Rating: 
Summary: The Not-So-Special Book
Review: This popular sequel to the well known Not So Big House in no way commands a five star rating. Written in the style of a magazine article rather than that of a well conceived book, the same ideas surface in the same way each chapter. And with only a few ideas to kick around this is not unsursprising. Very light reading indeed.
On the redeeming side, the last two chapters of the book compare a relatively inexpensive house to a more complex and costly one which use very similar floor plans. Differences are instructively pointed out and explained.
If you already bought the first book though, idea-wise there isn't much more here. It's all about casual open floor plans, spiced up with modulating ceiling heights and built-ins. What is more, when one looks into the origins of the open floor plan, i.e., in the works of Gustav Stickley and others, it becomes clear how little more than a popularizer of their ideas Susanka really is.
In short, unless you are a big fan of the author, it's probably better to flip through it at the bookstore over a cup of coffee, enjoying the nice pictures, and leave it on the table for the next guy.
Rating: 
Summary: Beautiful to look at......
Review: .....but hard to achieve unless one has lots of money to spend. Ms. Susanka has written another lovely-to-look-at book, with many good ideas which other reviewers have more than adequately described. I too wish that more home designers put some thought into the aesthetics of what they are creating. The problem with this book, and with her previous one, is that the "look" and "feel" she espouses are so far beyond the realm of financial possibility for most people. I wish that her next book would be more realistic and address the issues of how to achieve such aesthetics without spending a fortune. That kind of book would be a BIG help to most home buyers. I liked that this book traversed the United States and that many architects were represented in it. I have been lucky enough to have built four custom-designed homes over the past 25 years. This kind of home is incredibly pricey to build. I incorporated some of Ms. Susanka's ideas from her first book in the last house which I built and they were great ideas - but very expensive to achieve. One previous reviewer mention McMansions and their cookie-cutter designs....Perhaps this book will give some buyers- who have the wherewithall to build such houses -the confidence to spend some of their money on a better design.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Supplement
Review: A terrific book, though only as a supplement to the original, which might be necessary to have around to understand some of the ideas. To that extent it might be considered a bit overpriced. But that aside, the theme of making a lot out of smaller space couldn't be presented better. The illustrations are fabulous and helpful, and while some of the houses appear to have been built with more than a modest budget, the ideas can easily be converted to a smaller monetary scale. A great idea mine for turning your small house into your dream home.
Rating:
Summary: Overpriced for what it is...
Review: Although this book shares some interesting ideas and several spectacular design solutions to severe space constraints, I have two complaints about the format. The first is that you really need to have read the first "Not So Big House" book to understand the concepts illustrated here; as such, this book is really a supplement, and, I think, doesn't justify the hefty price tag. Second, many of the houses shown are built by people with, apparently, ample budgets; it would have been nice to see a discussion about how much the projects cost, to give those of us who aren't lawyers or executives an idea of what we can expect before consulting an architect.
Rating: 
Summary: explains older concepts
Review: As far as I can see almost all of her ideas are based on the work of Christopher Alexander who wrote "A Pattern Language" and "The Timeless Way of Building" in the late 70's. I suggest readers look up these titles. They will change the way you look at your environment forever.
Rating: 
Summary: INTERESTING CONCEPTS AND DESIGNS!
Review: Bigger is not necessarily better or more beautiful; more space can sometimes mean unutilized space and more clutter. Unless one has a large family, one might be better off to invest any extra dollars in smaller home. Personally, I like cozy, comfortable living and find maintenance and daily upkeep are much easier and that simplifies my life enormously. Whether your preferance is a small cottage by the sea, a city apartment dwelling or a rural farmhouse, the reader will find 25 designs in this book that are each unique in their own way. I particularly like the Rhode Island cottage, perhaps because I am one of those baby boomers who traded in the rat race of city living for a life by the sea, better known as the "cashing out" trend. Whatever your preference, the reader is bound to find a design that suits their location, family size and living style. With a little creativity one could also tailor these designs to suit their own individual needs and, of course, one's budget. The author has come up with a well-developed book and it is certainly worth owning if you are planning to build or renovate your own home.
Rating:
Summary: Small Can Be Better--a voice in the wilderness
Review: Creating the Not So Big House appears at a time when it often appears that publishers have forgotten the art and science of quality editing, design and production. This is that rare type of book that reads and informs as much as it is a pleasure to leaf through, enjoying the pictures. Although it shares the beautiful photography and high quality printing characteristic of "coffee table" books, Creating the Not So Big House is organized around a few key concepts which resonate through it. These concepts can forever change the way readers approach building their next home or their next renovation. Sarah Susanka shows how "less can be more" if attention is paid to the subtle details of architecture and craftsmanship. Sarah Susanka describes dozens of detailed techniques that quality-oriented homeowners can use to avoid impersonal "trophy homes." She describes how large rooms can be made intimate through simple techniques like varying floor levels or ceiling heights. Sarah Susanka is a humanist who translates her passion for creating friendly homes into everyday language and examples. You don't have to be an architect to appreciate her message.
Rating:
Summary: More great ideas from Susan Susanka
Review: Here, Susan Susanka picks up where she left off in The Not So Big House. In some places, it seems that this book is almost a response to the negative reviews in this forum of her first book. One of the most important additions is a sidebar on page nine, where she clarifies the meaning of Not So Big:
". as a rule of thumb, a Not So Big House is approximately a third smaller than your original goal but about the same price as your original budget. The magic is that although the house is smaller in square footage, it actually feels bigger. I'm not advocating that people live in small houses and get used to feeling cramped. A Not So Big House feels more spacious than many of its oversized neighbors because it is space with substance, all of it in use every day."
In summary, this is not a way to save money, but a way to use the existing budget more effectively. The money saved on square footage is invested in the little things that make a house a home: built i!n bookcases, storage solutions, clutter areas, reading nooks, and other architectural features which most designers omit.
In principal, there is no reason these ideas could not be applied to any style and to any budget. Susanka unwittingly raised the first question in her original book, when many critics complained of the sameness of design. She answers it here. The bulk of the work is a survey of 25 projects of other architects from around the country. Because so many designers are represented, we see a much greater variety of styles in this book.
If there is a common thread among these projects, it is the use of partial walls, which divide spaces while keeping sight lines open. Rooms are constructed on a modest scale, but seem larger because of the design. Spaces are also defined by variations in ceiling heights, a device which can be as inexpensive as a soffit. The designers also put a lot of thought into built ins and other little touches which make a big di!fference everyday living. There is also a great deal of good design here, and some (but not all) of the ideas can be achieved without a large budget.
The organization of the book invites browsing. One tends to pick out sections in random order rather than cover to cover. There is a great deal in this book which doesn't appeal to me as an idea for my own house, but I still enjoy the range of ideas which are represented here.
In her final chapters, the author raises, but does not settle, the second question: whether such designs are possible for a project on a tight budget. She talks at great length about the factors which add to the cost of a house. In the two final examples, both from her own firm, she presents two versions of the same house: the Back to Basics House, and the Whole Nine Yards House. The two use the same basic footprint, but there the resemblance ends. The first uses inexpensive materials and a minimum of detailing. Visual interest was added with !careful attention to paint color and occasional lowered soffits. The second house makes extensive use of wood and stone, bump-outs, a shed dormer and other features which double the price of the house. It is a fascinating discussion, and by itself worth the cost of the book.
Since the source of her material is other architects, the projects presented here tend to be on the expensive side. If money is the ultimate concern, it is hard to justify an architect's fee. In addition, the construction of homes follows the same economic laws as the manufacture of any other product, whether it be computers or automobiles. Truly affordable products are produced in large quantities on an assembly line. As customization increases, so does the price. Even though homes are built one at a time, tract home builders (who build the homes that most of us live in) find economies of scale which allow them to compete on price. The projects featured here involve quite a bit of design, and that !alone places a limit on their affordability.
The plans for many of these houses are available by mail order. That is a major step in the right direction. If a tract home builder ever picks up on these principles, that is when we will start to see a major impact. That is something we can all look forward to.
Rating:
Summary: Absolutely Fabulous
Review: I am interested in building a house that reflects me and my family. I also want one that fits. I want enough space to do what we do, without having to purchase a cavernous place. This book and the companion ( "The Not So Big House" ) showed me how this is possible. I loved it and have purchased it for a like minded friend.
Rating:
Summary: Not as good as the original
Review: I bought this book having enjoyed the original Not So Big House, but I found this book to be disappointing - it is very repetitive and doesn't contain any new ideas. All the examples are much in the same style (lots of wood, 1980s style open layouts etc) and the advice is repetitive (lower soffits ...). The look would be very expensive to achieve, and the book doesn't cater for real-life "not so big" circumstances, like how to deal with small blocks of land with neighbouring dwellings close by (e.g. terrace houses). The interior design and finishings depicted are also quite dated, neither classic nor contemporary.
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