If These Walls Had Ears: The Biography of a House

I had the pleasure of meeting the author at a book signing twelve years ago in Little Rock, where he was speaking about the book and the house itself. Having grown up in old houses myself, I was intrigued by his idea and bought the book (which James Morgan signed). My daughter and I then went in search of the actual house and discovered that we walked by it every month, as it was just a few blocks from our hair salon. We began to feel...amusingly enough...somewhat touched by celebrity when we walked by. The book goes into great detail about the history of the neighborhood and the house itself, as well as its inhabitants. The author tends to meander a bit in the telling, slipping away from the story at hand and into the breakup of his former marriage, but the lapses are brief and not offensively intrusive. Overall, I adored this book and would absolutely love to have been able to do the same thing with my favorite childhood home. Maybe someday, I will do just that.

A house is an aggregate relic of all the people who have lived there, recording their improvements or their neglect. The author writes an interesting chronicle of the house's former inhabitants. It's disconcerting to reflect upon the fact that others owned our home before us, and we will leave it to others when we're gone. It's a reminder of how temporary our lives are, in our few hours upon the stage. Each generation, with all its hubris, is only a chapter, or a few pages, within the book of life.

Morgan has done here what every old house owner has dreamed of doing: answering the question "what history occurred here before we arrived?" In telling the rich stories of the people who preceded him as owners of this particular Craftsman bungalow in one old neighborhood of a single city, he spins a wonderful tale of our nations's history as well.

Jim Morgan gets most (but not all) of his facts straight, approaching his subjects with an affecting blend of humor, compassion, and both human and architectural insights. IF THESE WALLS HAD EARS: THE BIOGRAPHY OF A HOUSE offers up eight families' worth of bittersweet reminiscences, ruminations and recriminations comingled with the author's own personal reflections on this whale of a house. Portions of the book are uneven and a bit awkward as Morgan transitions between the families' and his own perceptions and his narration. But overall, it's an interesting and enjoyable read which should resonate truly with anyone who has ever experienced the mixed blessings of home ownership -- or found themselves haplessly ensnared by a four-walled moneypit.Ed and Sheri Kramer: Chapter Ten

I personally know the author of this book and I found it to be a very good read. Well written and a very unique story!