Sheetrock & Shellac: A Thinking Person's Guide to the Art and Science of Home Improvement

by David Owen

In a world of extreme makeovers, this book is a thoughtful, adventure-filled, witty look at what the space we live in says about us, the pleasures of home renovation projects great and small, and how home renovation can change our lives.

Few things define us as powerfully as the place where we live. The size and location of a house may reveal basic facts about our financial or social status, but it is the personal touches -- a paint color or a homemade desk -- that reflect our aspirations, our tastes, our secret desires.

In Sheetrock & Shellac, David Owen recounts his renovation and home construction projects in small-town Connecticut -- from catching the home improvement bug while watching workmen replacing a leaky roof to his first tentative foray into DIY (successfully building an enclosure for a bathroom radiator that had "turned into a sort of low-tech factory for converting splattered urine into odor and dust"). As his skill grows, so does his confidence: replacing a broken light switch turns into wiring an entire room, making bookcases is followed by building an office. Some of the more overly imaginative projects -- for instance, an ambition to install sinks and hot and cold faucets in all the rooms of the house -- never come to fruition but are amusingly recounted for other intrepid home designers.

Owen's two-hundred-year-old farmhouse provides numerous occasions for home improvement projects, and layers (literally) of fascination. Owen quickly learns the hard way when to tackle a project himself and when to turn for help. But soon he's so comfortable with the undertaking that he decides to take the big leap from renovation to building a completely new home from the ground up. In this case, Owen decides to build a weekend cabin a mere six miles away from his home. From a discourse on kitchen countertop materials to the complete history of concrete, to a near-disastrous mishap with a tree, a newly constructed roof, and an overzealous chainsaw, Owen's journey through home designing and building proves both enthrallingly educating and hilariously detailed.

New Yorker writer Owen's engaging narrative, filled with a wealth of practical information, hands-on tips, and canny insights, explores the ways in which the human processes of construction and renovation leave all the parties transformed. More than a simple how-to, Sheetrock & Shellac is a why-to, a wellspring of savvy advice and encouragement for anyone who has ever contemplated changing their surroundings and changing their life.

Genres: Nonfiction

320 pages, Hardcover

First published May 23, 2006

Reviews

[David · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an immensely entertaining book.

Normally I read several books at once – a novel, a nonfiction work of some type, and two books relating to my main hobbies. Fifty or a hundred pages in one, then switch to another, and so forth. Perhaps this is symptomatic of Attention Deficit Disorder, but I prefer to think that it is a habit that formal education, with reading required in multiple courses, inculcates, for better or for worse. In any event, when I picked up Sheetrock & Shellac, I was unable to read anything else until I'd finished it, two days after picking it up.

Perhaps it's because Sheetrock & Shellac does its own subject-switching, although in a systematic fashion. Owen alternates between relating, on the one hand, personal tales of the remodeling of parts of his Connecticut house and the building of his "cabin," and laying out the history and current state of various building materials and techniques. We get to hear of his more-exciting-than-he-had-hoped-for felling of trees in his yard, together with the history of chainsaws. He tells us about his own adventures in searching for the "right" toilet – he settled on a Kohler Memoirs Toilet With Stately Design, despite the name – and then takes us through toilet history (including the contributions of Thomas Crapper, which, while they are less than urban legend would have you believe, are greater than an urban legend skeptic like me had guessed), and even toilet paper.

But the book isn't merely funny, though it is that. It's actually quite useful. For example, Owen's discussion of the various materials available for kitchen countertops (he and his wife ended up using three different materials in different areas because they were used for different purposes) could be compared with a Consumer Reports review, except that Owen is several orders of magnitude more entertaining to read.

I am not the least bit handy and would never embark on the do-it-yourself projects that Owen tackles (although his advice for many jobs is "hire a professional"). But whether you're handy or not, this book is immensely useful; Owen includes an appendix with web sites for the manufactures of many products he recommends, and even for some he doesn't recommend. In addition, the book is – have I said this yet? – vastly entertaining.

[Lobstergirl · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm not sure why this home improvement book is more for the thinking person than the idiot, but it was enjoyable and Owen is a good writer.

[Frank Dodd · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read this as a recommendation from the Spilled Milk podcast. The host gave the author a huge thumbs up. Love the pod cast but struggled through the book. I normally like it when authors more or less walk the reader through building project along with a good story line. I think I actually learn more from this type of book than the off- the _ shelf "time life" book. Unfortunately the authors style or maybe his attempt to find humor in all home maintenance seemed to interfere with his getting to the point of what he was trying to get across. Kind of like listening to my own bad jokes. Anyways it may have just been my present state mind which made me put the book down. Made it about a quarter of the way through and gave up. But if you like reading about building failures and sometime successes this book is for you.\
Read "House- Dreams" and "Renovations" two great building book stories. Watch Kevin Kline in "Live as a House" have Kleenex standing by.

[Susan Skye · Rating 2 out of 5]

A strange little book. I liked it at first, but as I read on, the style of humor reminded me too much of that awful self-deprecating trend that came around after the millienium, the sort of sarcastic, veiled nihilism covered with a false innocence that always makes me slightly nauseous.
If you like that sort of thing, go for it, but I can't recommend it on that basis.

[Kyla · Rating 2 out of 5]

Picked this up off the bargain table and it weren't no bargain. I can watch/read/ingest almost anything about making a home but then he tried to make it a "book" and ruined it all.

[Neal Tognazzini · Rating 5 out of 5]

Saw this book at my local used bookstore a couple of times before finally buying it, and then it sat on my shelf for a year or two before actually reading it. Glad I finally did, because it was great! A compelling and funny read about various home improvement projects undertaken by the author, along with insightful commentary on what our homes mean to us, the way they reflect our values. A perfect way to spend weekend hours is to read this book, rather than actually attempt any home improvement projects myself.

[Derek · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was like suffering through some yuppie telling how "he" fixed his house up at a dinner party when he actually just hired a bunch of professionals to do the work. I think the author wrote this book so he could compress all of his boring New England rich people house renovation dinner stories into one place.

[Erich · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was truly a wonderful book. I enjoyed the author's prose, and his humor had me laughing out loud several times!

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

A humorous look at home improvement - overly detailed in spots, but very readable.

[Rowland Pasaribu · Rating 3 out of 5]

I went into this book open minded, had a difficult time getting through the first half but was pleased to find myself enjoying things eventually. A little too much personal information, a little too slow and "Why do I care about this?" at times. But then Owen would actually get to the idea of telling you something and it was often informative and interesting. Perhaps if the book had been congealed to one third it's present size it would be a gem.

"Home improvement is an ongoing narrative, with many authors: it's not a story with a clear beginning, middle and end."

"The phenomenal durability of spilled paint, in comparison with the fleetingness of paint that has been applied conscientiously, is a good example of the perversity of the universe."

Men, especially, have an irresistible attraction to reinforcement. There is something appealing about the concept of hidden strength, as in the idea that Superman is lurking under the drab gray suit of that mild-mannered newspaper reporter over there. Perhaps grown men's infatuation with reinforcement, like little boy's infatuation with superhero's, arises from anxiety about our own strength. At any rate, it's a powerful force, and it doesn't apply just to concrete work."

[Ben · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an excellent semi-sequel to The Walls Around Us. In this follow-up volume, Owen elaborates on much of his remodeling experience, with about equal amounts of self-deprecation and useful knowledge. He seems to have toned down the glibness a bit, which is fine by me, and his experience working with the architect and contractors while building his new house is quite interesting.

My only real problem is the way in which many subjects are somewhat glossed over, rather than elaborated on at great length as in his last book on the topic. I realize that for many folks, the level of detail about, say, the construction of plywood, was a little too much in The Walls Around Us, but as an apprentice builder, this is the kind of thing you absolutely won't learn from most carpenters. And we all know that Wikipedia, while often reliable, is not half as funny as David Owen.

Recommended for anyone with an interest in the building trades and a sense of humor, or any homeowner looking for someone who understands their problems.

[Brandy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a mixed bag for me. We've owned our place less than a year, and I actually found this book at the library while looking for some home maintenance guides to try to help us figure out the basics. Some parts of the book were so immensely spot-on and quotable that I'd read them to my husband, and we'd laugh together and then come up with even longer lists of things we want to do for our house. Based on those parts, I'd give the book somewhere around a 4.5, but then there were fairly large sections of the book that just seemed to have no point to them. I might be better off looking for this author's articles and anthologies because I felt like the book could have been pared down a lot. The writing was engaging enough that I'll look for more writing from him, but I just can't rate this book higher than 3 stars for myself.

[Jeannen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is by the author who wrote “The walls around us” and it is one of the books I have most enjoyed recently. It is about both what goes into remodeling a house and about what’s involved in designing/building a house, based on the author’s own experiences remodeling his 200 year old house, and his family’s experience in building a cabin in another part of his town. I love the way the information about different materials and processes is woven into descriptions of his own experiences – who knew that shellac is made from insects? – and I like the way the book makes me think differently about the possibilities of remodeling my own house, both in terms of what’s possible and in terms of how to approach the process.

[Deborah Joyner · Rating 4 out of 5]

David Owen shares his own story of home renovation and construction, interspersing it with the history of home improvement innovations: such as indoor plumbing, shellac, sheetrock, and plaster veneer, linoleum and granite counter tops. The two contrasting projects, his work on his 200 year old farm house and his modernly constructed cabin allow him to venture into a range of different projects and topics. Although I disagree with him in many respects on home decoration, his tips and tricks- good ideas and life examples to learn from are both amusing and respectably solid. A very good read - so good I'm tracking down his earlier books for more home improvement tips!

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

I picked up this book randomly at the library because it seemed like it might be useful in my goal of having a freaking clue about how things work in houses, since I am about to be a homeowner.

It worked. Interesting material, fairly broad scope combined with sections where there is way more detail than is reasonable (which I love).

Totally a quick read.

[Darlene · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm loving reading this book. The author tells about his various experiences renovating an old house and boiulding a new one. He's not a builder himself but is very interested in the process (just like me) and includes lots of good information. I'm not sure anyone who is not interested in HGTV would like this but it's right up my alley.

[Jeff · Rating 3 out of 5]

He gets into a LOT of detail sometimes, but if you have the slightest interest in home projects (or the history of stuff like window screens or cement), "Sheetrock & Shellac" is a fun, educational read.

[Cristin · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first part is an interesting story about renovating an old house to make it more liveable, and the lessons David Owen learns from this. However, the second half is about the building of a cabin, which was far less interesting and relevant to me.

[Tim · Rating 4 out of 5]

Still in the midst of it, but what engaging and humorous writing. It's funny, because I see myself a lot in the text and have often felt silly in similar circumstances. Anyone who has attempted home renovation (however successfully!) or working with the trades will appreciate the views expressed.

[Jen · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you like fixing up houses, enjoy watching HGTV or just have a passion for old houses.... this is a great book! It, surprisingly, is endearing at times as well.

[Mike Vasilev · Rating 5 out of 5]

great.

[Shayne · Rating 3 out of 5]

A delightful read, and fun trivia throughout. Cool!