Review by Choice Review
Essays in this collection focus on the architecture and role of barns in the Midwestern US, with particular emphasis on agriculture. In the acknowledgments the editors state that "not much scholarly attention has been [paid]" to barns aside from their aesthetic impact on the landscape. Contributors argue that the Midwest is the section of the country most suited to correct this academic oversight because of its historic and contemporary reliance on agriculture and the blend of ethnic groups in the region. The area is filled with barns of various forms, styles, and construction methods, depending on the type of farming for which they were intended and the ethnicity of the builders. These subjects are covered in detail by 12 essays: two others discuss barn preservation and the place of barns in historical memory, followed by a concluding essay. This volume is firmly grounded in historical geography. Comments on barn construction, form, and use always pertain to agricultural practice and techniques. Readers expecting a treatise on barns from the perspective of architectural history, vernacular architecture, or material culture will need to look elsewhere. Upper-division undergraduates and above.
Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
