The last two snow days would have been a lot better if I hadn’t had the stomach flu and three high maintenance kids stuck at home.  I started thinking about all the great books in those two days.  My family loves books.  I mean really loves them.  We had to inventory them after a house fire recently, and were surprised to discover we had almost 400 books.  Wow.  That was a lot.

Now I know what Thomas Jefferson felt.  When his family home burned, he said he most lamented the loss of his 6000+ books.  Ya beat me, big guy.

So, in honor of books, and snow days, and houses (but certainly not stomach flus)…here’s my list of books…about houses…(most of them) to read on snow days:

The Not So Big House: A Blueprint for the Way We Really Live by Sarah Susanka

It is almost a pre-requisite of living in Northeast Johnson County that you know about this book.  There is good reason for this.  Susanka communicates a compelling message about a house being more about quality and function than size.  I’ve shamelessly stolen a lot of concepts from her.  Anyone who is planning on building or remodeling should give this a look.

A Pattern Language:  Towns, Buildings, Construction by Christopher Alexander, Sara Ishikawa, Murray Silverstein and Max Jacobson  If I steal Susanka’s ideas, she steals Christopher Alexander’s ideas.  This is a bit heavier read, but is chock full of fascinating concepts.  Their premise is that there is a language to our “built environment” that is as strong as the spoken word.  There are patterns in the spaces we build that influence how we live and feel.  Amen.

Pocket Neighborhoods: Creating Small Scale Community in a Large Scale World by Ross Chapin  Ever wish you knew your neighbors better?  Wish the biggest thing on the front of today’s house wasn’t the garage?  You aren’t alone. Some of us have been working on a concept that would create small pocket communities as infill housing.  Ross Chapin invented this idea, and makes a compelling case for doing Community differently.

At Home: A Short History of Private Life by Bill Bryson  Ever wonder how the Granthams got all their money? (that’s a reference to the show Downton Abbey for those of you who don’t have electricity in your homes.  Btw, I can’t resist sharing this youtube spoof of the show…you’re gonna love this)  Know why salt and pepper are the only spices on the table?  This book is a fascinating collection of facts that are unfolded by the author as he walks us room by room through his centuries-old house.

The Great Divorce by C.S. Lewis  Ok, so this one isn’t about construction, but I just saw the performance on Saturday at the Kauffman Center and thought it was fabulous.  Taking the bus on a “holiday” to heaven?  ‘Nuff said.

So there’s the start of my list.  Now it’s your turn.  I want to know how many bibliophiles there are out there (that’s book lovers for those of you who aren’t) and what you are reading.  Your titles can be about anything.  If you aren’t a reader, what do you prefer doing on a snow day?  (Just keep it clean!) Let’s see what you got…