Our Own Snug Fireside

March 29, 1993
The ideal New England home, as perceived in the late 19th century, was warm, welcoming and comfortable, a hive of hard work and frugality, a stable haven from the rapidly changing world outside. This conventional image had a solid basis in reality, maintains Nylander, who mines diaries, letters, wills, inventories, newspapers, advice books and travel accounts for this delightfully intimate portrayal of New England home life. Director of the Society for the Preservation of New England Antiquities, Nylander delineates a complex barter economy in which farm produce was a common medium of exchange and people swapped specialized work skills. Contrary to the popular image, however, she shows that change was a household constant, with the coming and going of friends, family, help and travelers. Enlivened by 162 period illustrations, her survey affords a rare glimpse of middle- and upper-class housework, clothing, kitchens, diet, socializing and much else. BOMC alternate.

May 15, 1993
Soon after the American Revolution, New Englanders began to idealize their rural farms and homesteads as bastions of security in a rapidly changing world. Some reminiscences stretched back to the 17th century, drawing on memories, artifacts, and a sense of history. In particular, four remarkable women cited here kept extensive journals of daily life for more than a half-century. By the Civil War the preservation of the "snug fireside" had become literally a cottage industry. Museum curator Nylander uses this evidence to construct a series of excellent essays describing the customs, traditions, friends, families, and workloads of the "typical" New England household. Chapters on housework, seasons, clothing, food, and holidays document women's work at home. This fine social history of forgotten routines is recommended for most libraries.-- Harry W. Fritz, Univ. of Montana, Missoula

Copyright 1993 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 15, 1993
Drawing from the memoirs, letters, wills, and inventories of three eighteenth- and nineteenth-century homemakers (as well as newspapers and other published accounts), Nylander draws a century-long portrait of day-to-day activities in a New England home. Most interesting of all is her focus on the collision of "reality and reminiscence." So many glorified images have been drawn of this period that Nylander's nitty-gritty approach is absorbing. In detail, she describes housekeeping duties, the care of clothing, winter survival tactics, cookery, social outings, and holidays. Photographs from various historical societies along with period sketches and paintings add pizzazz and authenticity. ((Reviewed Mar. 15, 1993))(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 1993, American Library Association.)