Customer Reviews

The Bungalow: America's Arts and Crafts Home

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I give this book three stars for the beautiful pictures, but I'm disappointed and am going to turn around and sell it. The introductory chapter on the arts & crafts movement and what exactly is considered a bungalow are quite good. It was the misleading title and the narrow focus of the rest of the book I was disappointed with. A more accurate title for this book would be "The Bungalow: Central California's Arts & Crafts Home"

I just bought a 1915 craftsman-style home in superb condition, in an area filled with bungalows and arts & crafts homes. I wanted a book to show me what sort of house elements, furnishings and fixtures were authentic to the time it was built. It was clear from the Amazon listing for this book (table of contents : "The Craftsman style: variations on the classic bungalow" and "Related arts and crafts homes") that this book didn't limit itself narrowly to bungalows either.

Unfortunately, the book turned out to be extremely narrow and provincial in a way I never expected from either the table of contents or the Amazon reader reviews. This is not really a book about "America's Arts & Crafts Home." Over three-quarters of the pictures are from either the San Francisco Bay area or the Los Angeles area. There is not a single contemporary picture taken outside of California.

197 pictures total in the book

San Francisco Bay area: 90 pictures
. San Francisco
. Oakland
. Berkeley
. San Jose
. Alameda
. Marin County
. San Leandro
. Piedmont
. etc..

Los Angeles area: 64 pictures
. Pasadena (30)
. Altadena
. Los Angeles
. Flintridge
. Alhambra
. etc.

San Diego: 10 pictures

inland California: 16 pictures
. Mariposa
. Sacramento
. Modesto
. Chico

1905-1927 drawings and plans and drawings from other parts of U.S.: 8 pictures
. Morgan Woodwork Company, Oshkosh Wisconsin (3)
. "The Home", Chicago Illinois (3)
. Brown, Stickley (2)

Contemporary pictures of bungalows and arts & crafts homes outside California: ZERO.

In very small print at the end of the acknowledgements the author writes "The search goes on to find candidates for a bungalow book with a national scope. Please send snapshots and information about worthy bungalows in your area to Douglas Keister, 5826 Fremont Street, Oakland California 94608."

The title and book description is misleading and if the author wanted to find candidates outside California he obviously didn't try very hard.

- A disappointed reviewer from Morgan/Stickley Bros./ Frank Lloyd Wright country

I own an eighty-year-old bungalow. My brother owns a house that isn't quite a bungalow, but has some arts & crafts interior elements. As I read the book I kept thinking "That's it! That's my house!" My house came to me in what real estate agents would call "pristine condition"--which means nobody's done anything but bare-bones-basic maintenance for decades. After reading the book (or, rather, browsing the photos; there's not much text), I know better what's original & authentic. While I'm not planning to restore my house to exactly 1913 appearance, I now feel more confident about some of my plans to rejuvenate my new home.

I found The Bungalow; America's Arts & Crafts Home by Paul Duchscherer & Douglas Keister to be extremely helpful with my remodel. I tagged pages with the ideas that I wanted to convey to my designer and architect. The pictures are beautiful and really assisted in developing the plans and overall look in the remodel of my bungalow style house. Very inspiring.

This an outstanding book for anyone interested in the familiar and well loved style of architecture known as the bungalow. All color photos show the gamut of this genre ranging from basic to elaborate. Both interior and exterior shots detail this rich archetictural art form. An inspiration to anyone interested in maintaining, restoring or recreating one of America's favorite homestyles.

One of the first copies of this book was part of the coffee table collection in a rustic bungalow we rented in North Carolina, and I loved it so much while we were there, I just had to have my own copy!! If you are interested in some of the really interesting architectural history of the "prarie style" bungalow and the arts & crafts movement in the early 20th century, this one is a must!! Now I look for these charming homes everywhere I go!!

Great source of inspiration for anyone who is considering doing any sort of architectural project, either interior or exterior, with and Arts and Crafts feeling.

This is a great book with wonderful color photographs! Check out his other two books in the series, as well as photographer Douglas Keisters's "Bungalows on CD-ROM".