Sometimes suffering from a forced theory or analogy, the book is nevertheless strongly recommended. It contains many insights into the American mindset as seen through objects. The black and white illustrations are well-chosen for their ability to inform. The author's grasp of modern scholarship is impressive, and many other authors are cited. Throughout, the author keeps up her commitment to debunking myths by including what she has dubbed the "fawbit", a "fictional account without basis in truth" (x). An example of a fawbit from the room use chapter is the assertion that a small, downstairs room in an 18th century house was the "borning room". Kaye reminds us that scholarship has never turned up a period inventory that included a "borning room"; more likely, it was a sleeping chamber for a servant. Kaye moves easily through styles and time periods, providing remarkable examples and details while keeping the big picture in sight.

If you're interested in antiques, American furniture, or architecture, I'm sure this book is full of indispensable information. I'm not interested in any of them, and I loved the book.

It's just plain fun! It reads like a collection of short stories. You can't wait to see what happens next in the evolution of the chest of drawers or the porch -- because you don't learn only about the chest or the porch, but about the people who designed and used them. And you learn answers to all those questions you've always wondered about and never known whom to ask.

The pictures not only make it a great gift and perfect coffee table book, but tell you what something looks like exactly when you're trying to imagine it.

Most of all, I learned a lot without it even hurting a little bit!

Before you spend a lot of money on antique furniture buy this book and study it like a text book. This well written, well researched guide will save you from being made a fool of or cheated.

I worked hard to really read this book. It has been worth it, because it covers the basic story on how to examine a piece of furniture to determine whether or not it is really old, or even if it is old, whether or not the piece itself is original as seen today, or has been pieced together from several incomplete pieces of old furniture, or even other sources of old pieces of wood. It is fairly fascinating, but it is also a lot like studying. I seem to be coming into contact with antiques through inheritance, and while this book hasn't told me much about the source of the pieces I have, I at least now know enough to turn my furniture upside down, and inside out to find out just where it may have been before it came to me! You have to really look at the many photographs (not every one was perfectly clear no matter how hard I looked -- 1 out of 30 were unclear I estimate) while reading the narrative. And I had never realized the extent to which 18th and 19th century pieces are researched for provenence, including looking through very old advertisements in newspapers, etc., to find the names of furniture makers of the past. Quite technical, but worth the effort.

I was given this book when I first became interested in antique furniture around 5 years ago. I am an antique dealer and avid collector now, and I still use it frequently as a reference. Although it focuses on 18th c. American furniture, the concepts apply to all periods and types.

This is a great book! I highly recommend it to all collectors.