Book excerpt: A celebrated New York architect and designer of the city's fabled Singer Building, Ernest Flagg (1857-1947) was most famous for his skyscrapers. But Flagg was also an ardent proponent of the well-designed single-family dwelling. As this classic treatise illustrates, he devised a variety of structural economies and ingenious innovations. Filled with 526 blueprints, photographs, and other illustrations, Flagg's Small Houses embraces modular designs, the use of ridge-dormers, and saving space, materials, and costs. Flagg offers advice on every corner of the home, from the practicalities of plumbing and heating to the aesthetics of color choices and landscaping designs. Modern designers, both professional and amateur, will find this book a timeless source of advice and inspiration.