I grew up in Minneapolis, driving with my mother to admire the gorgeous homes along the shores of urban lakes, so it is no surprise that I loved this book about the renovation of one of those homes. I bought it used in the early 90's and have returned to it again and again.
I loved this book, especially since I used to live within walking distance of the house and had always been fascinated about the background of the remodeling abuses that the house had endured over the years before the Chrismans bought and restored it to its original splendor. Ms Chrisman's tale of extremes of high frustration on one end and unexpected delight of discovery of hidden architectural details on the other end, is very well written in her account of restoring a neglected, broken down Victorian house into the beautiful and lovely home that it originally had been.
I read this book when it was new. It was easy to read and very enjoyable.
This is the kind of book I've always wanted without precisely realizing it: an embellished journal-style account of the projects involved with fixing up/restoring a historic mansion that is also one's primary residence. With a mid-80s publication date, I thought it might feel too dated, but the content is timeless.
