The Solar House: Passive Heating And Cooling by global environmental issues expert Daniel D. Chiras is an "user friendly" architectural guide to choosing and implementing an energy-efficient and environmentally friendly backup heating system, and thereby making any dwelling both cost-effective and naturally heated and/or air conditioned. Black-and-white sketches clearly illustrate the detailed walk-throughs about the basics of passive solar heating, passive cooling, assessing the performance of one's energy system and much more. An excellent guide for embracing ecology-friendly living, The Solar House is especially recommended as a do-it-yourself home reference for the non-specialist general reader with an interest in making their personal home as comfortable and environmentally friendly as possible.

At last -- a comprehensive, easy-to-read, well-illustrated solar house book, perfect for architectural students, build-it-yourselfers and masters of solar technology as well -- who will benefit from the many important lessons learned.

My delight with the book began when I first saw its elegant cover. The more I read, the more I realized what a treasure it is. I was especially interested in the latest information on radiant floor heating, ground source heat pumps, and passive cooling. It makes me feel good to know that a book this full of information, yet so accessible, may result in significant reductions in the 44% of total household energy used for heating and cooling.

Chiras combines several decades of personal experience with information from some of the best minds in the field. His stated goal of producing a comprehensive and accurate book is well met. Nice job -- get a copy!

Now in an updated sixth edition, Environmental Science: Creating A Sustainable Future is a solid, college-level educational text written to help students understand the causes of environmental crises and offer ideas for reforms that will bring about sustainable environmental systems. Techniques for critically analyzing opposing viewpoints, the latest statistics and environmental laws, and more fill the pages of this fascinating, informative and didactic resource which is further enhanced with the inclusion of a CD-ROM offering resources for instructors in creating balanced tests and effective presentations.

Aptly edited by Dan Chiras (professor at the University of Denver where he teaches a course on sustainable public policy), Voices For The Earth is a compendium of insights and commentaries on how best to address the urgent environmental issues that we are faced with today both as individuals and as a society. After a lengthy and informative introduction, Voices For The Earth offers thirteen compelling essays by experienced, expert environmentalists and which are arranged into three major sections: "Signs of Distress/Signs of Hope: Creating a New Synthesis"; "Restructuring for Sustainability: Community, Economics, and Education"; Blueprint for Sustainability: Learning to Live and Prosper Within Limits". Voices For The Earth is a welcome and timely contribution to our national dialogue over environmental issues, and an essential addition to academic and community library environmental studies collections.

Being an architect already, I found that the book was an excellent introduction, even for me, to the various alternative building techniques emerging. It gave the author's honest opinion about many of the techniques, which was very appreciated. Don't expect it to be a precise how-to guide for any of the methods. It is an excellent overview, though, that can help you evaluate which building techniques you would like to explore further. The references at the end are vast and helpful.

However, I found that for a book about the "Natural House", it often suggested many un-green building materials (OSB, polypropylene bags). Sometimes their "ungreeness" was mentioned, sometimes not.

This book would go far in helping a person seriously considering alternative housing options. Numerous popular and reliable methods for homebuilding are described in detail. The reader is provided with a clear understanding of exactly what efforts, materials, costs and skills will be required.

In addition to these utilitarian functions, this is a spectacularly informative and enjoyable book. I am in no position to seriously consider housing of this sort but I read this book cover to cover and enjoyed it all. This is a fascinating and engaging topic and the author is a remarkably skilled writer. Recommended for any curious person.

If you're interested in building a natural home (cob, rammed earth, straw-bale, earthship, whatever), this is your primer. The author has done his homework and presents the description, pros/cons and pitfalls of each type of construction. He is very honest about just how "do-it-yourself" each type can be, and how much it will cost you. He also covers passive and active solar design, natural water capture and other alternative technologies to go with your natural home. This is an excellent overview on all these subjects.

The best thing about this book is that he refers you to other sources for more detail - books, videos, newsletters and organizations that will support you, give you a workshop or just give you more detailed information than belonged in this primer book.

I highly recommend this as the first book you read on the subject. Once you know which type of house you are interested in, you can pick up some of the other books he suggests on that building type.