Feeling at Home

October 4, 1999
Stoddard (Open Your Eyes) is a well-known interior designer, but her books mine a territory that's closer to self-help than color schemes. Her latest volume urges readers to look at themselves and their homes with a new consciousness. Through a text liberally laced with both personal anecdote and queries (from "How well are you getting along with your spouse?" to "How much time do you spend eating?"), Stoddard guides readers through a process of self-exploration, then encourages them to reshape not only their houses but the way they spend time there. What she calls emotional comforts, such as order and color, are enhanced along the way, while unrewarding chores, spaces or possessions are pared down. The result, she convincingly affirms, is a more delightful, less demanding life. Stoddard has a genuine gift for thinking creatively about interior spaces; too often, though, she returns to themes well covered in past books--her own and others'--or collapses into vague silliness ("If in the past you found no satisfaction in emptying the garbage, transcend the garbage pail, rise above it"). However, the book bubbles with an infectious appreciation of even the smallest domestic pleasure and an inspiring awareness of the spiritual and emotional life of a house.

September 15, 1999
Stoddard (Open Your Eyes, The Decoration of Houses) explains that this is a "guide to help you live an inner-directed, dynamic life every day in your private haven." She successfully shows how to create an attractive, comfortable home by examining one's lifestyle, personality, and interests. As is her style, she interweaves anecdotes, both personal and professional, with her decorating advice. Recommended for public libraries.

Copyright 1999 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.