Book excerpt: This book enables the reader to set the Georgian house in its historical context, shows how and why each aspect of a house came to be as it is, and help owners to preserve their homes for the enjoyment of the next generation. In the first part of the book Steven Parissien describes the development of the Georgian style in Britain from its introduction in the early eighteenth century through to the mid-nineteenth century and explains how the original inhabitants would have used the various rooms. In the second part he devotes a chapter to each element of the Georgian house, including roofs, brickwork and stonework, doors and windows, staircase and fireplaces, mouldings and plasterwork. Throughout the book he stresses the need for today's owners to understand the ideas, techniques and materials employed by those who built their homes. The book has been written with the owner, or would-be owner, of a modest family house or Georgian cottage primarily in mind.