Atlantic Hearth: Early Homes and Families of Nova Scotia

Janet Arnett is the former campus manager of adult education at Ontario’s Georgian College. She is the author of Antiques and Collectibles: Starting Small, The Grange at Knock, and 673 Ways to Save Money.

In a work overflowing with the small, fascinating details that come only
from an all-out research effort, Byers and McBurney present a new
approach to the history of Nova Scotia.

The wars, settlement patterns, politics, advances in business and
industry, and all the other benchmarks of a traditional history are
here, but in a different context. The authors have taken an original
approach to structuring a history by making houses and the families that
lived in them the central theme to which all data must connect.

The divisions within the book conform to the usual geographic and
tourist divisions of the province: Halifax, South Shore, French Shore
and Annapolis Valley, Eastern Shore, and Cape Breton. For each section,
notable houses are described and discussed, with the accounts of the
early owners branching out to touch on most of the subjects found in a
traditional history. The book is written in a very readable, informal
style, yet does not sacrifice accuracy for stylistic effect.

Numerous photos of old Nova Scotia homes illustrate the book.
Unfortunately, the photos—most of which are very good quality—have
not been given adequate space in the page layouts. All are small; some
are literally postage-stamp size. This is a significant weakness in an
otherwise excellent social history.