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Storybook Style: America's Whimsical Homes of the Twenties Hardcover – October 29, 2001
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Storybook Style, the rambunctious evocation of medieval Europe in American housing, was born in the early 1920s and almost forgotten by the late 1930s. It took its inspiration from the Hollywood sets that enthralled Americans of the period and that still appeal to our jaded modern eye. Half timbered and turreted, pinnacled and portcullised, these houses owed their fanciful bravura to architects and builders with theatrical flair, fine craftsmanship, and humor. In Storybook Style, architectural information enhances the stunning color pictures by Bungalow and Painted Ladies photographer Doug Keister to impart a wealth of information and enjoyment.
- Print length192 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherStudio
- Publication dateOctober 29, 2001
- Reading age18 years and up
- Dimensions8.75 x 0.75 x 11 inches
- ISBN-100670893854
- ISBN-13978-0670893850
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- Publisher : Studio (October 29, 2001)
- Language : English
- Hardcover : 192 pages
- ISBN-10 : 0670893854
- ISBN-13 : 978-0670893850
- Reading age : 18 years and up
- Item Weight : 2.15 pounds
- Dimensions : 8.75 x 0.75 x 11 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #613,738 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #494 in Architectural Drafting & Presentation
- #608 in Architectural History
- #1,000 in Interior Design
- Customer Reviews:
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About the authors

Photographer-writer Douglas Keister, has authored and co-authored forty-two critically acclaimed books. He also writes and illustrates magazine articles and contributes photographs and essays to dozens of magazines, newspapers, books, calendars, posters and greeting cards worldwide.
His twenty-five books on architecture include five books on Victorian homes (Daughter's of Painted Ladies, Painted Ladies Revisited, America's Painted Ladies, Victorian Glory and 500 Victorians); twelve books on bungalow homes (The Bungalow, Inside the Bungalow, Outside the Bungalow, 500 Bungalows and eight small format books on bungalow details), a book on 1920's whimsical homes (Storybook Style) a book about cemetery art and architecture (Going Out in Style), a book on Spanish architecture, (Red Tile Style), four books on cottage (Classic Cottages, Inside Classic Cottages, Cottages and 500 Cottages a book on cemetery architecture (Going Out in Style) and a book on Courtyards. Keister photographed and wrote an award winning children's book (Fernando's Gift), has two monographs of his personal work (Black Rock and Driftwood Whimsy), and four books on classic recreational vehicles, Ready to Roll, Silver Palaces, Mobile Mansions and Teardrops and Tiny Trailers. His wealth of books on architecture has earned him the title, "America's most noted photographer of historic architecture". His book on cemetery symbolism, Stories in the Stone: A Field Guide to Cemetery Symbolism and Iconography, has garnered a number of glowing reviews.
He photographed and wrote a bilingual children's books in China, To Grandmother's House: A Visit to Old-Town Beijing (January 2008). He had three books come out in fall 2008, Forever Dixie (a book on southern cemeteries), Teardrops and Tiny Trailers and a book featuring his collection of glass negatives. Lincoln in Black and White 1910-1925.
His thirty-eighth book, Forever LA which features cemeteries in the Los Angeles Area was published in May 2010. His thirty-ninth book, Stories in Stone New York: A Field Guide to New York City Cemeteries and Their Residents was released in October 2011 by Gibbs Smith Publisher.
In the mid 2000s, Doug began writing novels, including Desiree, Autumn in Summer, Molly in the Afternoon (writing as Suzanne Hartley) and a memoir about growing up in Nebraska titled Heart-Land:Growing up in the Middle of Everything. His most recent novel, Bullets, Baubles and Bones came out in May 2014.
Doug frequently gives presentations in conjunction with his books and speaks at related events. In the past few years he has lectured in Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, Chicago, Atlanta, Cincinnati, Cleveland, Spokane, Kansas City, Boston, Houston, San Antonio, Milwaukee, Vermont, Winnemucca and Carson City, Nevada, Lincoln, Nebraska, Fort Wayne, Indiana, The Smithsonian in Washington D.C. and the Tenement Museum and the Cooper-Union in New York. In October 2010 his cemetery books and photography were featured in a segment of CBS Sunday Morning. Correspondent Rita Braver called him "America's Chief Tombstone Tourist". SUNSET magazine said, "Keister has done for cemetery exploration what Audubon did for birding."
He lives in Chico, California.

Arrol Gellner is an architect with over thirty years experience in residential, commercial, and industrial architecture. He is a Cum Laude graduate of the College of Environmental Design, University of California, Berkeley. His current work ranges from upscale homes, additions, and industrial lofts in the San Francisco Bay Area, to a 200-acre resort project in Shanghai, China.
Gellner writes the nationally-syndicated architecture column Architext, and has authored many other articles on design and the history of American architecture. He has completed his third book with veteran photographer Douglas Keister.
He is a frequent speaker on architectural subjects, and has served on panels with some of California's most distinguished architects. His other interests include classic cars and music writing and recording.
Gellner's 400+ Architext columns can be viewed at sfgate.com or at his syndicate's website, inman.com.
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Color photography is fine enough to allow a reader to revel in the details and to get a sense of the textures of the construction materials used in the projects shown. Explanations illuminate some of the 'tricks' of the Storybook architect or designer, such as manipulating the scale of windows and their placement to fool our sense of actual space as we 'read' the interior rooms by looking at the outside elevations. All-in-all, this is a very satisfying coffee table book or source of architectural inspiration. I have been returning to it for additional 'looks' and musings.
Before I purchased this book, I had a slight idea of what "storybook style" might be, however, after buying this book and seeing the photos, I now know better what this style is all about.
The descriptions in the "Introduction" are very worthwhile because the author attempts to describe where this style came from and how it evolved.
The photos, of course , speak a thousand words, because they actually show what "storybook style" actually is.
Living in Puget Sound, we just don't see too many "storybook style" homes out here, so it was just wonderful to find a book in which this interesting style of architecture was explained and shown (ie: mainly in California).
Although, we do see many "TUDOR STYLE" homes out here in the Northern Pacific Northwest, we do,however, not see any "storybook homes". Thus, it was actually nice to find a book that explains the difference between Tudor and Storybook Architecture.
Formally trained architects may not view this "storybook style" as an architectural style per se, however, the author of this book explains how Hollywood influenced this style greatly, and how eventually it became a "style" that was different from the actual Tudor style. As stated before in my previous statements: photos speak a thousand words.
The book displays a professional knowledge of architecture, unlike many in this category which seem to be written by art historians, and you can rest assured the author will not confuse a mullion with a muntin, or claim, as another one once did, that Tudor is an early Rennaissance style. (Although he happens to be incorrect in saying "terra cotta" means "hollow tile"; it means "baked earth".)
No vacant catalog-esque prose here; the author knows his subject and enjoys telling others about it.
My dream almost came true because in the 60's many Orange County houses were built with storybook features; diamond pane windows, shake roofs, cat slides - they weren't as wonderful as the masonary models, but, still fun. Unfortunately, these house were updated with asbestos shingle roofs, the windows were removed for double pane. The character was diminished, but not completely lost. You can still see these houses in Anaheim in the neighborhoods surrounding Disneyland. What a perfect setting for a fairytale style.
And I recommend this book as a nostalgic look back and a real joy to read.










