Reader's Reviews
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I am quite pleased with my purchase of this book. For quite a reasonable price (the book is large but not over-sized and is bound in paperback) you get an excellent coffee table book full of many many beautiful photos of at least 29 different timberframe or timberframe/hybrid homes. There is a nice forward and a thoughtful introduction to the book, plus each several-page section begins with a narrative description of the featured house, its location and setting, the design and aesthetic goals of its owners and/or those who built or remodeled it, and usually a description of the type of timbers used and from where they were harvested or salvaged. Both interior and exterior details of the houses are portrayed, and each photo is well captioned. Needless to say, many of the interior photos focus mainly on details of the timberframe and joinery, but one also gets a very good sense of how that framework interacts with the rest of the room(s) to form an aesthetic whole.
One of my favorite features of this book is that each section includes a small floor plan of the featured house showing the locations of each timber post relative to the whole layout. Additionally, there is a three-dimensional pencil sketch of just the timberframe, as if one could look through the whole house with X-ray vision. I should point out that all of the homes featured in this work are modern construction, or at least recent remodels, and to the best of my recollection they are all North American. Although timberframe architecture does have a sense of timelessness about it, there is little or no information here regarding classic or antique structures. Only the salvaged timbers themselves, for many of the homes in this book, have historical value.
The only criticisms of this fine book that I might foresee are two. First, this is a picture book only. The descriptions and captions enrich and inform the viewing experience, and it will certainly serve to inspire any would-be owner-builder dreaming of his or her own timberframe project; but that would-be designer should then go on to purchase a different text for actual design tips, let alone any hard info on joinery techniques, tools, etc. In my case, I was well warned of this fact in advance, so my expectations were suited to what I received. The second potential criticism might be that this book has the potential to "put off" just a little even as it inspires. Not all, but the large majority of homes featured here are clearly mansions for the rich, even if they may be more interesting, stylish, and expressive of their owners' personalities than the overage structure associated with the term "mansion." If your dream home is a cozy little cottage, you are a builder with modest aspirations (and likely a modest budget to match), or your attraction to timberframes is rooted in their arguable "green architecture" virtues, then you may find this pageant of opulent, 4000sqf compounds to be excessive, intimidating, or even a tiny bit tiresome.
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This is a book of photos. It shows plan views of timber homes without any dimensional information. Another coffee table book by Benson. I am so disappointed. I bought this along with another of Mr. Benson's books and I am disappointed with both.
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I had a great time working on the Guilford, CT home called "on the rocks" in this book. The stress skin panels, now referred most commonly to as SIPS ~ structurally insulated panels ~ are a great technology for efficiency and waste reduction. The boook shows good pictures, some seem a bit dated though.
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This book is full of stunning photographs of timber frame homes, accompanied by engaging text both technical and philosophical. The book is divided into locations, such as prairie, mountain, and coastal homes. Not a guide to building, this is more like the ultimate coffee-table book.
I don't know one thing about architecture or homebuilding, but I enjoyed this book for its striking photos of awesome homes.
***
If you love beams, and more beams, lots of braces, and complex joints; then this book is for you. If you prefer a more minimalist approach I'd suggest: "The Timber-Frame Home, Design, Construction, Finishing" by the same author. In that book this author wrote: "...frame design should simplify and reduce whenever possible, The best frames are those with the most economical use of timbers and the least-complicated joinery." I was disappointed that this book ignored that concept. Most of the houses in this book are above 3500 sq feet with roughly a third at 5000 and up. If you want to see the extremes to which timberframing can be taken, this is the book for you.
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