From Publishers Weekly

In this study of the evolution of domestic living, McGill University architecture professor Rybczynski traces the material and cultural influences that have helped shape our notions of comfort. PW recommended this “intriguing” book. Copyright 1987 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

In a loosely configured essay, Rybczynski (Architecture, McGill Univ.) discusses the idea of comfort and the Western cultural attitudes that have shaped it since the end of the middle ages. Rather than dealing with the technical aspects of architecture, he reviews such cultural variables as intimacy and privacy, domesticity, ease, and ideas about light, air, and efficiency as they have changed over time. Essentially Rybczynski makes a plea for the primacy of cultural ideals as a basis for creating psychologically comfortable homes. Though he is selective in his history and examples, this is a worthwhile counterweight to the all-too-com (more…)