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What needs, materials, technologies, historical developments, and laws shaped it? How had it fared through the years with its various inhabitants? Sleuthing around dimly lit closets, knotty-pine wall panels, and even a secret passage—but never removing so much as a nail—Petroski zooms in on the details but also steps back to examine the structure in the context of its time and place.
As the mystery unfolds, revealing an extraordinary house and its environs, this ode to loving design will leave readers enchanted and inspired. Hardcover , pages. To see what your friends thought of this book, please sign up. Lists with This Book. This book is not yet featured on Listopia. May 30, Ben rated it it was ok. I wanted to enjoy this much more than I did, but I wasn't impressed.
I'm a carpenter, and I tend to enjoy books about construction, but this was an exception. I found the writing wooden and pedantic, and the author himself came across as someone who only had a detached and anthropological interest in people who work with their hands.
THE HOUSE WITH SIXTEEN HANDMADE DOORS by Henry Petroski , Catherine Petroski | Kirkus Reviews
Maybe I'm wrong, and he may be perfectly pleasant in person, but he struck me as a nightmare client. If you find this topic interesting, I wouldn't recommend this p I wanted to enjoy this much more than I did, but I wasn't impressed. If you find this topic interesting, I wouldn't recommend this particular book.
Aug 31, robyn rated it liked it Shelves: I gave this a higher rating than I'd like to because it is lovingly and well written; it's a love story of sorts about a house. If i were a carpenter or familiar with the area or really into houses, it would be a different experience. It did inspire me in a way though. I can't imagine building something so perfec I gave this a higher rating than I'd like to because it is lovingly and well written; it's a love story of sorts about a house. I can't imagine building something so perfect - not in an effort to create art, but simply as an expression of my innate craft - that a total stranger, years down the line, would become obsessed with it.
I like that about this book. Oct 01, Chris rated it it was ok. Most pages of this book are dedicated to a painstaking description of a residence located on a river in Maine.
The House with Sixteen Handmade Doors: A Tale of Architectural Choice and Craftsmanship
I expected the subject building to be a masterpiece of design, construction, and craftsmanship, but no. It's a simple building that was built by an amateur builder. So why does it deserve an entire book? I have the same question. The best sections were those that had nothing to do with the house but instead described history and life in Midcoast Maine.
The author is a good writer, but t Most pages of this book are dedicated to a painstaking description of a residence located on a river in Maine. The author is a good writer, but this tome is a bore to be avoided. Sep 04, Blythe rated it liked it. The topic was interesting to me and I liked the interweaving with history of the area. However, though they look like pleasant enough people in the photo, I could not warm up to the authors themselves.
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They came off as a bit snobbish and I worried about the book being read by the people, worker and renovation decision-makers about whom they made less than gracious inferences. This book drags but the professor's attention to detail is definitely an eye-opener for those of us who haven't bought a Maine getaway or taken to woodworking. I especially appreciated the history of the Craftsman's Guild competition compare with the high school math competitions that the Austro-Hungarian physicists of the 20th century enjoyed.
Compare with the histories of telecommunications, computer science — and that's a field that's been around for decades not centuries. A bit more consideration for form and this could have been a knockout book worth recommending to anyone buying an old house or restoring one. As is, this is not much more than a rambling journal of a retired professor, albeit a knowledgable and jovial one. Oct 17, Du rated it it was ok Shelves: This was very dry and unmotivating. I liked the idea of the book and the story it wanted to tell. I also liked the remote, but not really location. It is near where some relatives of mine live, and I could picture the areas in Bath and its surroundings.
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That helped get the second star. It suffers from the feeling of privilege "listen old chap, let me tell you about my summer home, and the plebeians that live in the area. You'll be shocked at how they live. I wish the pictures had been more illustrative.
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Instead they felt like a way to get the author's wife involved. They don't really add to the story.
They are too close, and too disjointed from the text around them. Apr 04, Pierre Lauzon rated it really liked it. The book is different from others he has written because he does an analysis of a summer house he and his wife Catherine bought in Maine. He not only analyzes the house but also analyzes his reactions to the house and the surrounding area.
He speaks of neighbors and how they have helped him with work to be done on the house and also watch over the house while they are away in the winter months. It is an appreciation of carpentry and the man who built the house by hand. What needs, materials, technologies, historical developments, and laws shaped it? How had it fared through the years with its various inhabitants? Sleuthing around dimly lit closets, knotty-pine wall panels, and even a secret passage—but never removing so much as a nail—Petroski zooms in on the details but also steps back to examine the structure in the context of its time and place.
As the mystery unfolds, revealing an extraordinary house and its environs, this ode to loving design will leave readers enchanted and inspired. Overview Music Video Charts. Opening the iTunes Store. If iTunes doesn't open, click the iTunes application icon in your Dock or on your Windows desktop.
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