestone courtyard--I could go on and on. If you love classic American home architecture, you will want to add this beautiful book to your shelves.




2. I didn't like this book. As the proud owner of a Cape Cod style house, I bought this book with the idea that it would help in resoration and remodeling. Instead, it made me wish I hadn't spent the money. Although there are some nice pictures, the author's treatment of the subject is too serious and in some cases without taste. I was especially disappointed in the glowing praise for an old farmhouse that had serveral huge ugly tenticals built out of it. This guys has no sense of style or beauty. Pass on this book and buy Cape Cod Architecture by Clair Baisly. Ms. Baisley has a wonderful and warm writing style that makes you wish you could invite her over for tea. She explains the various aspects of the architecture, how to date features, what belongs, what probably doesn't, and above all to just enjoy this wonderful thing you call your home. The dry Mr. Wills is the sort of guy you just want to get rid of, and I have.



3. As an owner of one of the houses in the book, I bought a copy of Royal Barry Wills' book to educate myself on Cape Cod design. My home required some updating, and through this book I was able to research and tastefully modernize the home, while still staying true to its roots. After living in an older Cape Cod, I can't imagine ever moving to a new house--this book captures the character and charm of a Royal Barry Wills home.

3 comments about Additions: Design Ideas for Great American Houses (Great Houses).

1. As the owner of a small architectural practice that does many additions, I see this book as an excellent (and very affordable) sourcebook for residential additions. This book brings together twenty-five projects that have been featured in Fine Homebuilding magazine over the past five years. The additions range in scale form major complete home makeovers to small additions/remodelings such as adding a portico to a Georgian Colonial home. The projects are classified in terms of "Adding Up, Adding on the Side, Adding On, and Adding Out.

   These projects are mostly what I term "Seamless" additions, meaning that the addition/makeover/remodeling is done in a manner to create a seamless (oftentimes altogether new) building. Most of the projects featured are architect designed and all display a fine level of craftsmanship and inginuity that one expects from Fine Homebuilding Magazine. It is interesting to compare this book with James Grayson Truelove's book "New American Additions and Remodelings". Truelove's book, which I also highly recommend, features more avante garde, object-like projects, many by noted young architects.

   This is a paperback book and the articles are have been very nicely repackaged. Whether you are an architect, contractor, or homeowner, I highly recommend this book.




2. Beautiful book, beautiful photos, wonderful ideas IF you either have a two-story home or would like to add a second story addition to your one-story home. For me, however, the book served no particular purpose and was a great disappointment as my intent is to increase the size of our home by going outward, not upward.



3. As a local builder/remodelor, I was looking for a book that would contain some great ideas for additions as well as some new helpful strategies or solutions to common problems that occur doing additions. This book fell short of my expectations. It focuses on a few addition projects and highlights the details of those additions. If the house(s) that you are working on is/are not one of the styles highlighted, there may not be much here for you. That said, there are some great ideas in these projects that are worth the price of the book, but be forwarned that you will not learn much, and that there are not pages and pages of different ideas.

1 comments about Making Better Concrete: Guidelines to Using Fly Ash for Higher Quality, Eco-Friendly Structures.

1. This is a compact little book that should be required reading for all Architects, Engineers, and Builders. Concrete made with some Fly Ash has very few down sides and many advantages over concrete made with only Portland Cement. As an architect I see little reason to ever specify concrete without using some fly ash in every mix. I was surprised to learn when talking with local ready mix concrete suppliers that fly ash is a standard component of their everyday mix designs unless there is a special request to eliminate it.

1 comments about The Woodland House.

1. Author Ben Law build a lovely home in the woods - one of the most sustainable and lovely in Britain - and here provides his experience on the whole process, completed under L28,000 with the help of volunteers and no crane, no waste, and no electricity from the grid. His home is an inspiration and was featured on the TV show 'Grand Designs': the book follows the step-by-step process of its construction with color photos all the way.
   
   Diane C. Donovan
   California Bookwatch

1 comments about A Book of Cape Cod Houses.

1. Doris Doane draws on years of experience as a historian and park ranger on Cape Cod to write text as only an "old timer" could. She lets you into a world that she grew to love -- Old Cape Cod. The illustrator brings his masterful work to the page to complement her work. A terrific book!

1 comments about New Interior Design: Collidoscope.

1. the book was great but was in bad condition when i bought it.
   i thought i bought it new but the cover was damage by some liquid an in very bad condition, be careful

No comments about How to Be Your Own Architect: A Residential Design Handbook.

5 comments about Adventures With Old Houses.

1. You can read glowing priase for this book and profiles of Mr. Jenrette's in House Beautiful (May 2000); Architectural Digest (March 2000); Southern Accents (July/August 2000); Old House Interiors (March 2000); Antiques Magazine, Preservation Magazine and Veranda (April 2000).



2. If you believe in reincarnation and love old houses, you would surely want to "come back" as Richard Hampton Jenrette! (Who knows, maybe HE is the reinarnation of Alva Erskine Smith Vanderbilt Belmont, a peer, certainly, in the collection of wonderful houses.)

   This man has the most exquisite taste, a passion for historic houses and the decorative arts, and the means to indulge a lifestyle that can simply be described as sublime.

   This book is NOT a "how to" manual. It is an elegant recollection of a number of houses he has owned and obviously loved over the course of many years.




3. I bought this book for my wife who is interested in classical American design and is a student of heritage preservation. The book is generously illustrated with large colour photographs of the exteriors and interiors of Mr. Jenrette's restored historic houses. The interior designs are neither museum-like nor a snobbish show of wealth, but impeccably tasteful, eminently liveable and absolutely applicable.
   
   The text not only explains the history of the houses, their restoration and their decoration; it conveys the love and respect with which Mr. Jenrette undertook each project. This is among my wife's favourite books, and it never stays long on the bookshelf. (As a result of reading this book, my wife has put Mr. Jenrette at the top of her "person I most want to meet" list). Highlighting American furniture styles of the early 19th century in situ at six of America's most beautiful homes, there is a strong East coast and Southern flavour reminiscent of some of the rooms at the White House.
   
   In these days of reduced heritage funding, many irreplaceable examples of fine American architecture are being lost. Mr. Jenrette has used his personal wealth to preserve endangered American architecture and antiques for future public enjoyment. Many thanks to him for sharing them in this excellent book.
   
   -- Erik Pedersen, Victoria, B.C.



4. I highly recommend this to anyone fascinated w/ old houses. I enjoyed reading about Mr Jenrette's life and homes...this book is stunning.



5. I have been a fan of Richard Jenrette ever since I first saw the Roper House in Charleston. This year I had the opportunity to visit it and see all of the public spaces and admire the many changes since my first visit. Next spring I will be with a small group invited for coffee and a tour of Edgewater. I suspect that this may be the only other one of his houses that I get to see, but I feel as though I have been to all of them after reading his book. It is lively, amusing and quite informative, and the photographs are wonderful. Thanks Richard Jenrette for preserving these wonderful properties!

No comments about Ludwig Mies van der Rohe: The Tugendhat House.

1 comments about Do It Right The First Time: What Every Homeowner Needs To Know Before The Work Begins.

1. This book gives you lots of good info and the person who sold it may never have even opened it. I wasn't expecting a hard cover for the price- good deal.