What Reviewers Say

REVIEWS

There are two types of reviews here, those from the media and those from individual readers. We welcome additional ones. Contact us with yours.

(The short media reviews below were excerpted in compliance with copyright laws.)

Glass close to a door is an inviting way for undesired entry....just reach through and unlock the door. (Ch. 11)	Toe kick registers are a much more user-friendly alternative to one in the kitchen floor. (Ch. 7)

Media Reviews

Midwest Book Review
November, 2004

Written by a retired engineer who spent 14 years researching and presenting his home-buying wisdom, “Better Houses, Better Living” is a solid advice guide to getting the best possible home for one's hard-earned income...cover(s) such topics as options for wiring a home in the 21st century, kitchen exhaust systems that work (and those that don't), the importance of the locations and types of doors, the pros and cons of various countertops available for kitchen and bath, and much more.

Review:
'Build It Right' Author Writes It Better
by Broderick Perkins

It's impossible for an educational book to match the content dynamics of a website.

Change occurs so quickly a book can contain content that is out of date the day it is published. Only subsequent printing, months or years down the road, might bring it back up to date.

A well-managed, content-based website can be a living learning laboratory updated within minutes of relevant new developments.

However, unless you own a properly equipped lightweight laptop and can pick up a WiFi signal just where you need it, when you need it, it often remains a lot easier to hold a book in your hands than it is to get your hands on digitized information.

A best-of-both-worlds scenario that limits the worst and brings out the best of both a book and a website is to get one learning tool to compliment the other.

That's the crowning achievement of Better Houses, Better Living: What To Look For When Buying, Building Or Remodeling (Home User Press, $24.95), a book that comes with a partner website, http://www.betterhousesbetterliving.com/

Readers' Reviews

"Better Houses, Better Living" isn't just one more book on what to look for when buying, building or remodeling, it is THE book to have. I haven't found a book this chock full of practical, down to earth, actually useful information in years. While other books address aesthetics and other issues, "Better Houses, Better Living" gets right to work from the first page. Additionally, it is highly readable book, not written as if talking to a contractor but in language that is easy to understand and the information is easy to grasp. This is a must for anyone hunting for a new home or planning a new one. It will insure that the move they make won't just be a lateral move, but a better move, a move up and they will end up with a home that works for them. My copy won't spend much time in my home - there are way too many people whose hands I need to put it in.

Jim Krengel
Certified Master Kitchen & Bath Designer

What I loved about your book is that not only did you say what you found wrong, but explained in plain English WHY it was wrong and what to do about it. Gr-r-reat thinking!

Morton C. Picklesimer
Anderson, CA

The problem with buying your first house is that you don't know what you don't know. This book tells you what to look for, so you can inspect houses knowledgeably, and avoid falling in love with a money pit.

JD Grinnell
Prineville, OR

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More Media Reviews

Myrtle Beach Sun Times.
Sept. 7, 2004

He tells how to avoid things that can turn out later to be a problem, such as...misplaced floor registers.

Akron OH Beacon Journal
Sept. 11, 2004

He’s written “Better Houses, Better Living” to help people think through those myriad details before they buy, build or remodel.

Planning a home's function. Myron E. Ferguson is a firm believer in form following function.

Ferguson has toured about 2500 to 3000 homes and estimates about 80% of them “could have been more user-friendly.”

...many houses are plagued with nagging little annoyances that could have been avoided with some forethought.

Know what you’re buying into. Book helps prospective buyers find design flaws when house-hunting.

Book helps home buyers avoid some common problems.

The point of his book “is to get you to notice flaws before you make a commitment.”

Ferguson delivers schooled advice on things to look for when buying a home, and things to avoid when remodeling.

He addresses both materials and function, which can be very helpful for people window-shopping before they build or remodel.

Make your home more user-friendly and use Internet sites to maximum benefit in a guide which presents a different kind of home makeover: one designed to use experience to demonstrate the most user-friendly aspects of home design. Whether you're buying, building, or remodeling, BETTER HOUSES, BETTER LIVING: WHAT TO LOOK FOR WHEN BUYING, BUILDING OR REMODELING tells how to be sure the entire house lends to ease of use. From choices of materials – ceramic, stone, and wood in flooring, for example – to layouts which compliment a home's functionality, BETTER HOUSES, BETTER LIVING should be the first stop for anyone serious about making their home their easy-living castle.

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