Customer Reviews

A House on the Water: Inspiration for Living at the Water's Edge

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3 star:		(2)
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This is an excellent book for those who dream about that perfect home on the water and those who want to learn more about good design and good architecture. The layouts and photos are wonderful, and in and of themselves provide a tutorial in design excellence.

Bob Knight's prose is accessible and informative in describing the choices each architect faced and what makes their designs work. By avoiding the esoteric and making a straightforward presentation about the design solutions he likes, Knight provides readers with an insight into the design process that may help build their dreams.

Books, like good movies and good restaurants, should do what they say they are going to do and do it well. This one does. It provides a thoughful perspective from Knight's experience as an architect and draws conclusions that the reader can verify or challenge based on the photos, graphics, and their own time on the water.

I particularly appreciated the fact that Knight visited each of the homes and that he based his observations on real, not paper architecture.

I recommend this book for dreamers and designers. It would make a great fall/winter read on those cold rainy days.

I work for Robert Knight. I work for him because he can express ideas about architecture where most architects, and architecture critics cannot. I had no idea I would enjoy this book as much as I did. Robert Knight has a way of drawing you into a design and making it sensible. The houses chosen for this book are as varied as any I have ever seen in a book of this type. The design are uniformly excellent examples representing a wide range of styles and locales. The photography is equally excellent. We expect good photography, and pretty buildings, but these are substantial buildings and Robert Knight has been a most enjoyable guide.

This book includes beautifully composed photographs of carefully selected private homes that overlook natural bodies of water across the USA. The author demonstrates his keen appreciation for good, functional and inspiring design in his selection of homes to show. Even if you are not in the market for a home by the water, a careful study of this book will inspire you to think about how your current home frames nature and invites the inspirations of natural scenes into your living spaces.

Knight's book is a highly informative guide to building and living on the water's edge (or anywhere for that matter). With beautiful photos and engaging writing, the book takes the reader to 24 homes representing a wide range of styles and sizes, from all across the US and Canada. The descriptions of the homes are not just mechanical summaries of "this porch size" or "that window height", but critical evaluations of what the architect and the owners wanted (and got) from their homes.

The emphasis throughout the book is on homes that compliment the land, not conquer it. (One home, designed for a couple interested in bird watching, is barely visible below the tree line.) The photos capture this spirit in beautiful detail, bringing the houses and their surroundings to life (site plans and floor plans are also provided). Perhaps most importantly, the author does not use superfluous language or concepts that the reader can't understand; it's an easy read that gets to the point.

If you've liked some of the other Taunton house books such as "The Not So Big House" by Sarah Susanka, you'll definitely be at home with "A House on the Water".

In short, a fantastic book that I would recommend to all.

As a landscape designer, I was consistenly impressed with how these wonderful houses fit into their site, lifting out the critical views and respecting the nature of the place. Having enjoyed the houses that Robert Knight designs, I was pleased to learn why his houses and those selected for his book are so satisfying to see and experience. O'Rourke's photographs are spectacular and with the plans, really help to visualize the structure and the setting and how they fit together. Design professionals and homeowners alike with whom I've shared this book rave about it. A perfect gift for friends and family!

I found this book both educational and handsome in content and in photography. As an architect practicing in different regions of the country, I'm always thankful for having opportunities to do design work in Maine. Maine, as a place to live, is simply wonderful and unique, but the sense of peace in these "Houses on the Water" is elevated creating a noble inspiration for the reader.

This book not only is full of wonderful photographs of beautiful houses, but also contains useful information about building on the water, sketch plans of each house, and insightful analysis of each design. It's a pleasure to read as well as to look at. I enjoyed my copy so much that I'll be buying more for friends and family.

This catalog of twenty-four homes built right on the water provide eye-catching displays of signature homes which highlight the relationship of house to water, from seaside to lakeside and riverside. The focus on home design and construction surveys both artistic and practical details of tailoring a beautiful home which can withstand the demands of a waterside location. A gorgeous, inspirational survey of very different approaches and techniques.

This book isn't quite what I expected. I don't usually think of homes on the water limited to areas of New England, Northern California and the NW coast. The homes are primarily of wood construction and all very rustic. I was hoping for examples also of architecture on the Florida coast - stucco construction, more Mediterranean in style. There was none of that. Most homes are set in a forest on a lake or ocean.

I was excited to get this book in the mail, as I thought it would have some real good ideas on how to build a larger home on the water that had some character. I found most of the homes rather odd, homes for people that would name their children Jupiter or Flower. I am back today ordering more books. Also most homes either are RIGHT on the water or set back in rock. Didn't find much in the way of regular 100ft setback from the water, woods, maybe a walkout basement type of MN lakes home. There was one from WI but again, it was right on the water, which you normally can not build now days.