This wonderfully written book uses diaries, letters, and a wealth of material culture evidence to portray everyday life in nineteenth-century New England. Nylander manages to bring the past alive for both the lay reader and the material culture student. A must for scholars of New England's past.

Images that come to mind when one thinks of New England are rough landscapes, Tiny shingled farm houses and patriots fighting for freedom. But New England history does not stop there. In this book you will see a wide varity of styles that span four hundred years of our countries history, from the 1600s, to the 1940s. A great book to own.