Louisiana Plantation Homes: A Return to Splendor

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Summary: The antebellum South is celebrated in this beautiful book
Review: featuring over 100 full-color photographs of restored plantation homes. The homes bespeak the grandeur of days gone by when plantation homes were decorated exquisitely, furnished lavishly, and surrounded by vast acreages of lush croplands.

Full-page photographs are accompanied by text highlighting the history and outstanding architectural features of each home. The styles of the homes ae far-ranging and include excellent examples of Victorian Gothic, Colonial, Italianate, Acadian, and Southern Classical architecture, with some homes combining two or more styles.

Destrehan, Edgewood, Houmas House, Nottoway, Magnolia Mound, Oak Alley, and Shadows-on-the-Teche- all carefully preserved and open to the public- are some of the 76 plantation homes featured in "Louisiana Plantation Homes: A Return to Splendor."

Constructed from cypress and other materials from the surrounding land, the homes, built over 200 years ago, feature such details as soaring Greek columns, hipped roofs, dormer windows, balconies, galleries, ceiling frescoes, and formal ballrooms. Finishing touches, brought in by riverboats, include wall coverings, chandeliers, and marble statuary.

Preservation groups and owners consulted old documents, diaries, and personal papers as they meticulously restored the homes that were ravaged by the Civil War. As a result, many of the houses feature rooms decorated in their original colors displaying antiques from the appropriate period and re-creations of the original drapes.

Paul and Lee Malone are native New Orleanians whose love for the plantation homes of Louisiana led them to devote untold hours of their time preparing this book. Paul Malone is the past president of the Professional Photographers of Louisiana and a member of the Professional Photographers of America and the American Society of Photographers. Lee Malone wrote the text along with researching and verifying the historical information.

Rating:
Summary: beautiful photos
Review: the book has lovely photos and briefly tells about each home. It would have been nice if there were more photos of the interior of homes. But the book has beautiful photography and is overall: GREAT!

Rating:
Summary: beautiful photos
Review: This book is hands-down one of the most beautiful picture books on Louisiana's remaining plantation homes. While most are in exquisite condition, there are a very few which aren't. The short story of each plantation home is interesting and the photographs are gorgeous! It makes one want to go out, find a plantation home, buy it and restore it! The reader will be amazed at the wealth these planters accumulated, manifested in these awesome homes. Not all of the homes are huge antebelllum mansions, though. I personally found the Creole plantations wonderful examples of a simple albeit beautiful home. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves old homes, Southern architecture or photography in general.

Rating:
Summary: Breathtaking Photography, Interesting Commentary
Review: This book is hands-down one of the most beautiful picture books on Louisiana's remaining plantation homes. While most are in exquisite condition, there are a very few which aren't. The short story of each plantation home is interesting and the photographs are gorgeous! It makes one want to go out, find a plantation home, buy it and restore it! The reader will be amazed at the wealth these planters accumulated, manifested in these awesome homes. Not all of the homes are huge antebelllum mansions, though. I personally found the Creole plantations wonderful examples of a simple albeit beautiful home. I would recommend this book to anyone who loves old homes, Southern architecture or photography in general.

Rating:
Summary: fantastic photography
Review: This is a great book for anyone who is interested in plantation homes. It has over 80 wonderful photographs, and tells the story of each home shown. There are even two or three victorian style homes, built in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Very interesting and informative. I would recommend this book to anyone, wether your buying it for the information or the photographs!