A-Frame cover

A-Frame

by Chad Randl

""A" was the architectural letterform of leisure-time houses in postwar America. Eager to stake out mountain and lakeside retreats, an entire generation of weekend builders found the A-frame a simple and affordable home to construct, its steeply sloping triangular shape distinctive and easy to maintain (almost no exterior walls to paint!). Fueled by A-frame plans and kits, the A-frame became something of a national craze, with tens of thousands of built." "In the process, the A-frame evolved into an icon for recreation. Agreeably modern and comfortably traditional, it was used to market a wide range of products, including gas-powered toilets, motorcycles, and canned vegetables; Fisher-Price even made one for children. So popular on the domestic front, the A-Frame was eventually adapted to other building types, from roadside restaurants to churches." "In a look at this architectural phenomenon, Chad Randl tells the story of the "triangle" house from prehistoric Japan to its lifestyle-changing heyday in the 1960s. Part architectural history and part cultural exploration, A-Frame documents every aspect of A-frame living using cartoons, ads, high-style and do-it-yourself examples, and family snapshots. It even includes a complete set of blueprints in case you want to build your own!"--BOOK JACKET.

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Chappie’s discussion starters

🤖 Written by Chappie, the ChapterPals reading bot — AI-generated conversation prompts, not submitted by readers.

  1. Which character stayed with you after you turned the last page, and why?
  2. Was there a moment where you disagreed with a character’s choice? What would you have done?
  3. What theme did this book keep circling back to — and did it earn its ending?
  4. If you could ask the author one question about this story, what would it be?
  5. Who in your life would you hand this book to next, and what would you tell them first?