Weekend Houses (Hardcover)

by Penelope Rowlands (Author), Mark Darley (Photographer) "The land has been everything to us for a very long time - for as long, in fact, as we humans have walked upon it..." (more)
Key Phrases: fishing cabin, home accessories, New York, Van Dam, Napa Valley (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Home sweet home away from home...the weekend getaway is the perfect place to rejuvenate, a sanctuary for enjoying life's simpler pleasures. For those who already own a second home or dream of having one, this lovely volume of more than 200 lush photographs will transport sojourners from one beautiful retreat to another. From rustic cabins to grand farmhouses, from water's edge to country meadows and mountain glades, a weekend home is the perfect place to unwind. Taking an intimate tour of twenty-seven weekend escapes, revealing in wonderful detail both interior and exterior views, readers learn from the owners what makes each place special and why the perfect weekend home isn't limited to any one part of the country, nor is it defined by size or style of architecture. The real beauty of these houses lies in the casual, relaxed vacation lifestyle they inspire. A stunning photographic journey, Weekend Houses is the ultimate guide to leaving it all behind.

About the Author
Penelope Rowlands has written for several magazines, including Architectural Digest and Vogue, and her work has also appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle. She lives in Northern California. This is Penelope's first book.

Mark Darley has photographed several architecture and interior design books, including California Beach Houses. He lives in Northern California.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 204 pages
• Publisher: Chronicle Books; First Edition edition (October 1, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0811825434
• ISBN-13: 978-0811825436
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 10.1 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.9 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,222,788 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great weekend reading, August 31, 2000

By	Ms. Parker "constantreader2006" (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

A book to dream on. Beautiful and offbeat vacation houses. Lovely photographs and a lively and readable text. More fun than a year's subscription to Architectural Digest.

16 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Casual & Relaxed...?, April 5, 2001

By	bbc "bbcnyc" (Salem, Massachusetts United States) - See all my reviews

"The real beauty of these houses lies in the casual, relaxed vacation lifestyle they inspire..." Casual and relaxed...? Vacation lifestyle...?

I ordered this book, expecting it to relax me with images of quiet weekend getaways, tucked snugly among a grove of trees or a cottage on a windswept beach, as the cover and title "Weekend Houses" would suggest.

Instead, it is a collective of million-dollar-plus manses, smugly over-decorated and far more complex than most homes. It screams at you with excruciating 'style' and manufactured charm. I'd be afraid to even arrive in jeans, much less put my feet up.

Here's a challenge--try and find just one that wasn't built or renovated by a metro-turbo doctor, lawyer or television executive. (Of course, lengthy bios are included of each owner--do we care?)...

It's gorgeous photography and the settings are admittedly beautiful, but unfortunately these "Weekend Houses" read exactly like most of their settings--stilted and inaccessible.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The last reviewer was wrong!, June 13, 2001

By A Customer

The last reviewer had it wrong! This isn't a just-for-the-rich type book at all. Quite the opposite. There are lots of examples in it of weekend places that are fun but not grand, as well as ones that are palatial and wonderful in that way, too. There's a prefab cabin and several very artistic-looking shacks.

The author says in the introduction that style is "pleasingly democratic." So is this book, which is a real winner, complete with gorgeous photographs and lots of ideas for homeowners. The sailboat-house and sleeping porch, to name just two great structures in here, are really inspiring.