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3.93 AVERAGE
3.93 AVERAGE
Loosely constructed and rambly, as is most of Bryson's writing. Occasional laugh-out-loud moments, but more often than not I found myself skipping over some of the tedious details and tangential information.
Lots of interesting info in this book. Bryson goes on a lot of tangents that have you thinking ‘wait how does this relate to the home?’ But they are full of good facts
I mostly enjoyed this book. I don't think it hung together as well as some of his other work. Sometimes when we were off on a discussion of a fascinating topic, like seventeenth century surgery, it is hard to remember that the book is ostensibly about the house. Still there's no pithier synthesizer of social history than Bryson.
I listened to the audio book which was read by the author. Wonderful flow with such a nice voice. The thought that kept coming to me during this book is, I wish I had the authors knowledge. Such a smart man and the amount of research that went into this book is amazing. I learned so much without feeling like I was being schooled. There were several ah ha moments and thoughts of, wow, that's really cool or, goodness, why didn't I know that? There were even a few times I had to chuckle at the absurdity and audacity which is part of our history. If you are a life long learner such as myself, or, even just a curious person who enjoys a good book, I believe you will not be disappointed. Enjoy!!!
This is on its way to becoming one of my all-time favorite books.
How can you not love a book that says (p. 194):
"Today [the cellar] holds the boiler, idle suitcases, out-of-season sporting equipment, and many sealed cardboard boxes that are almost never opened but are always carefully transferred from house to house with every move in the belief that one day someone might want some baby clothes that have been kept in a box for twenty-five years"?
Or, p. 208,
"Buildings made of the new-style bricks had much less subtlety and character than buildings of earlier eras, but they were much cheaper, and there has hardly ever been a time in the conduct of human affairs when cheapness didn't triumph"? (emphasis mine)
Lots more truisms where that came from!
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Now that I'm done reading the book, I can give it 5 stars with no reservation. I think my family is tired of my quoting Bill Bryson, but I did love the book that much! I just love fascinating semi-random facts, which Mr. Bryson dishes out with a highly readable style. My only quibble is that the ending made me cry.
How can you not love a book that says (p. 194):
"Today [the cellar] holds the boiler, idle suitcases, out-of-season sporting equipment, and many sealed cardboard boxes that are almost never opened but are always carefully transferred from house to house with every move in the belief that one day someone might want some baby clothes that have been kept in a box for twenty-five years"?
Or, p. 208,
"Buildings made of the new-style bricks had much less subtlety and character than buildings of earlier eras, but they were much cheaper, and there has hardly ever been a time in the conduct of human affairs when cheapness didn't triumph"? (emphasis mine)
Lots more truisms where that came from!
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Now that I'm done reading the book, I can give it 5 stars with no reservation. I think my family is tired of my quoting Bill Bryson, but I did love the book that much! I just love fascinating semi-random facts, which Mr. Bryson dishes out with a highly readable style. My only quibble is that the ending made me cry.
informative
fast-paced
informative
medium-paced
I loved this book. A fascinating look at architecture and the history of how people live. I loved the organization which is loosely organized around the rooms of a house. There are many divergent meandering paths taken from each room (I'm still waiting for The Attic to talk about "the attic")but it is forgiven because it is all so interesting and entertaining.
Was expecting to be educated with a few laughs along the way. Did get educated but unfortunately not many laughs.
Another excellent book by Bill Bryson. I'm not quite sure what I find so enjoyable about his writing. He has an excellent eye for a good anecdote, and retells telling and intricate details extremely well. He also has a talent for writing prose that is exceedingly easy to float through without any noticeable effort.
In this book he essentially manages to tell human history through a short journey around his own house (which, it transpires, is in Norfolk). Fascinating.
In this book he essentially manages to tell human history through a short journey around his own house (which, it transpires, is in Norfolk). Fascinating.