Review by Booklist Review
Fifty years after Life magazine commissioned Frank Lloyd Wright to build a dream house, a similar event is taking place--this time under the tutelage of a Twin Cities' architect. Having examined our homes and found most of them wanting, she argues for a not so big house, one that is comfortable, promotes quality over quantity, and expresses the owners' whims and preferences. That goal is not an easy one to achieve, considering that many Americans have succumbed to the Versailles complex--that is, bigger is better. Nonetheless, through a combination of eloquent thought and visual examples, Susanka succeeds. Her tips include building an "away" room, a retreat from a home's hubbub. Readers will find her chapter on building from scratch particularly enlightening, as are her unfortunately too abbreviated musings on future homes. (Reviewed October 1, 1998)1561581305Barbara Jacobs
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Library Journal Review
Architect Susanka believes that the large homes being built today place too much emphasis on square footage rather than on current lifestyles. Here she shows how homes can be designed to feature "adaptable spaces open to one another, designed for everyday use." She describes how to examine occupants' lifestyles, how to incorporate the kitchen as the focal point of the home, how to give the illusion of space, and how, with storage, lighting, and furniture arrangement, a smaller home can be comfortably livable. Photographs of contemporary homes as well as those by Frank Lloyd Wright and other modern architects illustrate Susanka's ideas and show the timelessness of the style she advocates. This thought-provoking book will be a good addition to architectural and interior design collections. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
