If This House Could Talk...: Historic Homes, Extraordinary Americans

by Elizabeth Smith Brownstein

Book Overview

"Be it ever so humble, there's no place like home." The buildings profiled in If This House Could Talk may not all be humble (Hearst Castle, Auldbrass Plantation, 'Iolani Palace), but at some point in... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0684839318
• ISBN13: 9780684839318
• Release Date: October 1999
• Publisher: Simon & Schuster
• Length: 288 Pages
• Weight: 2.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.0" x 9.4" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Homes as history...

I had the pleasure of meeting the author on a flight from Frankfurt to Rome last summer. I bought and read this book with great enthusiasm. The author is brilliant and funny. The book takes us to various personalities, times and eras in the historical evolution of our country as these homes are used as the medium to demonstrate the message of the time and culture. It is eloquently written in unpretensious prose. I must read.

Fascinating!

Through history, art, architecture and more, you journey through these extraordinary Americans lives, and their homes. Elizabeth Smith Brownstein takes you on a facinating tour of 26 homes including Presidential homes, Plantations, Haunted Houses, famous Women's homes, a home of the future and more. What a great book for treasured collections, book clubs, and anyone intersted in America, history and artchitecture.

A wonderful addition to any library

This book has immediately become a favorite of my wife and I. We jump from chapter to chapter, revisiting homes we have actually been to and learning additional tidbits about them. As well, we are delving into homes we now hope to visit in the future. The pictures are well-chosen and attractive and the author's choice of text brings these dwellings to life. We recommend this "work of historic art" to everyone, no matter their level of interest in this area.

A wonderful book that I just could not put down!

This fabulous book contains interesting histories and illustrations of the homes of famous Americans. I especially liked the sections on the historical California homes, since my husband and I have visited several of them. As a student of both archicture and history, this book inspired me to plan future visits to each of the homes described. Highly recommended!

Fascinating tour of select American homes over time

The reader is taken on an an insider's tour of American treasure dwellings and those who inhabited them. Elizabeth Smith Brownstein, the author, offers us a wonderful journey filled with her special touch and accumulated knowledge.There is much that is new and surprising as the past is newly reviewed; even a peek into concepts for potential year 2000 housing. Put this book on your Holiday List for house tour devotees and history buffs alike.