Review by Choice Review
Lavishly illustrated and beautifully produced, this single-volume history of British domestic architecture by two independent consultants covers the Stone Age to the 20th century. Unlike many similar works, this volume focuses less on stylistic evolution and more on the development of room arrangement and function, demonstrating through ground plans and sketches as well as photographs the changes in domestic spatial arrangement over time. While this approach provides a fresh view of the long-term development of domestic building, it also results in juxtapositions some readers might find incongruous, such as finding 17th-century "double pile" houses in the same chapter with the Brighton Pavilion. The text is richly supplemented with contemporary primary-source material from period-appropriate architects, writers, and cultural observers. Although these sources are not footnoted in the text, extensive endnotes conclude each chapter. While claiming to cover aspects of the "British home," both humble and exalted, the text focuses overwhelmingly on England and (perhaps inevitably) disproportionately on the homes of the wealthy. Summing Up: Recommended. Architecture collections supporting lower-division undergraduates through professionals/practitioners; interested general readers. M. Todd Northern Virginia Community College
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Choice Review
