Little House on a Small Planet: Simple Homes, Cozy Retreats, and Energy Efficient Possibilities - Tapa blanda

"Anyone who sleeps indoors and cares about the world will find something of interest inside."--Carol Venolia, Eco-architect, "Natural Home & Garden" columnist, and EcoDwelling faculty member at New College of California "I cannot recommend this book highly enough. For anyone who has ever dreamed of getting off the mortgage rat race and creating not just a house, but a cozy nest that fits--this is the book! Every page is an inspiration, filled with real-life stories and lessons learned on creating better, more affordable, sustainable, and very personalized housing. There is something here that will fit nearly every lifestyle. For those who want to live in a better way: Read this book!"--Janet Luhrs, author of "The Simple Living Guide "and "Simple Loving," and publisher of "Simple Living Oasis""Salomon offers the savviest plan I've read for figuring out what house you really need. . . . her questions have forced me to rethink so much." --Marta Salij, Detroit Free Press

Most of us have noticed the trend: new subdivisions filled with McMansions pumped up on steroids, neighbors who demolished their cottage and replaced it with a mini-castle, the friend of a friend's childless brother who just added on a third bedroom. Many of us have suffered the consequences of an inflated mortgage, an unmanageable construction project, or a house simply too large to keep clean. Will our dream home always be a celebration of excess, and a drain on our lives? Some wise people buck the trend. They build, remodel, redecorate, or just rethink their needs--prudently and calmly constructing a joyful, sane life around themselves. They think, sometimes literally, outside the box, and they live close, warm, and simple, applying spiritual and social solutions to their material desires. Pockets of people all over the continent are realizing the benefits of scaling down. They are designing a new dream, one that reunites extended families, makes space for friends, and emphasizes home life over home maintenance. Little House on a Small Planet is a guidebook to this movement, and an invitation to join. Author Shay Salomon offers fourteen basic principles for the design and habitation of efficient, high-density homes. These fourteen principles outline the invisible supports of a happy home, set within the context of a future, more caring society. With floor plans, photographs, advice, and anecdotes, Little House on a Small Planet asks and answers, "What fills a home when the excess is cut away, and how do we get there from here?"