Straw poll.

BUILDING WITH STRAW

By Gernot Minke and Friedemann Mahlke. Basel: Birkhauser. 2005. [euro]39.50

How many of us must have larked around on haystacks as children and disturbed neatly stacked bales in order to make snug little houses? There is something very satisfying about building with bales, perhaps because the end result is so quickly achieved. However, there can be snags as there always are with things that look simple--and one of the attractive qualities of this book is the frankness with which common problems and mistakes in straw building are discussed, not least errors made by the two authors themselves, both architects and lecturers at the Department of Architecture at Kassel University.

The book begins with a brief history of straw bale building, followed by a chapter on the basics of straw as a building material. The construction of walls, roofs and floors is fully described, with many alternatives clearly illustrated by line drawings and sequential photographs to explain the building process. Internal and external wall finishes are also covered in detail, mostly lime- and earth-based plasters. Whether one is a builder or an architect, all the salient facts seem to be here, and to conclude the book, there is a collection of case studies from around the world, including a few about buildings that didn't work. The range of examples is well chosen geographically (from Australia to Russia, with many from the USA and Germany/Austria en route) and stylistically (from wood-butcher/Steiner to the cool rational). Some disguise the use of straw bale completely (so you wonder why it was used), others positively revel in the plastic qualities offered by bendy straw bales covered with lime or earth render.

The only hesitation I have is a general one about books written in English for a global readership but by non-English authors. Technical words and phrases are sometimes idiosyncratic to the point of being misleading, even incorrect. The short chapter about cost, insurance and planning permission hardly does justice to these issues, which must differ from country to country. But this quibble apart, the book is a concise and useful introduction to straw bale building wherever you are.