Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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46 of 48 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Long overdue book on an overdue topic, March 6, 2006
I have been keenly interested in the topic of natural swimming pools for about 5 years, but have been frustrated by the lack of information in English on the topic (there are several books in German - the homeland of the concept - but only a single manual in English).
Mr. Littlewood's book added substantially to my knowledge, gleaned from various websites, a handful of articles and research into conventional swimming pools, ponds and lake management.
But the book's value lies not so much in the (limited) technical information it provides as it does in thoroughly introducing the concept and presenting it beautifully. Mr. Littlewood is a distinguished landscape architect, and his book presents natural pools, in hundreds of beautiful pictures, in the context of landscaping.
But he doesn't focus solely on the aesthtic aspect. You'll also learn why these pools work so well without chemicals and concrete, making them environmentally friendly and a pleasure on the skin and eyes when you swim in them, and why they require less maintenance than conventional pools.
It's possible that some hard-headed American readers will be put off here and there by the author's environmental leaning and not-always-critical stance to the theory and practice of the natural swimming pool's Austrian and German pioneers, most of whom now offer patented systems that they are primarily interested in marketing.
But these are minor quibbles. The fact is, natural swimming pools are practical and make sense, and their pros (water quality, aesthetics, ecology, reduced maintenance, winter aesthetics/use) far outweigh their cons (greater risk of contracting water-borne illness, greater space requirements). Some 5000 have been built in Europe, including dozens (it might be up to hundreds) of public pools that satsify stringent German health requirements.
I think anyone interested in ecological or simply innovative or beautiful landscaping would enjoy this book.
But if you're interested in building a pond (especially for swimming) or a swimming pool (especially with alternative water sanitation), this book is an absolute must-have.
The author of this review is an American ex-pat who has lived in central Europe 14 years.
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21 of 22 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Surprisingly COMPREHENSIVE!, February 8, 2007
This large sized book covered the subject exceedingly well in lots of color photos with explanations and, more importantly, in lots of diagrams and nuts and bolts descriptions. I only read sections here and there but what I did read clearly indicated to me that you could actually use this book to build a natural swimming pool. At the least, you could definitely make a solid decision whether or not you could build or would want to build such a pool on your property. These pools are basically like salt water aquariums in that you have to make a biosphere and monitor it. In some ways it's not as easy as it sounds but also not as hard as it sounds. However, start up takes time and it can be tricky to finally reach environmental stabilization. I am not going to build a natural pool but I still found this book very useful. At the end this book are MANY pages of water plants and trees recommended for certain types of water areas. There are zone maps of the US included for reference. So even if you just want to make a little ornamental fountain in a big pot on the patio deck or a pond or a bog out back, this book has a VERY comprehensive set of plant lists you will find exceedingly useful. 18 pages of them. Categories include Submerged Plants, Floating Plants, Floating Leaved Plants, Shallow Marginal Plants, Deep Marginal Plants, Moisture-loving Plants, Bog/Marsh Plants, Waterside Plats-Trees & Shrubs, Ferns, Grasses Sedges Reeds and Rushes. Botanical and Common Names are listed along with height, spread, water depth, flower color, flower period, foliage, position, comments and plant zone. It's the best I've seen in any book so far.
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26 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A visual and informative masterpiece!, December 18, 2005
I have been interested in the idea of natural swimming pools or swimming ponds for years, but I found information almost impossible to obtain. Until now. Littlewood's book is the best resource out there, hands down. Anyone interested in creating such a paradise in there own backyard will find this book invaluable. This is a 200+ page coffee table style book with hundreds of amazing photos. Friends not even interested in building their own love sitting down just to browse.
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by Tim Matson
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