Organize Your Home : Revised Simple Routines for Managing Your Household

Rating:
Summary: Save your money; this book is a waste of time!
Review: After reading Don Aslett's anti-clutter book, "Not for Packrats Only," I thought this book might help in organizing the items I didn't throw away. However, this book advocates overorganization that creates even more clutter!

Many of the ideas presented in this book are just ridiculous: (1) developing a system to organize artwork that you no longer use (rather than donating or selling it), (2) making double or triple copies of unnecessary items, like 3 copies of your photo negatives in addition to the photos (3) own 2 irons (in case one goes on the blink), (4) make a chart of the grocery's layout along with a list of which items are on which aisles--as if the store does not have labeled aisles!--and (5) make a list of all your bank account numbers and your family's social security numbers to keep with you--a safety nightmare!!!

I read this book completely, hoping for just one redeeming tidbit, but I was left completely frustrated. Buying this book was a complete waste of money, and I did not even feel comfortable donating this book to Goodwill. I quickly threw it in the garbage....

Rating:
Summary: Great Help!
Review: After reading Don Aslett's anti-clutter book, "Not for Packrats Only," I thought this book might help in organizing the items I didn't throw away. However, this book advocates overorganization that creates even more clutter!

Many of the ideas presented in this book are just ridiculous: (1) developing a system to organize artwork that you no longer use (rather than donating or selling it), (2) making double or triple copies of unnecessary items, like 3 copies of your photo negatives in addition to the photos (3) own 2 irons (in case one goes on the blink), (4) make a chart of the grocery's layout along with a list of which items are on which aisles--as if the store does not have labeled aisles!--and (5) make a list of all your bank account numbers and your family's social security numbers to keep with you--a safety nightmare!!!

I read this book completely, hoping for just one redeeming tidbit, but I was left completely frustrated. Buying this book was a complete waste of money, and I did not even feel comfortable donating this book to Goodwill. I quickly threw it in the garbage....

Rating:
Summary: Save your money; this book is a waste of time!
Review: After reading Don Aslett's anti-clutter book, "Not for Packrats Only," I thought this book might help in organizing the items I didn't throw away. However, this book advocates overorganization that creates even more clutter!

Many of the ideas presented in this book are just ridiculous: (1) developing a system to organize artwork that you no longer use (rather than donating or selling it), (2) making double or triple copies of unnecessary items, like 3 copies of your photo negatives in addition to the photos (3) own 2 irons (in case one goes on the blink), (4) make a chart of the grocery's layout along with a list of which items are on which aisles--as if the store does not have labeled aisles!--and (5) make a list of all your bank account numbers and your family's social security numbers to keep with you--a safety nightmare!!!

I read this book completely, hoping for just one redeeming tidbit, but I was left completely frustrated. Buying this book was a complete waste of money, and I did not even feel comfortable donating this book to Goodwill. I quickly threw it in the garbage....

Rating:
Summary: Great Help!
Review: Highly recommend this book! As someone who never has time between work and family to keep track of where things are in my house or get the necessary things done around the house, this book helped me to start tackling the chaos. The routines really are simple, the approach is clear. As our home came together in a less frenetic way, our family life has improved too. This book is a really great help!

Rating:
Summary: Not a bunch of touchy-feely fluff!
Review: I love a rich, meandering, thoughtful book on imbuing your house with a sense of its denizens and making it a refuge and spiritual haven as much as the next person.

HOWEVER!

A book like that (and there are so many...) is next to useless when you're trying to recreate the Swiss-timing precision of your childhood home where you were raised with 5 other children by a divorced mom and nothing ever got lost and no one was ever late for anything.

The key words: direct, concrete, clear, simple, specific, uncompromising. The authors get down to the minutiae so that you can finally get a chance to think about the big stuff.

Rating:
Summary: A disappointment
Review: This book offers advice on uncluttering your home but it it simplistic and focuses on superficial "uncluttering" rather than long-term solutions. I have been reading Cheryl Mendelson's "Home Comforts" which is fabulous. I thought this book might have something to add but it doesn't. Save your money.