Sarah Susanka

This book belongs on the "to read" list of anyone buying or building a home. I had avoided reading the book because of Susanka's popularity, but the book contains quality content. When the book was first published in 1998 Susanka was on the forefront of the movement away from McMansions and large houses (a movement that, in my opinion, is only just now really hitting the mainstream). Although Susanka and her "Not So Big" mantra have become something of a brand now, when this book was published, she did not know whether or not anyone would care about her message.

After discussing trends in home sizes, Susanka gets down to the business of describing how to make a smaller house livable. Many books make it sound like living in a smaller space is an ordeal that must be dealt with; Susanka gives you reason to prefer smaller spaces over larger ones.

If you only remember one of Susanka's tips, remember to think about your home as a set of functional spaces rather than as a series of rooms. This small change in viewpoint changes the way you see a home. If you want to remember a bit more, the book explores several principles for creating a comfortable, livable, homey not so big house. These include: sheltered spaces around activity, multi-purpose rooms, ceiling height variation, interior views, diagonal views, and give each person a place of their own.

(Note: As of 18 Mar 2017, Dan is borrowing this)… (altro)