Earth-Sheltered Houses: How to Build an Affordable Underground Home

Earth-Sheltered Houses: How to Build an Affordable Underground Home
Average customer rating:

Geat book

Location, location, location

View of things to come.

Inspires Confidence, Crystal Clear, Makes the Option Very Attractive

A must have for those interested in this type of construction.

Earth-Sheltered Houses: How to Build an Affordable Underground Home
Rob Roy
Manufacturer: New Society Publishers
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Design & Construction | Home Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Energy Efficiency | Remodeling & Renovation | Home Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
General | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Building Construction | Construction | Civil | Engineering | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
General | Building Types & Styles | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Underground Homes

The Fifty Dollar and Up Underground House Book

Underground Buildings: More Than Meets the Eye

Earth Shelter Technology

Earth Sheltered Housing Design: Guidelines, Examples, and References

ASIN: 0865715211

Book Description

An earth-sheltered, earth-roofed home has the least impact upon the land of all housing styles, leaving almost zero footprint on the planet.

Earth-Sheltered Houses is a practical guide for those who want to build their own underground home at moderate cost. It describes the benefits of sheltering a home with earth, including the added comfort and energy efficiency from the moderating influence of the earth on the home's temperature (keeping it warm in the winter and cool in the summer), along with the benefits of low maintenance and the protection against fire, sound, earthquake, and storm afforded by the earth. Extra benefits from adding an earth or other living roof option include greater longevity of the roof substrate, fine aesthetics, and environmental harmony.

The book covers all of the various construction techniques involved, including details on planning, excavation, footings, floor, walls, framing, roofing, waterproofing, insulation, and drainage. Specific methods appropriate for the inexperienced owner/builder are a particular focus and include:

Pouring one's own footings and/or floor
The use of dry-stacked (surface-bonded) concrete block walls
Post-and-beam framing
Plank-and-beam roofing
Drainage methods and self-adhesive waterproofing membranes

The time-tested, easy-to-learn construction techniques described in Earth-Sheltered Houses will enable readers to embark upon their own building projects with confidence, backed up by a comprehensive resources section that lists all the latest products such as waterproofing membranes, types of rigid insulation, and drainage products that will protect the building against water damage and heat loss.

Rob Roy is a former contractor with 27 years of experience and 12 previous books to his credit, including Cordwood Building and Timber Framing for the Rest of Us. An expert on underground building, he founded the Earthwood Building School in 1981 with his wife, Jaki, and is frequently a speaker at events throughout North America.

Customer Reviews:

Geat book.......2007-10-02

I thought the book was a very informative and practical account as well as very well produced and edited.

Thanks!

Location, location, location.......2007-09-01

This is a great book! If you really wanted to build your own earth-sheltered home you could certainly do it using the information presented here (though a wiser course would be to pick up more sources). Thanks to this book and "The New Ecological Home", building our own home with environmentally conscious materials and possibly earth bermed or sheltered is high on our list of priorities. There is only one complaint I have about many books of this variety. They tend to cover difficulties with things like building code and location very lightly.

Building code and location are going to be huge factors in building an earth sheltered structure, especially one made with fewer traditional modern building materials. Difficulties with local regulations or inflexible inspectors/building comissions may prevent you from being able to build in the area you want. This may drive an individual to build in locations further away from urban centers where they might work. Commuting is no fun; and if you wanted to look at it from an environmental standpoint commuting a greater distance to work, grocery market or schools has just raised your carbon footprint and negated some of the savings your earth sheltered home has created.

I would highly recommend that individuals check local code thoroughly and choose a location suitable to their daily needs such as work or other social necessities before building. One need not build out of logs and plaster to have an earth sheltered home, though I understand that the point of this book is to have an affordable home and avoiding expensive modern materials. Take a bigger picture of what you are trying to accomplish; if you are purchasing this book it is somewhat safe to assume you are concerned about the environment. Please also consider materials used. Rob Roy's excellent use of modern materials such as rubber membranes and concrete block are high in initial cost to produce, environmentally speaking, but last longer and provide more benefit to long term savings such as insulative qualities and maintenance costs than lesser materials might. A lot of other earth-sheltered builders advocate natural materials to a fault, they have people using composting toilets and straw-bale homes. While effective in an environmental sense, they are not attractive to the average person. Rob Roy's book moves in a positive direction by using modern materials with environmentally conscious construction to create a home that just about anybody would like to live in.

View of things to come........2007-08-14

Rob as always has the answers to the environmental problems that we all are facing. Building youself will not only save a lot of money but give you the satisfaction of knowing what you are getting. Building underground or semi underground has made sence for eternety but we as a civilization forgot the lesons learned so long ago. Great book.

Inspires Confidence, Crystal Clear, Makes the Option Very Attractive.......2007-02-24

I went to some trouble to survey books centered on both underground or into rock dwellings, and also earth sheltered homes, and this book is the best I could find. It has proven to be everything I had hoped for.

This book deals with earth-sheltered homes, which are homes generally built on the ground, and then covered with natural dirt and growth on the roof only, or on the roof and the berms of earth piled against at least two of the sides after the fact of building.

This is a really excellent offering. 12 chapters, 4 appendices, and an annotated bibliography. A number of really nice color photographs on eight pages in the middle of the book, many black and white photos as well as really excellent understandable diagrams.

Take-aways include the need for extremely careful but not over the top load planning, radon as a factor to take seriously, and ANYONE CAN DO THIS.

The book covers waterproofing, insulation, and drainage, to include waste drainage where gravity rather than pumping is strongly recommended. It does not cover electrical and plumbing installation. It covers energy in relation to sunlight and windows and heat retention curtains, but does not include coverage of skylights (except as an energy loss factor), interior lights and other "plumbing.

The bottom line in the book is that a solid earth-sheltered house can be built for $10K to $20K inclusive of appliances, plumbing and so on, which makes it a lot cheaper and greatly more sustainable than a double-wide trailer home, and better in most respects than your average rambler.

With Peak Oil now upon on, the energy saving features of the earth-sheltered home are not to be taken lightly. The author document going without a need for heat from wood burning for almost an entire winter, and documents getting through any winter with 2-3 cords of wood. The home is cool in the summer without airconditioning, in part because of the natural respiration and evaporation of the earth roof with grass, moss, and wildflowers.

I want to end with praise for the publisher. Five or six times now I have bought boooks based on my interest in their content, only to find that New Society Publishers is the provider. They now rank with Wharton Publishing as one of my favored publishers, and I will be keeping an eye out for anything bearing their imprint.

A must have for those interested in this type of construction........2007-01-10

Mr. Roy has experience. He's built a few of these earth shelters. And, rather than telling you only how to build them, he gives you reasons why and lessons he's learned from those experiences. With an emphasis on safety, Mr. Roy explains in laymen's terms the in's and out's of earth shelters. I found this an easy and informative read which conjurs up plans and dreams for a earth sheltered house of my own.

Average customer rating:

something to think about
Convenience and Saving Money

Build Your Own underground Root Cellar
Phyllis Hobson
Manufacturer: Storey Publishing, LLC
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

Design & Construction | Home Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

Do-It-Yourself | How-to & Home Improvements | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

All 4-for-3 Deals | 4-for-3 Books Store | Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Root Cellaring: Natural Cold Storage of Fruits & Vegetables
Build a Smokehouse: Storey Country Wisdom Bulletin A-81 (A Storey Country Wisdom Bulletin)
Handy Farm Devices: And How to Make Them
Seed to Seed: Seed Saving and Growing Techniques for Vegetable Gardeners
Four-Season Harvest: Organic Vegetables from Your Home Garden All Year Long

ASIN: 0882662902

Book Description

Since 1973, Storey's Country Wisdom Bulletins have offered practical, hands-on instructions designed to help readers master dozens of country living skills quickly and easily. There are now more than 170 titles in this series, and their remarkable popularity reflects the common desire of country and city dwellers alike to cultivate personal independence in everyday life.

Customer Reviews:

something to think about.......2007-03-22

I am planning a root cellar, and this book was a big assist. I am a little farther south, and so it had a lot of information that is less applicable to me. Valuable for the northern half of the U.S.

Convenience and Saving Money.......2005-06-18

Having a root cellar in your back yard is like having your own private supermarket of fresh fruits and vegetables. Any time you need potatoes for dinner or an apple for a snack, just open the door and walk inside. Anything you need is right there on the shelves.

But a root cellar is more than a convenience. In addition to providing the security of having a year's supply of fruits and vegetables on hand, a root cellar offers sanctuary. In an emergency, it could shelter your family for a few hours, a few days, or even a few weeks, if necessary.

A well-built root cellar can be a good investment. It will save you money for years to come, yet if you build the cellar yourself, the cost of materials is less than you would spend in one winter buying food at supermarket prices.

I've Got a Home in Glory Land: A Lost Tale of the Underground Railroad

Average customer rating:

A Must Read!
An absorbing story
A Kentucky-Canada Story

I've Got a Home in Glory Land: A Lost Tale of the Underground Railroad
Karolyn Smardz Frost
Manufacturer: Farrar, Straus and Giroux
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

African-American & Black | Ethnic & National | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Biographies & Memoirs | Subjects | Books

General | Americas | History | Subjects | Books

Slavery & Emancipation | World | History | Subjects | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Escape on the Pearl: The Heroic Bid for Freedom on the Underground Railroad
Empires in the Forest: Jamestown And the Beginning of America
The Birth of Black America: The First African Americans and the Pursuit of Freedom at Jamestown
Flies on the Butter
Don't Make Me Stop Now: Stories

ASIN: 0374164819
Release Date: 2007-02-06

Book Description

It was the day before Independence Day, 1831. As his bride, Lucie, was about to be “sold down the river” to the slave markets of New Orleans, young Thornton Blackburn planned a daring—and successful—daylight escape from Louisville. But they were discovered by slave catchers in Michigan and slated to return to Kentucky in chains, until the black community rallied to their cause. The Blackburn Riot of 1833 was the first racial uprising in Detroit history.

The couple was spirited across the river to Canada, but their safety proved illusory. In June 1833, Michigan’s governor demanded their extradition. The Blackburn case was the first serious legal dispute between Canada and the United States regarding the Underground Railroad. The impassioned defense of the Blackburns by Canada’s lieutenant governor set precedents for all future fugitive-slave cases.

The Blackburns settled in Toronto and founded the city’s first taxi business. But they never forgot the millions who still suffered in slavery. Working with prominent abolitionists, Thornton and Lucie made their home a haven for runaways. The Blackburns died in the 1890s, and their fascinating tale was lost to history. Lost, that is, until a chance archaeological discovery in a downtown Toronto school yard brought the story of Thornton and Lucie Blackburn again to light.

Customer Reviews:

A Must Read!.......2007-08-26

One would have to read this book several times to completely absorb its multifarious layers, and I cannot recommend it highly enough.

First and foremost, it is the compelling life story of Thornton and Lucie Blackburn. They escaped from slavery boldly using forged documents to travel by steamboat to Cincinnati (appropriately arriving on July 4) then settled in Detroit and were subsequently incarcerated under the Fugitive Slave Law. The community (white and black) rose up in their defense, sparking what history records as "The Blackburn Riots of 1833." After their hair raising escape to Canada and subsequent incarceration while appealing extradition under provisions of the Fugitive Offenders Act, they finally settled in Toronto, where Blackburn established the first cab company. The couple acquired affluence and influence - though they always lived modestly - and assisted many other refugees escaping slavery and intolerance before, during and after the Civil War.

Equally fascinating is the process by which their life story was reconstructed. Both Thornton and Lucie remained illiterate, and no one recorded their memoirs. This book is the result of over 20 years of painstaking research and - as the author states in the introduction - no small amount of "historical coalescence." It perfectly illustrates the creative approach historians must take when attempting to break through what genealogists call "The Wall of Slavery." The author relies on everything from Bibles to court documents to glean information and put all the pieces together, and her extensive bibliography alone is worth the price of the book.

While detailing the Blackburn's encounters with the legal system of the time, the author explores the evolution of jurisprudence in both countries: to maintain the Peculiar Institution in the states, and to guarantee civil liberties (and in no small part, autonomy from the U.S.) in Canada. Some slave owners doggedly expended inordinate amounts of time and money to retrieve their "property" and to punish anyone who might have aided their escape. Consequently, there are voluminous court documents related to the Blackburns as their owners pursued them here and abroad, and legal precedents were set which still have impact today. For example, people are often surprised to learn the Ohio River is actually part of Kentucky - that boundary was established to ensure this particular "highway to freedom" remained "slave territory" and this decision was relevant in the lawsuit filed against the steamboat captain and his company.

For American readers, the fact that this book is written from a Canadian's perspective adds yet another interesting layer. (Oh, to see ourselves as others see us!) Yet while pointing out the obvious hypocrisy inherent in U.S. "freedom," Frost does not turn a blind eye to racism and hypocrisy among Canadians. She notes that while Toronto harbored fugitive slaves, it also welcomed slaveholders and Confederate soldiers seeking asylum during the Civil War. Doubly mind boggling is the fact that the Blackburns had personal connections with some of them...and a few of them probably rode in his cab.

In the standard American narrative, slaves escape to Canada and vanish from our story. While many - heartened by the promise of Reconstruction - returned to the United States to reunite with family after the war (only to migrate north again as Jim Crow and sharecropping reinstated the antebellum power structure) the Blackburns lived three-quarters of their highly productive lives as African-Canadians. This book and the work which went into creating it are welcome revelations. I hope they inspire further research into the lives of those who crossed over into Canaan Land.

NB The book describes the role played by the Blackburns in the development of the Elgin Settlement and Buxton Mission, a colony for fugitive slaves south of Chatham. The modern village of North Buxton is still home to about 200 descendants. Several years ago I visited the Buxton Historic Site and Museum and highly recommend it...plan to spend several hours! BuxtonMuseum dot com

An absorbing story.......2007-08-13

Canada's role relative to slavery in the United States - little-known by Americans - is excellently told through the life story of a couple born in slavery. The Blackburns' escape from slavery calls out for dramatization in a movie or at least on PBS' "American Experience." It would also make a fine children's book.

A Kentucky-Canada Story.......2007-05-11

I cannot overstate the importance of this book. It is a moving, heart-wrenching story. Additionally the Kentucky material was of particular interest to me since my own ancestors were in Mason COunty, KY for a good portion of the story of Thornton Blackburn. I have not finished reading it as of this writing.

Average customer rating:

Underground Homes
The basics are all covered in easy language and diagrams.
Hesitant however trying to be fair
Skinny and dated, but it's a good conceptual starting point
good introduction

Underground Homes
Louis Wampler
Manufacturer: Pelican Publishing Company
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

Reference | Architecture | Professional & Technical | Subjects | Books

General | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Home Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books

General | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Earth-Sheltered Houses: How to Build an Affordable Underground Home
Earth Shelter Technology
The Fifty Dollar and Up Underground House Book
Underground Buildings: More Than Meets the Eye
The Portland Cement Association's Guide to Concrete Homebuilding Systems

ASIN: 0882892738

Book Description

High energy costs have spurred the search for new and better ways to increase energy in family dwellings throughout America. One exciting solution is to reduce our energy needs by building underground.

"Underground Homes" offers the layman a complete and thoughtful approach to planning, building, and inhabiting an earth-sheltered home. Author Louis Wampler takes the reader step by step through a potential maze of construction problems. He uses simple language and numerous diagrams and illustrations to answer the questions people ask most about an underground home.

The book offers information and guidance on such key factors as

Planning interior and exterior design

Choosing the proper site

Insulating for maximum energy savings

Waterproofing the structure

Deciding which roof will work best on your house

Selecting appropriate heating and cooling systems

"Underground Homes" also addresses specific problems associated with subterranean homes-- determining the local water table, reinforcing concrete with steel, and using skylights and windows. It also discusses the common psychological barriers to living underground, presenting solutions and insights into these problems. best on your house

Selecting appropriate heating and cooling systems

Customer Reviews:

Underground Homes.......2007-01-18

This may be a little book in pages,but it is definitely worth it. There are step by step procedures to follow for building an underground / earth berm home.It covers the pitfalls of inappropriate drainage and also Earth-roof designs. There are new techniques now for Earth-roof designs that would be well deserved reading. With energy costs so exorbitant one would think this type of building would stage a comeback.

The basics are all covered in easy language and diagrams........2006-11-07

The layman who wants an easy introduction to planning and building an earth-sheltered home typically has plenty of construction guides to choose from, but UNDERGROUND HOMES differs from most in offering all the basics, from site choice and waterproofing and insulation choices to handling problems unique to subterranean homes, such as determining the local water table and handling heating and cooling systems for different climates. The basics are all covered in easy language and diagrams.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

Hesitant however trying to be fair.......2004-06-06

Interested.

Trying to be as fair as possible. The book is interesting to say the least. I would use it as a guide if I were building /and I, my wife and I might just do that. We have just retired and our retirement home will be either underground or a log cabin. her and my choice respectively, so both of us are looking into the possibilities. I will use your book as a reference. I have obtained a copy from a friend and will see how the progression goes from there. I will stay in touch.

Skinny and dated, but it's a good conceptual starting point.......2003-04-11

This book is fairly old (1978; revised in 1980), and slim (only 107 pages of text). But there aren't too many books that cover underground homes, and this is a fair overview.

If you're just starting to think about building a house, and want to consider the underground or earth-sheltered option, this book makes a decent starting point. You'll need to search out other materials if the idea strikes your fancy, though.

Chapter titles:
---------------
Introduction
Lot or Land
Structure

Waterproofing
Insulation
Interior
Natural Light
Heating and Cooling Systems
Exterior
Standard Roofs: A Compromise Solution
Building Sequence
Conclusion
Reference Material
Index

good introduction.......2001-01-12

Mr. Wampler's "Underground Homes" offers a good introduction to the drawing up and building of an underground home and I give it a pretty good rating, though from a carpenter's viewpoint I would like to have seen a few more detailed elevation drawings within the book to allow the reader to expand with one's own floor plan and draw up a full plan for at least a small underground home without buying a full set of blueprints, though it's necessary to have prints for full scale buildings, some homeowners may choose to add on an underground room or storm room also, and here is the perfect opportunity to offer some basic accepted methods of construction on elevations into plan form. He does cover the various problems which are unique to underground building and one should not approach this type of construction without due information and particular preparation.But, there are no actual home plans in this book.Chapters on waterproofing, insulation, lighting,heating and cooling, and more, will get the reader to thinking about all the options and wonderful security offered in an underground or earth-sheltered home.

Average customer rating:

Shipped quickly, great condition
Basic designs......no frills.
Just pack some earth against a typical house...
Great book for the potential homebuilder.

Earth Sheltered Designs

Manufacturer: Davis Caves Construction
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Design & Construction | Home Design | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Earth-Sheltered Houses: How to Build an Affordable Underground Home
Underground Homes
Earth Shelter Technology
The Fifty Dollar and Up Underground House Book
Underground Buildings: More Than Meets the Eye

ASIN: 0970029608

Book Description

Over 80 earth Shletered floor plan Designs and artist's renderings.

Professionally prepared by architects and engineers.

Floor plans range from 670 square feet to over 7,000 square feet.

Excellent floor plans for a retirement home or for a growing family.

Residential and commercial designs.

Customer Reviews:

Shipped quickly, great condition.......2005-07-19

The book was in greeat condition and it was shipped quickly.

Basic designs......no frills........2004-02-08

This book did give me some new ideas but not many. I was disappointed that were no hillside designs, most of the designs were for flat landscapes. There seems to be no rhyme or reason to the scale of the drawings, it would be nice if there was some consistency that you could easily cut and tape your own design using two or more drawings. At the very least each drawing should have a scale included. One or two sentences about the pro's and con's of each design would also be helpful. Good place to start.....no frills.

Just pack some earth against a typical house..........2001-11-06

I was very disapointed with this book. First, it was only plans with no supplemental info. Second, most of the designs looked like something you'd see in any other house plan book, but with some dirt pushed around the sides and a thin layer raked across the top. That's it! They're mostly rectangular, which is boring. Even if you built one into a hill instead of just doing the dirt comb-over, they'd still be boring. And small. The few seemingly innovative designs were way too small to even consider. Imagine a bedroom that is 8x11 in cross-measurements, except that it's actually a pie shape taken out of a very small hexagonal structure!

The "underground" house/structure books tend to be way more cool than "earth-sheltered" or "earth-bermed" house books. Keep looking. I may make a list of my favorite underground books......

Great book for the potential homebuilder........2000-08-04

I'm no architect and this is a book I borrowed from the bookshelf of my brother who is an architect. How many technical books is a layman going to bother to pick up. This gives a great feel for the possibilities of earth sheltered design under differing climatic conditions. If you are interested in the concept you could do worse than to start with this book. I am attracted to earth sheltered design for it's energy efficiency and it's low impact on the landscape, but as a design perspective you have to rate it before you can reject it. I just hate all the energy wasted on heating and cooling when we can use nature to do most of that for us without killing the planet in the process.

Bringing the War Home: The Weather Underground, the Red Army Faction, and Revolutionary Violence in the Sixties and Seventies

Average customer rating:

Anarchy in America
a fine work
In way over his head
Bringing The War Home ~ An Eclectic Balance
Very well written history

Bringing the War Home: The Weather Underground, the Red Army Faction, and Revolutionary Violence in the Sixties and Seventies
Jeremy Varon
Manufacturer: University of California Press
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Americas | History | Subjects | Books

General | Europe | History | Subjects | Books

Historiography | Historical Study | History | Subjects | Books

General | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Activism | Politics | Nonfiction | Subjects | Books

Look Inside History Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books

Look Inside Nonfiction Books | Trip | Specialty Stores | Books
Similar Items:

Outlaws of America: The Weather Underground And the Politics of Solidarity
The Way the Wind Blew: A History of the Weather Underground (Haymarket Series)
SDS/WUO, Students For A Democratic Society And The Weather Underground Organization
Sing a Battle Song: The Revolutionary Poetry, Statements, And Communiques of the Weather Underground 1970 - 1974
The Weather Underground

ASIN: 0520241193

Book Description

In this first comprehensive comparison of left-wing violence in the United States and West Germany, Jeremy Varon focuses on America's Weather Underground and Germany's Red Army Faction to consider how and why young, middle-class radicals in prosperous democratic societies turned to armed struggle in efforts to overthrow their states. Based on a wealth of primary material, ranging from interviews to FBI reports, this book reconstructs the motivation and ideology of violent organizations active during the 1960s and 1970s. Varon conveys the intense passions of the era--the heat of moral purpose, the depth of Utopian longing, the sense of danger and despair, and the exhilaration over temporary triumphs. Varon's compelling interpretation of the logic and limits of dissent in democratic societies provides striking insights into the role of militancy in contemporary protest movements and has wide implications for the United States' current "war on terrorism."
Varon explores Weatherman and RAF's strong similarities and the reasons why radicals in different settings developed a shared set of values, languages, and strategies. Addressing the relationship of historical memory to political action, Varon demonstrates how Germany's fascist past influenced the brutal and escalating nature of the West German conflict in the 60s and 70s, as well as the reasons why left-wing violence dropped sharply in the United States during the 1970s. Bringing the War Home is a fascinating account of why violence develops within social movements, how states can respond to radical dissent and forms of terror, how the rational and irrational can combine in political movements, and finally how moral outrage and militancy can play both constructive and destructive roles in efforts at social change.

Customer Reviews:

Anarchy in America.......2007-07-27

This was required reading for a graduate course in American history. In the 1960s and 1970s there were revolutionaries all over the world. Most in the third world had good reason to rebel against the establishment. Many governments were ruled by power hungry tyrants who oppressed the masses for their personal economic gain. Other countries suffered under the colonial powers. Jeremy Varon's book Bringing the War Home is a history of two revolutionary groups in the developed world. The Weather Underground operated in the United States and the Red Army Faction in Germany. Both these countries had prosperous economies and had democratic forms of government. Varon endeavors to impartially show the reasons why these two groups came to be. These groups are mainly remembered because of their violent acts. This is an important work because it delves into the motivations behind the members' acts of violence.

Both these groups came to be in the late 1960s and were small. Most if not all members came from prosperous families and had good educational and labor opportunities. Varon's purpose for his book is "to restore a stronger measure of rationality and moral purpose to Weatherman and RAF." Varon believes that they saw themselves as part of the global revolutionary struggle that was taking place at the time. They existed in an era where passive resistance had proven effective yet they subscribed to the violent revolutionary ideas of Franz Fannon and the criticism of society of Herbert Marcuse. They idolized Ernesto "Che Guevara who embodied Fannon's philosophy and believed that violent struggle was the only way to change the oppressive establishment that
existed in every poor country. Guevara believed that the United States was imperialistic and aided the oppressors. He advocated fighting small revolutions or "many Vietnams" to defeat it.

The Weather Underground and Red Army Faction believed that by attacking their governments they were adding to the small revolutions thereby helping in the global struggle against imperialism. They believed that the Vietnam War was a criminal imperialist war and they saw Ho Chi Ming as a freedom fighter. He was successfully fighting the most powerful army in the world with peasants. They idealized revolutionary violence. They saw themselves as being oppressed by the police and they saw violence as a "natural right to resistance."

Varon writes that other reasons for the group's intense radicalism involved the concepts of "white guilt" in the Weather Underground and Nazi guilt on the part of the RAF. The Germans could not believe that their parents had stood by while the Nazis tortured and killed millions. The Weathermen could not understand how some people suffered in horrible poverty in the richest country in the world. Both groups were appalled at the inequalities in the world.

There was also an element of competition. Who was more committed to the revolution? They had to prove themselves as authentic fighters against the establishment. They believed that they had to stand up for their beliefs to the death. Martyrdom was an acceptable risk. Even the Black Panthers considered them extreme. After the 1968 Days of Rage in Chicago, Fred Hampton said "We no not support people who are anarchistic, opportunistic, adventuristic, and Custeristic [i.e., suicidal]."

When the Vietnam War ended so did the Weather Underground. The RAF continued becoming increasingly violent until shortly after the fall of the Soviet Union. Their ideology gone and most members in prison, they could not find a reason to exist. Varon's work is very timely because the Cold War mentality has been replaced by the War on Terror mentality. The suicide bombers of September 11 were all from prosperous homes and had
excellent education and job opportunities and like the members of the Weather Underground and the RAF they had no problems being martyrs.

Recommended reading for anyone interested in American history.

a fine work.......2007-04-06

This is a fine piece of comparative history. I think it's far superior to other texts on the WUO. I don't think I'm qualified to judge the sections on the RAF, though I found them clear, informative, and provocative.
I respect that Varon has the courage to draw some uncomfortable conclusions about the groups he surveys.
For those who think Varon is a right winger because of the conclusions he draws, you might want to have a look at his C.V.

In way over his head.......2005-07-28

Varon has a valuable mission in attempting to draw lessons from the activities, beliefs, and commentaries generated by the Weather Underground and the RAF. It's unfortunate, then, that he settles into the very "pathology" of resistance that he criticizes at the opening of his book. By focusing tightly on individual reflections of these groups' former members, he centers his discussion on emotion, theory, and abstraction. His decision to provide little context for their actions leaves us with the same problems as Aust's study of the RAF: the sense that these people were crazy and disconnected from reality. That might have been the case, but without making some attempt to at least depict that reality, Varon ensures that we can't "read" the Weather Underground or the RAF as anything other than irrational abberations. A more detailed history of the period might provide a better view - it would at the least allow for the possibility that these extremists' actions had concrete roots.

Not much to like here.

Bringing The War Home ~ An Eclectic Balance.......2005-01-11

Jeremy Varon's "Bringing The War Home" is simply a "must read" for anyone who wishes to "understand" the '60's and '70's--the very concept of "revolution"--from the perspectives of the Weatherman/Weather Underground, the Red Army Fraction, AND the very governments and societies these groups sought to radically change. Both probing and honest, Varon's narrative and analysis is an important and eclectic cotribution to this critical and defining era. The relevance of this work to contemporary "war on terror" response is impossible to overstate. While a bit "pedantic" in parts--Varon's work is a long overdue illumination of that which defined not only a generation but an entire world. A real "keeper".

Very well written history.......2004-11-22

Jeremy Varon's "Bringing the War Home" is a well-written and engaging account of the radical student movement in the United States and Germany during the 1960s.

Varon outlines and explains why some anti-war and civil rights protestors moved from passive resistance to the state to outright acts of terrorist aggression.

The author is particularly good at tracing the "development" of the ideologies radicals used to justify their violence, and at explaining the difference between US and German radicalism.

Customer Reviews:

undergound home.......2007-09-02

pretty good book. Lots of good illustrations,ideas, even if the home you decide to build is not underground. Interestingly written, worth the money.

Revolutionary, but Problematic too.......2007-01-06

I read through the first chapter on Amazon and was absolutely sold on the idea. Subterranean housing is vastly more ecologically compatible than surface dwellings; it can even be environmentally regenerative. But the book's last chapter was a crushing blow; the designs and methods Oehler suggests are not compliant with the Uniform Building Codes.

If you do your best to play by the rules in life, this book will have to be set aside. It's thought-provoking reading, to be sure -- not to be missed. But before you can set out into the wilderness and build yourself an inexpensive answer to today's housing problems, you'll need to socially-engineer a way around civilization's permit/inspector traps. The author proposes a few far-fetched possibilities, e.g. getting a code variance, getting an underground code amendment. Basically, the only real options are: either move to an area with NO building codes (Oehler himself admits there are almost none left), or hide your construction -- and this entails forgoing utility hook-ups, since meter readers apparently double as spies for the housing board, looking for unauthorized renovation/building projects.

Being an outlaw is not my cup of tea. Nor does it suit the mainstream. So perhaps this book's main function, after showing us how inexpensive housing can be, is to wake us up to a harsh reality. Housing boards, composed largely of members of the building professions, "have a vested interest in maintaining the status quo. In other words they are not likely to take a cheerful view of any system which cuts the cost of building from 70% to 90%." The reason houses are so expensive is: the law REQUIRES them to be, and the law is assiduously enforced by the very contractors building those houses. What we need is a uniform building code flexibly oriented around safety and good construction standards, NOT the maximization of revenue to entrenched special interests.

What a great book!.......2006-08-18

I was amazed by this book. Not only does it provide plenty of details, but it is easy for anyone to understand.

Some other reviews comment on some of Mike's opinions. You have to remember, the world of the 70's was a lot different from today. No Political Correct bull! It was common for national magazines to get off on the ranting of the turbulent times. This doesn't distract from the book though, and I personally think it adds a bit of character to the book.

If you have ever thought of building an underground house, or getting away from the commercialism in modern society, this is the book for you. This is a must for the homesteader's library.

If I could ask for other things in this book, it would be a bigger description of the newer building methods in the update section. Also, some more three dement ional drawings of the inside of the houses. You can figure out what's going on but sometimes you have to study the perspective drawings and pictures a bit. I agree with another reviewer, a biography would be nice.

Great book, you will not be disappointed!

Who Wants to Look at Houses?.......2004-02-04

I first purchased this book about twenty years ago, then lent out my copy and have been without it for five years or more. Having recently bought a new copy, I have just finished re-reading it once again. I find the author's ideas to be intelligent, logical, and revolutionary.

His personality comes through strongly as he is a man who is not afraid to state his opinions. I find this book to be an interesting read for this reason alone, but strongly recommend it on the basis of the building system he outlines. He explains to the reader, in simple, easily comprehensible language, just how to go about building a warm in winter, cool in summer, low cost home, that is easy on both the eye and the environment.

A huge advantage is that a person living in such a home doesn't have to look at neighbor's homes, and, for their own part, is residing in a home that blends in with the surrounding countryside. If, by good fortune or good planning, one lives on enough acreage that viewing a neighbor's house is not an issue, there is still the benefit of having the home tucked away out of sight, part of the earth around it.

Having never been the type to build a "impressive" home, I am more intersted in staying out of sight and being left alone. I enjoy the woods and wildlife. Mike Oehler shows us how to build a home that lets me do just that.

The book is good but the author is nasty........2003-09-16

I too bought mikes book and tapes. The concepts in the book
can be distilled down to a very few things. The most important
is the use of PE film used for a living roof and using sand
to separate the layers. Thus a tiny leak in one film layer will
disperse into the sand and making a second pin hole leak less
of a problem. The videos are poor quality and most of it
is a waste of time. You watch Mike out of respect and put
up with their poor quality . The fact is , as a customer
when you e-mail mike on using tarps vs. PE film at mole@sandpoint.net you may be
shocked at his nasty response.
Apparently he is bitter and broken man lashing out even
at those who supported him.

The Underground History Of American Education: A Schoolteacher's Intimate Investigation Into The Problem Of Modern Schooling By John Taylor Gatto

Average customer rating:

The Underground History Of American Education: A Schoolteacher's Intimate Investigation Into The Problem Of Modern Schooling By John Taylor Gatto
Author's Special Pre-Publication Edition
Manufacturer: The Oxford Village Press, New York
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

General | Gardening & Horticulture | Home & Garden | Subjects | Books
Similar Items:

Dumbing Us Down: The Hidden Curriculum of Compulsory Schooling

ASIN: B000MOKMFM

CBGB and OMFUG: Thirty Years from the Home of Underground Rock

Average customer rating:

Good Pics But No Substance
Visual feast for the eyes
CBs Celebrated In Pictures.

CBGB and OMFUG: Thirty Years from the Home of Underground Rock

Manufacturer: "Harry N. Abrams, Inc."
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover

Collections, Catalogues & Exhibitions | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Photo Essays | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

Portraits | Photography | Arts & Photography | Subjects | Books

General | Music | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

History & Criticism | Music | Entertainment | Subjects | Books

CBGB: Decades of Graffiti
Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk
End of the Century - The Story of the Ramones
From the Velvets to the Voidoids: The Birth of American Punk Rock
STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN: THE FINAL RESTING PLACES OF ROCK'S LEGENDS

ASIN: 0810957868

Book Description

Hilly Kristal originally intended his club to showcase the type of music his venue's notorious letters stand for: Country, Bluegrass, Blues. Little did he know his club on the Bowery would be the birthplace of a new era of music in New York City: Punk. While CBGB ultimately didn't describe the music the club was known for, OMFUG (Other Music for Uplifting Gormandizers) still represents what the club provides for all voracious "eaters" of music.

CBGB & OMFUG is a musical and cultural landmark, recognized worldwide and visited by countless tourists and music lovers each year. In these luminous pages, CBGB's influence and legacy is honored with 200 photos of some of the most celebrated artists in music history. With an introduction by Hilly Kristal, an afterword by David Byrne, Rock and Roll Hall of Famer and cofounder of Talking Heads, and additional commentary by numerous performers and patrons, CBGB & OMFUG features unforgettable images by the many photographers who documented an American institution.

Customer Reviews:

Good Pics But No Substance.......2007-09-17

This is a good "coffee table" book but no stories to go along with the pictures. There is an intro from Hilly Kristal (R.I.P) but that's about it. Also not to many pictures from the later years or even from the hardcore days. A lot of Blondie, Television stuff.

If you wanna browse pics or have friends look at it to remember the good ol' days this book is cool. If you want a story and and detail events look somewhere else.

Visual feast for the eyes.......2005-12-12

The days of punk are long gone in a haze of AquaNet, black eyeliner and black leather. But thankfully, a handful of artists had the forsight to immoralize the scene in glorious black & white. The photographs are arranged in chronological order and include a who's-who of the punk scene. Some of the in-your-face images bring you to front center stage where you're right there with the usual suspects--Ramones, Television, Blondie. There are lots of surprises too including a great shot of Stiv Bators with Divine, and a shot of Klaus Nomi, Christopher Parker & Jim Jarmusch taken outside at the front of CBGB's. If you ever wanted to know what the punk scene was like in its early days, or if you were there and need a bit of a jolt to jog your memory, you've got to get this book.

CBs Celebrated In Pictures........2005-08-21

Forget the current controversy surrounding CBGBs, this book isn't about that. This book uses pictures to describe the life and times of this Bowery landmark from it's early days in 1973 to the present. The first picture (not counting the inside cover shot of their famous toilets) is of The Ramones, and the last shot is of Handsome Dick of The Dictators. In between lies b&w photo after b&w photo of punk and New Wave in its infancy. If you were there this book will remind you of how it was. If you weren't this book will graphically tell you the story of NYC area kids tired of corporate rock who just wanted to play a few chords as loud as they could so they could feel the rush.

The Forestiere Underground Garden, A Pictorial Journey

Average customer rating:

The Forestiere Underground Garden, A Pictorial Journey
Silvio Manno
Manufacturer: Ionian Publications
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Paperback

Product Description

This high quiallity, soft cover book displays brilliant photographs of the underground domain of Sicilian immigrant, Baldassare Forestiere who dedicated 40 years of manual digging to create his remarkable abode which was, and still is, enviromentally advanced far beyond its time.

Books:

Books Index

Books Home

Recommended Books