Staff Pick
Bill Bryson could make paint drying seem utterly fascinating. In his own house, a former parsonage in a tiny village in England, Bryson is perplexed by the attributes (and non-attributes) he finds there. There are no stairs up to the attic, but what is up there is a beautifully finished door to... nowhere. So starts Bryson's quest to discover all things homey. The original reason people started living in houses, the immensity of London's sewer system, American's love of ice, your fuse box, Jefferson's Monticello, the cholera epidemic, Thomas Chippendale, life without light, poisonous wallpaper, the seasonings on your dining table — it's all in there. Bryson's amazing mind and intelligent wit will completely win you over. Recommended By Dianah H., Powells.com
Synopses & Reviews
From the author of that classic of modern science writing,
A Short History of Nearly Everything, comes a work of what you might call domestic science: our homes, how they work, and the fascinating history of how they got that way.
Bill Bryson and his family live in a Victorian parsonage in a part of England where nothing of any great significance has happened since the Romans decamped. Yet one day, he began to consider how very little he knew about the ordinary things of life as found in that comfortable home. To remedy this, he formed the idea of journeying about his house from room to room to "write a history of the world without leaving home." The bathroom provides the occasion for a history of hygiene; the bedroom, sex, death, and sleep; the kitchen, nutrition and the spice trade; and so on, as Bryson shows how each has figured in the evolution of private life. Whatever happens in the world, he demostrates, ends up in our house, in the paint and the pipes and the pillows and every item of furniture.
From the Hardcover edition.
About the Author
BILL BRYSON's books include
A Walk in the Woods,
I'm a Stranger Here Myself,
In a Sunburned Country,
Bryson's Dictionary of Troublesome Words,
A Short History of Nearly Everything,
The Life and Times of the Thunderbolt Kid and
Bryson's Dictionary for Writers and Editors. Bryson lives in England with his wife and children.
From the Hardcover edition.
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION
I THE YEAR
II THE SETTING
III THE HALL
IV THE KITCHEN
V THE SCULLERY AND LARDER
VI THE FUSE BOX
VII THE DRAWING ROOM
VIII THE DINING ROOM
IX THE CELLAR
X THE PASSAGE
XI THE STUDY
XII THE GARDEN
XIII THE PLUM ROOM
XIV THE STAIRS
XV THE BEDROOM
XVI THE BATHROOM
XVII THE DRESSING ROOM
XVIII THE NURSERY
XIX THE ATTIC
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
BIBLIOGRAPHY
ILLUSTRATION CREDITS
INDEX
From the Hardcover edition.