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The Maine House II: Explore the soul of Maine in some three dozen of its most original, authentic, and evocative houses
The authors of the highly successful The Maine House continue their quest to record and celebrate the authentic Maine houses of their childhoods—a Maine that is in danger of vanishing.
“ The Maine House [shows] us the dignity and aching beauty, in preserving Maine’s quirky architectural past.”—Maine Homes by Down East
Spend any amount of time in Maine—a weekend, a summer, a lifetime—and its impression lasts forever. When The Maine House was published in 2021, the reception was astonishing. Over four printings and across the world, The Maine House sounded a rallying cry, summed up perfectly in one of dozens of reviews, that it “crafts a plea to preserve a living history belonging to individual, family, and state; a visual call to recognize these homey structures and others like them as ‘extraordinary gifts.’”
The Maine House II moves beyond the authors’ cri de coeur; they’re on a mission. Through 30 homes—inland, inshore, and on islands—Maura McEvoy, Basha Burwell, and Kathleen Hackett highlight the beauty and importance of preservation, restoration, thoughtful renovation, and low-impact living in the place they love the most. From visionaries who saw home in a post-and-beam barn, a lighthouse, a former hotel, and a boat shed to families resolutely leaving generational homes largely untouched (some continuing to live off the grid) and still others honoring vernacular architecture by living with it in surprising ways, The Maine House II captures the myriad ways one can live in this singular place—in the present—while preserving the past and ensuring its future.
Includes Color Photographs
“ The Maine House [shows] us the dignity and aching beauty, in preserving Maine’s quirky architectural past.”—Maine Homes by Down East
Spend any amount of time in Maine—a weekend, a summer, a lifetime—and its impression lasts forever. When The Maine House was published in 2021, the reception was astonishing. Over four printings and across the world, The Maine House sounded a rallying cry, summed up perfectly in one of dozens of reviews, that it “crafts a plea to preserve a living history belonging to individual, family, and state; a visual call to recognize these homey structures and others like them as ‘extraordinary gifts.’”
The Maine House II moves beyond the authors’ cri de coeur; they’re on a mission. Through 30 homes—inland, inshore, and on islands—Maura McEvoy, Basha Burwell, and Kathleen Hackett highlight the beauty and importance of preservation, restoration, thoughtful renovation, and low-impact living in the place they love the most. From visionaries who saw home in a post-and-beam barn, a lighthouse, a former hotel, and a boat shed to families resolutely leaving generational homes largely untouched (some continuing to live off the grid) and still others honoring vernacular architecture by living with it in surprising ways, The Maine House II captures the myriad ways one can live in this singular place—in the present—while preserving the past and ensuring its future.
Includes Color Photographs
- GenresNonfictionDesign
296 pages, Hardcover
Published May 14, 2024
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
September 11, 2025
A entitled author that poison's a neighbor's trees for waterfront views and increased property values. Disgusting. https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/11/us...
September 23, 2025
Kathleen Hackett is the worst kind of person from away. An absolute fraud who profits off of a lifestyle she actively works to destroy and desecrate.
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/11/us...
https://www.nytimes.com/2025/09/11/us...
December 2, 2024
I read "The Maine House" in August and was already on the waiting list for this one at the library consortium which only had one copy at that time, which finally came in the last week of November. Readers were stretching out their visits with the book and, indeed, that's what it lends itself to. (Five more copies are now ordered by the consortium and they gained one when they added another library.)
The subtitle refers to the grouping of the 24 houses in the book. The authors/photographers note that while the first book was to record the disappearing Maine of their childhoods, this second "aims to illustrate that it is posssible, indeed essential, to rescue Maine's quirky architectural history . . . that goes hand in hand with a reverence for the land" (15). This one helped explain to me some of my sister's draw to her Maine home and her decorating "style".
There are no McMansions here, but a penchant for "making do" and recycling. The beauty is most often in the mishmash of old and newer, a light hand on any architectural shifts over the decades/centuries, and views of trees and water. Just looking at the opening photographs, four double-spreads, was enough to lower my blood pressure, make me smile, and take me back decades myself. Does it do that for everyone or just those of us with Maine already in our hearts?
The subtitle refers to the grouping of the 24 houses in the book. The authors/photographers note that while the first book was to record the disappearing Maine of their childhoods, this second "aims to illustrate that it is posssible, indeed essential, to rescue Maine's quirky architectural history . . . that goes hand in hand with a reverence for the land" (15). This one helped explain to me some of my sister's draw to her Maine home and her decorating "style".
There are no McMansions here, but a penchant for "making do" and recycling. The beauty is most often in the mishmash of old and newer, a light hand on any architectural shifts over the decades/centuries, and views of trees and water. Just looking at the opening photographs, four double-spreads, was enough to lower my blood pressure, make me smile, and take me back decades myself. Does it do that for everyone or just those of us with Maine already in our hearts?
June 16, 2024
As good as the first! Loved the final house — Jamie Wyeth’s lighthouse — but they’re all special. Writing is beautiful and perfectly matches the photos.
February 7, 2025
Nice pictorial of rustic, historic houses and second homes in the state of Maine.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews