In designing a house—one would
think—a knowledge of our past, that
is, how we got where we are today,
would be useful. Yet it seems many
homebuilders rely either on "cookiecutter"
designs, or on ill-conceived
interpretations of past styles. Home, by
Canadian architect Witold Rybczynski,
provides a well researched,
informative, readable, and sometimes
critical account of where we began
and how we have arrived in the modern
period.
Ostensibly Rybczynski is discussing
building interiors, but his real topic is
comfort—and how to achieve it. His
subjects range from the popularity of
"stylist" Ralph Lauren's creations, to
the exceptionally narrow Dutch houses
of the 17th century, to the failings
of modern chair design, and a thumbnail
tour of art history.
Rybczynski's begins with