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THE COMFORTS OF HOME

Name: THE COMFORTS OF HOME
Author: Merritt Ierley
ISBN: 0-609-60299-3

THE AMERICAN HOUSE AND THE EVOLUTION OF MODERN CONVENIENCE

by Merritt Ierley ‧ RELEASE DATE: Nov. 17, 1999

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A brief and remarkably dull history of the creature comforts, from indoor flush toilets to microwave ovens, that are taken for granted in homes today. Author Ierley (Open House, 1999) has made himself something of an expert on the American home, and in this volume has tried to highlight the pioneer inventors and entrepreneurs whose 19th-century ingenuity has made the livin’ so easy. Each of his three chronological sections, spanning from 1805 to the present, incorporates descriptions of developments in Power, Fuel and Water Supply, Heating, Lighting, the Bathroom, and the Kitchen. To follow the evolution of modern toilet facilities, read the sections on the water closet and the bathroom as if they were one unit (as perhaps they should have been), and you—ll find that the principle of the flush toilet was demonstrated as early as the 16th century. The problem then and for centuries to come was delivery systems: Water had to be hand-pumped or carried to a cistern attached to the “stoole pot,” and the contents flushed into a closed container which also had to be emptied by hand. As water began to be piped into more and more homes beginning in the mid—19th century, the primitive design evolved into its efficient modern counterpart. Ierley discloses similar scenarios for bathing, cooking, and heating, describing a primitive central heating system, for instance, installed in a private American home as early as 1820. By the 1860s, the British were already complaining about overheated American buildings. Refrigeration, washing machines, even dishwashers and air conditioners all had early prototypes (“the 19th century was a marvelously inventive time in America”), apparently lying in wait for a cheap and convenient source of energy to evolve into today’s appliances. Dozens of early diagrams and charts, many incomprehensible, illustrate the new inventions and their impact. Fragmented and muddled, with considerable solid research gone to waste. (125 illus.)

Pub Date: Nov. 17, 1999

ISBN: 0-609-60299-3

Page Count: 288

Publisher: N/A

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1999

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
WONDROUS CONTRIVANCES
by Merritt Ierley

- BOOK REVIEW
OPEN HOUSE
by Merritt Ierley

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NUTCRACKER

by E.T.A. Hoffmann ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 28, 1996

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This is not the Nutcracker sweet, as passed on by Tchaikovsky and Marius Petipa. No, this is the original Hoffmann tale of 1816, in which the froth of Christmas revelry occasionally parts to let the dark underside of childhood fantasies and fears peek through. The boundaries between dream and reality fade, just as Godfather Drosselmeier, the Nutcracker's creator, is seen as alternately sinister and jolly. And Italian artist Roberto Innocenti gives an errily realistic air to Marie's dreams, in richly detailed illustrations touched by a mysterious light. A beautiful version of this classic tale, which will captivate adults and children alike. (Nutcracker; $35.00; Oct. 28, 1996; 136 pp.; 0-15-100227-4)

Pub Date: Oct. 28, 1996

ISBN: 0-15-100227-4

Page Count: 136

Publisher: Harcourt

Review Posted Online: May 19, 2010

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Aug. 15, 1996

Categories:

GENERAL NONFICTION

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER AND THE MOUSE KING
by E.T.A. Hoffmann ; adapted by Natalie Andrewson ; illustrated by Natalie Andrewson

- BOOK REVIEW
THE NUTCRACKER
by E.T.A. Hoffmann & illustrated by Julie Paschkis

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TO THE ONE I LOVE THE BEST

EPISODES FROM THE LIFE OF LADY MENDL (ELSIE DE WOLFE)

by Ludwig Bemelmans ‧ RELEASE DATE: Feb. 23, 1955

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An extravaganza in Bemelmans' inimitable vein, but written almost dead pan, with sly, amusing, sometimes biting undertones, breaking through. For Bemelmans was "the man who came to cocktails". And his hostess was Lady Mendl (Elsie de Wolfe), arbiter of American decorating taste over a generation. Lady Mendl was an incredible person,- self-made in proper American tradition on the one hand, for she had been haunted by the poverty of her childhood, and the years of struggle up from its ugliness,- until she became synonymous with the exotic, exquisite, worshipper at beauty's whrine. Bemelmans draws a portrait in extremes, through apt descriptions, through hilarious anecdote, through surprisingly sympathetic and understanding bits of appreciation. The scene shifts from Hollywood to the home she loved the best in Versailles. One meets in passing a vast roster of famous figures of the international and artistic set. And always one feels Bemelmans, slightly offstage, observing, recording, commenting, illustrated.