Now that summer is drawing to a close are you adding books to your reading list? Do you plan to spend one last sunny September weekend in your hammock with a good book? We are! Here are some titles on our fall reading list. Don’t forget to shop local and support your local bookstore!
Restoring your Historic House
by Scott Hanson
How can you accommodate contemporary life in a historic house? This book prioritizes the identification and preservation of the historic, character-defining features of a house as a starting point in your renovation process. Illustrating best-practices for updating historic homes for modern life in ways that do not attempt to turn an old house into a new one, the book also suggests many ways to save money in the process, without settling for cheap or inappropriate solutions. Maine preservationist Scott Hanson has 40 years’ experience rehabilitating historic houses in Maine and New England.
The Sustainers: Being, Building and Doing Good through Activism in the Sacred Spaces of Civil Rights, Human Rights and Social Movements'
by Catherine Fleming Bruce
The Sustainers includes sites such as the Audubon Ballroom where Malcolm X was assassinated; the Greyhound bus station now serving as the Freedom Riders Bus Museum in Montgomery, Alabama; the South Carolina home of Modjeska Simkins, and Robben Island Prison where Nelson Mandela was held. The book was awarded the 2017 Historic Preservation Book Prize from the University of Mary Washington Center for Historic Preservation. Ms. Bruce was the first African-American to receive the Book Prize. In the book, Catherine examines 10 historic sites related to civil rights and argues that marking these sites and maintaining them is a public good.
Building Reuse: Sustainability, Preservation, and the Value of Design
by Kathryn Rogers Merlino
The construction and operation of buildings is responsible for more than 40 percent of all primary energy use and nearly half of all our carbon emissions. The impact of the demolition and removal of an older building can greatly diminish the advantages of new green buildings. In her recent book, Merlino calls for a more expansive view of preservation that goes beyond keeping only the most distinctive structures based on their historical and cultural significance to embrace the creative reuse of even unremarkable buildings for their environmental value. Her book includes a range of case studies.
Preservation & Place: Historic Preservation by and of LGBTQ Communities in the United States
by Katherine Crawford-Lackey and Megan E. Springate
This was a winner of the 2020 University of Mary Washington Center for Historic Preservation Book Prize. Examining significant historic and archaeological sites affiliated with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer history in the United States brings light to the importance of the preservation process in documenting and interpreting the lives and experiences of queer Americans. The book features chapters on archaeology and interpretation, as well as several case studies focusing on queer preservation projects.
Protecting Coastal American Cities: Case Studies in Resilience
by Matthew Pelz, John B. Anderson, A.D. (Nikki) Brand, Dwayne Jones
Here at Landmarks we continue to examine the consequences of climate change, increasing storm surge, and rising sea levels on our coastal communities. Understanding how coastal communities around the world have adapted to these challenging environments can help identify not only the strategies to better prepare our vulnerable cities and towns.
Protecting Historic Coastal Cities presents an overview of how historic communities in coastal environments understand and confront the unique challenges they face. Its authors explore communities like Galveston, New Orleans, and Miami, as well as looking at pioneering advances in flood protection in the Netherlands.
Looking for a book to introduce building conservation and historic preservation to a younger person in your life? Check out the National Trust for Historic Preservation’s list of 10 Preservation Books for Children and Teens! Check out our shop for more children’s activity books, books on energy efficiency in older homes, and of course, local history!