there Is An Almost Elemental Appeal In The Rural Fishing Villages Of Nova Scotia, Maine, And Newfoundland. Their Intimate Connection To Nature, To The Land, Water, And (often Harsh) Weather; Their Reliance On Ingenuity, On-hand Materials, And Craftsmanship; And Their Values Of Thrift And Endurance Serve As Inspiration And As Touchstones For Those Of Us Caught Up In The Hubbub Of Modern Life.

tilting, Newfoundland Is A Celebration Of All These Virtues And An Eclectic Documentation Of The Buildings, Landscape, And Lifestyle Of This Remote Community On A Small Island Far Off The Canadian Coast. Through Photographs, Firsthand Historical Anecdotes, And Delicate Pencil Drawings, Author Robert Mellin Presents A Personal Account Of Tilting's Houses, Outbuildings, Furniture, Tools, Fences, And Docks, And, In The Process, The Way Of Life Of Tilting. Mellin Describes How Houses Are Built For Mobility And Then Launched, Or Moved; How Houses Are Detailed And Constructed; How Cabbage Houses Are Built Out Of Overturned Boats; And The Difference Between Picket, Paling, And Riddle Fences-with Diagrams In Case You Want To Build Your Own.

part Journal, Part Sketchbook, Part Oral History, Tilting, Newfoundland Is A Treasure Chest Of A Book That Offers New Discoveries With Each Reading, And A Reminder Of The Simpler Aspects Of Life And Building.

in This Curious Interlacing Of Surefooted, Methodical Academic Study With Folksy, Lake Woebegone-style Anecdotes, Mellin (architecture, Mcgill Univ.) Documents Unvarnished Rural Life In The Tiny Fishing Village Of Tilting, Fogo Island, Eight Miles Off Newfoundland's Rugged Northeastern Coast. Now A Homeowner On The Island, Mellin Has Been Visiting This Treeless, Rocky Outport Of Small, Brightly Painted Houses, Docks, And Outbuildings Since 1987. On Exhibit Is An Architecture Of Accommodation To The Harsh Climate And Subsistence Economy. The Island, Which Is Inhabited By Hardy Descendants Of 18th-century Irish Fishermen And Farmers, Was Late To Receive Electricity And Cars. As The Subtitle Implies, An Entire Way Of Life Is Presented-relationships, Traditional Labor, Cod Fishing And Drying, Oral History, Vocabulary, Furniture, Tools, Even Cabbage Cellars. Housing Typology And Construction Details Are Illustrated By The Author's Delicate Pencil Drawings. Tilting's Self-reliance And Hospitality Are Lauded Along With Its Hardscrabble Buildings And Lifestyle. Unfortunately, The Review Copy's Hardcovers Were Among The Flimsiest This Reviewer Has Ever Seen. While Of Regional And Sociological Interest, This Is Not An Essential Purchase.-russell T. Clement, Northwestern Univ. Lib., Evanston, Il Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.