back cover] Now a proud symbol of America's agrarian history and a reminder of an era when early settlers built a new life from scratch, the barn holds a special place in the hearts of Americans across the country. This charming book is an unashamedly nostalgic celebration of this great architectural icon. [front flap] This beautiful book is an homage to what could be called America's truest native architecture, the cathedrals of the plains. Each page features magnificent color photographs of barns of all shapes and sizes, from the Dutch barns of early German settlers to the vast Prairie barns of the 19th century and the classic round Shaker barn. Whether wooden or stone, Vermont red or lime-washed in creamy white, barns are a delightful and distinctive sight against a backdrop of verdant green plains or rich furrowed earth. Conjuring images of long days spent in the fields, they also evoke wonderful memories of the smell of newly harvested hay and freshly chopped wood. Each photograph is accompanied by extracts from some of America's greatest writers and thinkers, including John Steinbeck, Theodore Roosevelt, Washington Irving, and Nathaniel Hawthorne. [back flap] Wynn Wheldon, an Englishman, is an avid observer of American customs, arts, and crafts.

He has published two previous books with American themes and has contributed articles to major British newspapers and magazines, including "The Daily Telegraph, The Independent on Sunday, and "Homes and Gardens.