If Walls Could Talk by Lucy Worsley

 genre: non-fiction

If Walls Could Talk is a look at the history of the home through a contemporary lens, an informal and conversational look at what life in the home was like in Britain throughout the centuries.  The book is divided into the bedroom, bathroom, living room and kitchen, with different sections through.  The chapters are often short and while full of really interesting information, there is no footnoting throughout the book, so if you're with stickler in your nonfiction (like myself0 it is hard to feel comfortable believing that everything you are reading is completely true.  There are many citations, though, and an extensive bibliography, so it's not that I think she's making it all up, it's just best to know what you're getting.  It's more like a guidebook to the home/running of the home over time as opposed to a strictly factual work of nonfiction - which really is fine with me.  It's a very readable book, designed for the layperson to appreciate how our homes have arrived at the state they are in and the strange and sometimes crazy ways that our ancestors managed their lives and spaces.

I wanted it to be over sooner than it was and the way the photos in the middle of the book were arranged drove me nuts but I really did find myself enjoying the time I spent reading it so that just feels like a three star book.  Worth my time but not a standout.